The Left-Right political spectrum
The political spectrum from left to right or visa-versa is in fact a spectrum which contains all shades & colors like the rainbow. It is a spectrum about how much government a person wants or thinks there should be. Strangely, when you follow the extremes of communism & nazism which opposed each other it turned the straight line into a circle & met up at totalitarianism . So how much government do you want??
In the end, nobody is strictly left or strictly right if he/she/it is balanced mentally.
- Private Individual action versus government action (General) - one could stop here
- also privatization of government functions.
- Zero sum game in economics - there is only so much wealth & if someone is wealthy it means someone else is poor because of it (agree...disagree) - goes to tax policy as well (tiered tax versus flat tax) .. the tax policy lets Congress redistribute wealth.
- Socialized medicine ... everyone gets the same quality medical care regardless of ability to pay (single-payer)
- Socialized anything ... education, energy, social security ...(nationalizing certain industries for the public welfare &/or price controls ) or on the other hand deregulation.
- Judicial - strong judicial activism versus strict constructionism (who do you want to make the laws - congress or ultimately the Supreme Court?)
- Role of religion - first ammendment arguments - does the government enforce the strict removal of all religion from the public square (including schools) or can it let all communities decide on their own (is atheism a religion? does mentioning god violate the Constitution?) - may include abortion rights if not covered in #5.
- States Rights versus central Government - we are a Democratic Republic form of government by virtue of our constitution NOT parliamentary. Should government throw out the electorial college & individual states & go for a direct election of the president etc.
- Globalism versus Nationalism - do you think from the standpoint of the USA or from the World first ? Is the UN good or bad? Is US soverignty important? How much do you care about what other countries say about the US? This also goes to open borders & immigration - should the US welcome anyone that wants to come to America ? This also covers foreign policy & strong military.
- Capitalism - does it need reforming to redistribute wealth better or should markets & reward for individual initiative & striving for the American Dream be the driving factors.
- Environmental Sustainability - individual action & education versus national education & restrictions, rationing & regulation.
In the end, nobody is strictly left or strictly right if he/she/it is balanced mentally.

Tags
- left-right
- leftrightism
Comments
Mark de LA says
Another one that may or not be covered in the above list is the use of polls. Do you believe that the government should listen to polls or ignore them and run the government on principles?
Another one that may or not be covered in the above list is the use of polls. Do you believe that the government should listen to polls or ignore them and run the government on principles?
Seth says
Good analysis
. I'll respond more substantively as time permits. My own node on this is On Seth's Ramblings. For me this is more of an inquiry than a statement or manifesto. I am trying to train my ear. You analisis will help, thanks.
Good analysis

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