About The Political Compass™
In the introduction, we explained the inadequacies of the traditional left-right line.
In the introduction, we explained the inadequacies of the
traditional left-right line.
If we recognise that this is essentially an economic line it's fine, as far
as it goes.
We can show, for example, Stalin,
Mao Tse Tung and Pol Pot, with their commitment to
a totally controlled
economy, on the hard left. Socialists
like Mahatma Gandhi and
Robert Mugabe would occupy
a less extreme leftist position. Margaret Thatcher
would be well over to
the right, but further right still would be
someone like that
ultimate free marketeer, General Pinochet.
That deals with economics, but the social dimension is also important in
politics.
That's the one that the mere left-right
scale doesn't adequately address.
So we've added one, ranging in positions from extreme authoritarian to
extreme libertarian. 
Both an economic dimension and a social dimension are important factors
for a proper
political analysis. By adding the social dimension you
can show that Stalin was an
authoritarian leftist (ie the state is more
important than the individual) and that Gandhi,
believing in the supreme
value of each individual, is a liberal leftist. While the former
involves
state-imposed arbitary collectivism in the extreme top left, on the
extreme
bottom left is voluntary collectivism at regional level, with
no state involved. Hundreds
of such anarchist communities exisited in
Spain during the civil war period
You can also put Pinochet, who was prepared to sanction mass killing
for the sake
of the free market, on the far right as well as in a hardcore
authoritarian position.
On the non-socialist side you can distinguish
someone like Milton Friedman, who is
anti-state for fiscal rather than
social reasons, from Hitler, who wanted to make the
state stronger,
even if he wiped out half of humanity in the process.
The chart also makes clear that, despite popular perceptions, the opposite
of fascism
is not communism
but anarchism (ie liberal socialism), and that the opposite of
communism
( i.e. an entirely state-planned economy) is neo-liberalism
(i.e. extreme
deregulated economy) 
The usual understanding of anarchism as a left wing ideology does not take
into
account the neo-liberal
"anarchism" championed by the likes of Ayn Rand, Milton
Friedman and
America's Libertarian Party,
which couples social Darwinian right-wing
economics with liberal positions
on most social issues.
Often their libertarian impulses
stop short of opposition to strong law and
order positions, and are more
economic in
substance (ie no taxes) so they are not as extremely
libertarian as they are extremely
right wing.
On the other hand, the classical libertarian collectivism of
anarcho-syndicalism
( libertarian socialism)
belongs in the bottom left hand corner.
In our home page we demolished the myth that authoritarianism is necessarily
"right wing",
with the examples of
Robert Mugabe, Pol Pot and Stalin. Similarly Hitler, on an economic
scale,
was not an extreme right-winger.
His economic policies were broadly Keynesian,
and to the left of some of
today's Labour parties.
If you could get Hitler and Stalin to sit
down together and avoid economics,
the two diehard
authoritarians would find plenty
of common ground.
Your political compass
Economic Left/Right: -5.75
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -2.51
 Show graph on separate page for printing
A brilliant conversation piece for your office or study ...
Join 24 caricatures of your most loved and loathed political
figures in a
personalised colour certificate that you can
load into your browser, and print in moments.
It's beautifully designed by political cartoonist Ralph
Izzard and serves as a
permanent record of your position on the Compass,
and the political company you keep.
It's also a means of helping us to maintain and develop the concept
and the site, while keeping it entirely advertising-free.
Now you know where you are on The Political Compass™,
you might like
to explore the ideas of those with similar
(or wildly differing) views
on our Reading List. A Word about Neo-cons and Neo-libs
U.S.neo-conservatives, with their commitment to high military spending
and the
global assertion of national values, tend to be more
authoritarian than hard right.
By contrast, neo-liberals, opposed to
such moral leadership and, more especially,
the ensuing demands on the
tax payer, belong to a further right but less authoritarian region.
Paradoxically, the "free market", in neo-con parlance, also allows for
the large-scale
subsidy of the military-industrial complex, a
considerable degree of corporate welfare,
and protectionism when deemed
in the national interest.
These are viewed by neo-libs
as impediments to the unfettered market
forces that they champion.
International Chart
A diverse professional team has assessed the words and actions
of
internationally known contemporary leaders to give you an idea of how
they
relate to each other on the political compass. 
We regret the present exclusion of some major leaders,
especially in
the developing world. This is due to our inability so
ar to contact
independent experts.
How You Can Help Us
A great deal of effort lies behind the development of The Political
Compass,
and the realisation of
it in practical form. It has occasionally come to our attention
that
other sites have tried to exploit our work by copying it, adopting our
name,
or
linking to us in a dishonest fashion.
If you should come across any such sites, please let us
know, so that we can
take appropriate action.
A few critics believe that we should blow with prevailing political winds and
narrow the actual parameters. Please see our FAQ 20.
Thanks from the Political Compass team.
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