Are You Left, Right, or Center?

[RetroJames]

See Poll -

Also, below fee free to say why. EDIT: You might try out this test as well, I said I am center but it looks like I lean a bit to the left after all...http://www.politicalcompass.org/

[GGKoul]

What the hell are you talking about?

[RetroJames]

I'll start.

[RetroJames]

What the hell are you talking about?

As in political and other beliefs.

[ChadTower]

I'm all over the place.  I'm quick, fast, in a hurry.  Don't worry.  Flava's vision ain't blurry.

[GGKoul]

What the hell are you talking about?

As in political and other beliefs.

[RetroJames]

What the hell are you talking about?

As in political and other beliefs.

[ChadTower]

He swallows when he reads about buddy. 

Damn, I gotta stop making those jokes or people will suspect something's up... no, wait, it's not up, it's limp... well, half mast anyway...

[Zakk]

What the hell are you talking about?

As in political and other beliefs.

[RetroJames]

He swallows when he reads about buddy.

[Shape D.]

Center.

The day I decide my views before I know the topic or discussion, Is the day  my vote no longer counts.

[patrickl]

Depends on what you compare it to. In the Netherlands I'm considered to be a right wing fanatic, but compared to political spectrum in the US I'm so far left that I'm practically a commie.

[DrewKaree]

I am the epitiome of left-leaning politics, and patrick IS a commie 

[jbox]

I quite like this site:

http://www.politicalcompass.org/

it makes an attempt to try to sift through political views in a more accurate fashion. For example, is it liberal to believe that a person shouldn't be allowed to smoke in public? Is it conservative to believe that government shouldn't own all of the land?

I do find it surprising that people would need to read a bill first to decide what their opinion is about the underlying topic (ie. are they left/right).   Personally I've never had my opinion changed by the proposition of a law, but I would be happy to agree that I never automatically agree with a bill simply because it comes from a particular political organisation.

[Jabba]

Usually, in Canada, Liberals (Left) are big on spending $$$ on social issues, Conservatives are big on spending $$$ on commerce). I am in business so typically vote Right. Depends on the bozo trying to get into Power though!

[RetroJames]

I quite like this site:

http://www.politicalcompass.org/

it makes an attempt to try to sift through political views in a more accurate fashion. For example, is it liberal to believe that a person shouldn't be allowed to smoke in public? Is it conservative to believe that government shouldn't own all of the land?

I do find it surprising that people would need to read a bill first to decide what their opinion is about the underlying topic (ie. are they left/right).

[mr.Curmudgeon]

Center.

The day I decide my views before I know the topic or discussion, Is the day  my vote no longer counts.

I'm curious as to what issues you've taken a left-leaning stance on? To me you come off as a conservative in moderate clothing.

I get the sense your claiming "center" so you can appear to be unbiased, but in my discussions w/ you, you've taken a right-wing stance a vast majority of the time. That would put you on the right end of the spectrum.

Have you ever voted Democrat?


mrC

[jbox]

That is actually a pretty interesting survey...the second pic is of where the site creators think various historical figures would wind up.

One of things I found extremely interesting, is the real rarity of people who actually support small government in conjunction with strong coporate interests. It's not that they don't exist, it's just not always who they claim to be.

Looks like me and the Mahatma

Hey, don't forget Mandela and the Lama! Want to play bridge with me and Stalin?

BTW: If you haven't looked at the rest of the site yet, you should also take a good look at the Iconochasms section. Very interesting...

[Paul Olson]

I voted center, but the political compass puts me more left.  I'm also right there with Mahatma.  It seems a bit strange, I was raised religious/conservative.  I have noticed a leftward trend in my beliefs  over the last 15 years, since becoming an adult.  I don't think I became anti religious/conservative until 4 or 5 years ago, but it is definitely the way I feel now. 

I voted for Kerry only because he wasn't Bush.  I would have liked to have voted for Nader.  I think his ideas are great, he just seems to be too much of a flake.  Interestingly, if you click on the 2004 election on the political compass site, I am in the exact same spot as Nader.

Political compass aside, I still say center.  Both sides are nuts, and dangerous if left unchecked,  in my opinion.

Paul

[jbox]

*cough*condercet*cough*voting*cough*

Just checking with 1hookedspacecadet, was the topic left vs right or Dempublican vs Republicrat?

