[Recovering_Democrat]

I saw this ages ago on FR, but I don't recall a discussion as to where some of get "plotted down" on the chart. The survey not only charts where one is on an "economic" scale, but also on a "social" scale.

I find it fascinating...and here are the results of my chart:

Economic Left/Right: 6.38 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 3:54

Interestingly, I am apparently closer to Silvio Berlusconi than G.W. Bush.

[Qwinn]

I don't trust the way a lot of these questions are worded. There are many implicit assumptions in the way the questions are asked, in the context in which they would be answered today.

For example - "Military action that defies international law is sometimes justified." One would expect those who favored the Iraq war to vote "Agree" and those who didn't, "Disagree". But in that is the implicit assumption, which was promulgated by our incredibly liberal media, that the Iraq war -did- violate international law. Not only did it not violate international law, there is only one war in history that had arguably more -sanction- according to international law - the Korean War. Legally, the war we just went through in Iraq was a continuation of the '91 Gulf War, and as such was more in compliance with international law than virtually any other. But most people don't realize that.

The fact that many of these questions are wrapped around the premises that the media's liberal false propaganda has been most effective in disseminating is what makes me very suspicious of it's usefulness.

Qwinn

[FrogMom]

I agree that I don't like the way some of the questions are worded. I'd love to see how they do their figuring since this shows me at about the same locus as Wesley Clark and I know for a fact that Dubya (even though I love him) is sometimes too liberal for my taste.

[jocon307]

LOL, good post, good quiz.

I am pleased to see that I am nearly "on point" with my beloved Tony Blair. Mostly center, but leaning somewhat to the authoritarian right.

Didn't even notice where our beloved W falls out, I'll have to go back and check that!

[WinOne4TheGipper]

Economic Left/ Right: 8.75
Social Libertarian/ Authoritarian: 2.92

I'm going to go take the World's Shortest Political Quiz and compare.

[Wilhelm Tell]

That was interesting. I scored:
Economic Left/Right: 5.50 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 0.26. Kind of close to Milton Friedman.

That is about what I would expect. I notice that they have Saddam Hussein, Yassir Arafat, and Robert Mugabe clumped together in one corner, close to where they have Stalin. That makes sense.

[Avenger]

I am slightly less authoritarian and slightly right of the Pope John Paul II.

Oh well...

[ClearCase_guy]

Economic Left/Right: 7.38 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 3.03

I agree that some of the questions were difficult to answer because of their wording.

[CzarNicky]

Economic Left/Right: 7.00
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 5.18

[x]

One problem with the quiz is that it doesn't allow people to indicate the statements that they feel indifferent or uncertain about. It's hard to tell whether some bald statements are true or not without a lot of thinking. Some of these propositions demand more an essay to clarify the terms and weigh the prose and cons than simple assent or disagreement.

Another problem is that one can feel something to be true in fact without wanting it to be true, or believe that something should be true morally, but recognize that it won't work in practice. What we approve of and what we would allow people to do are often two very different categories. Growing up means recognizing that what we'd want to be true and what we can expect to work out in practice may be two different things. Unfortunately, ideologists of every stripe resist this realization.

Today, in a highly ideological age, it's commonplace to assume that if one deplores or applauds something that one want's to ban or subsidize it and that one wouldn't speak about it at all, if one didn't want to make it prohibited or compulsory. But there are lots of things that one accepts in other people's behavior without agreeing that they are doing what they "should" morally or ideally. People are also used to making blanket claims of what ideally should or shouldn't be. That's fine and necessary, but many of us are looking more at what's possible and practical in the here and now with the resources we have and with human nature being what it is.

[WinOne4TheGipper]

None of y'all are conservative enough economically.:)

[Darheel]

(Darheel)Your political compass: Economic Left/Right: 7.38 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -0.10

I'm an Arch-Conservative, this result is a no-brainer. I'm more conservative than W. If elected, I promise to end Socialism as we know it.

[gcruse]

Economic Left/Right: 6.50
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -0.15

From the flack my libertarian views generate, I find it hard to believe that I place just barely libertarian.
If it is true, than most everyone you know is authoritarian.

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

Economic Left/Right: 0.50 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 0.87

He he he