[Dexter]

Did the test, I'm around the Nelson mandela, Dalai Llama part of the grid. Not bad company at all. Politically, I'm left of centre so the results are fair.

[nipsmg]

I'm almost EXACTLY w/ spacecadet

[ChadTower]

Otay, Spanky.

First of all, I'm having trouble finding my own posts in this sea of imitators.  I usually scroll down fast and find my avatar.   

Anyway, I tend to be either right or left on issues, not much in between for me.  More right issues than left, but on the surface some of my views could be viewed as leftism.

[Shape D.]

Center.

The day I decide my views before I know the topic or discussion, Is the day  my vote no longer counts.

I'm curious as to what issues you've taken a left-leaning stance on? To me you come off as a conservative in moderate clothing.

I get the sense your claiming "center" so you can appear to be unbiased, but in my discussions w/ you, you've taken a right-wing stance a vast majority of the time. That would put you on the right end of the spectrum.

Have you ever voted Democrat?


mrC

I voted for Kerry

[ChadTower]

I voted for Kerry

Aw man, with that statement and my avatar, that just ain't right.   

[Shape D.]

I voted for Kerry

Aw man, with that statement and my avatar, that just ain't right.   

Bill Clinton was the greatest president ever. 

[DrewKaree]

Bill Clinto0n was the greatest president ever. 

I liked Clintoon as well, but his evil alter-ego in tights always seemed to be getting in the way, trying to score with all the babeth.  All de broads 'cept Hitlery.

[missioncontrol]

checked I don't care but took the test:

Your political compass
Economic Left/Right: -4.63
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 2.05

[GGKoul]

I voted for Kerry

I voted for Paul Martin.  (Liberal Party)

[Grasshopper]

I am:

Economic Left/Right: -6.13
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -6.97

[Shape D.]

Economic Left/Right: -2.13
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -2.21

[mr.Curmudgeon]

ROFL. All these Chad clones are cracking me up.

"More right issues than left, but on the surface some of my views could be viewed as leftism."

You're as righty as I've seen on this board...What views do you have that could be viewed as left-leaning? Seriously, I think you're pulling my leg...


mrC
Economic Left/Right: -8.00
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -5.79

**This puts my almost *exactly* on the opposite end of the spectrum from Boy-King Bush. No wonder I hate him so much.

[Grasshopper]

There's an interesting quiz on that site. Guess who said this:

To occupy Iraq would instantly shatter our coalition, turning the whole Arab world against us and make a broken tyrant into a latter-day hero ... assigning young soldiers to a fruitless hunt for a securely entrenched dictator and condemning them to fight in what would be an un-winnable urban guerilla war. It could only plunge that part of the world into even greater instability.

I'll give you a clue. His surname is Bush.

[ChadTower]

You're as righty as I've seen on this board...What views do you have that could be viewed as left-leaning? Seriously, I think you're pulling my leg...

There are a lot of things I'd  like to see done.  I'd like to see better programs for helping single moms on welfare receive training and education so they can become self sufficient enough to support their kids.  I'd like to see more training programs in general for things like adults who are computer illiterate.  I'd like to see better shelters for abused women and children as well as a vastly improved DYS system so less neglected children fall through the cracks.  I'd like to see better subsidization of health care for children who don't have insurance.

Basically, I'd like to see better programs to help those who NEED it.  No able bodied adults without children should ever be on welfare.  The right leaning part of my approach is that I don't consider open ended financial assistance helpful.  I've seen the welfare system firsthand and it actually punishes those who try to elevate themselves once they're in.  It's designed in such a way that it traps families so they can't get out.  These people need to be taught ways to support themselves, not supported by the gov't.  Sure, they may need some financial support in the short term, but if they are willing to do whatever it takes to learn the skills they need to be self sufficient, I have no problem with that.

I have a good amount of ideas on how to overhaul the system, but the problems with my approach is that while they would be for the common good, they likely would not be electable ideas.

[Shape D.]

I'm curious as to what issues you've taken a left-leaning stance on? To me you come off as a conservative in moderate clothing.

I get the sense your claiming "center" so you can appear to be unbiased, but in my discussions w/ you, you've taken a right-wing stance a vast majority of the time. That would put you on the right end of the spectrum.

mrC
Economic Left/Right: -8.00
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -5.79

Now I know Why you think I'm a Righty.

[Grasshopper]

It's a shame TA Pilot is no longer around. I'd love to see how he scores on that test.

[DrewKaree]

I dunno what to search for, but IIRC, the last time this test was brought up (it was the exact same site, too, if memory serves) he posted his results.

I think he was almost Bush.

[Zakk]

It's a shame TA Pilot is no longer around. I'd love to see how he scores on that test.

Yes, that is a shame, he is a great loss to the arcade controls community, especially his insight on keyboard hacking and advanced wiring tecniques. 

[jbox]

I dunno what to search for, but IIRC, the last time this test was brought up (it was the exact same site, too, if memory serves) he posted his results.

Three other threads come up in the search function for "politicalcompass":

-> Political, but non-partisan and friendly
-> need some help from you political people
-> Wow, who knew?

And just to prove that truth is always stranger then fiction, you will also find certain members from the left and the right agreeing with each other in some of those threads. Sickening!

I think he was almost Bush.

On the lighter side, it took me a minute to work out what swags had to do with politics...


Now I really like this site because I think it's critical to break this cycle of "left vs right" over-simplification we have in our "sound-bite" age. However, I do think it has a slight over-tendancy towards anarchism due to people trying to be 'politically correct'. I would like to see a few more questions about people opressing each other for what we might call "technical" reasons (eg. quarantine, customs duty, smoking, cars, etc...) as opposed to the main race/military questions it asks at the moment, since I strongly suspect that would raise a few people towards the upper left by just a few notches.

[DrewKaree]

We have had the cars debate in bits and pieces here.  That survey was annoying because they felt the need to break it up into a few pages with grouped questions....if they'd have made it two pages with more questions per page, I think they could get more accurate.

I like how they feel they can categorize "famous" people based on "how they might have answered the questions".  That's like saying I'm full of shite because I have brown eyes....wait, bad example 

[jbox]

I like how they feel they can categorize "famous" people based on "how they might have answered the questions".

I can't speak for them personally, but from their FAQ:

4. How can you determine where politicians are honestly at without asking them?
How can you tell where they're honestly at by asking them? Especially around election time. We've relied on reports, parliamentary records, ... and actions that spoke louder than words.

I take that to mean that they attempted to use documented records that expose a person's position (like their voting history) on bills which most closely resemble their questions.

That doesn't seem very hard to me for areas of well documented figures, and highlights that an 'opposition' which rolls over at every opportunity is most likely in general agreement with those in charge, they just want more pie for themselves. It's funny that more people aren't worried about why Monopoly, Duopoly and Oligopoly all rhyme.

Now if you really want to pick on them you should be aiming at how many points are attributed to each question. Is it worse to hate Gays than Black people? Is it better to believe in pre-emptive strikes than secret police? Is libel better than racism? The right to a jury trial more important than the right to a trial without delays? Assigning 'accurate' weights to each question would seem to be the hard part from my experiences.

[Tailgunner]

Economic Left/Right: 3.75
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -1.59

I voted for Bush both times. More accurately, I voted against Gore because of that crap Tipper pulled with the PMRC, and I voted against Kerry to get his ambulance chasing running mate out of politics.

[ChadTower]

4. How can you determine where politicians are honestly at without asking them?

I'm sorry, but this is one of the dumbest questions I've ever seen in my life.  I used to work in tech support, too, so I've seen some things that aren't even credible.  I mean WOW, how could a person think they could draw out an honest answer from a politician on a potential voters' issue?

[KevSteele]

Geez, a lot of extremes in this group!

I'm apparently right where I thought I'd be, hovering around the middle:

Economic Left/Right: 3.25
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 0.77

Although I thought I'd be more socially liberal than I actually am (old age setting in, I guess).

I've always considered myself an independent, or if forced to choose I'd have to go with "Liberal Republican," but even that's inaccurate.

Frankly, my views are all over the map, and are as equally likely to piss off conservatives as they are liberals...

Kevin

[Arcadiac]

Too short to hang left OR right. 
ARCADIAC!

[DrewKaree]

Too short to hang left OR right. 
ARCADIAC!

Arcadiac, you can use the ol' motto:

It CAN'T be "too short", it reaches all the way to my body!