Political Compass Thread

[angus]

I"m having a -2/-5 day, apparently.

Economic Left/Right: -1.88
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -4.97

I notice that my high/low score doesn't vary much from -5, no matter my mood or how my stocks are doing, or whatever.

But I notice that my left/right score bounces around quite a bit.  I've taken this test maybe 8 or 9 times and my economic score has been as low as -4 and as high as +3, roughly.

Guess I'm a Moody Centrist with a Slight Anarchist Accent.

[angus]

Nader = Gandhi
Badnarik = Friedman
Bush = Sharon
Peroutka = Thatcher
Kerry = Martin
Cobb = Mandela
angus = dalai lama
huckleberry finn = His Holiness
phillip = chirac
waltermitty = a slightly more anarchist version of tony blair 

[angus]

actually, I thought Senator Edwards was a pretty good call

no offense, man 

[angus]

Economic Left/Right: 7.12
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -3.13

This may shock some of you, but my economic score was the exact opposite in March of this year. 0_o

My social score hasn't changed a bit.

Wow. So you basically used to be me, until March. :-)

Not really. I think the thing kinda scores you towards the left, intentionally or not. You see very few 10s in the right side, but many on the left. Plus there is the fact that some of the questions just plain suck. In reality I was only moderate-left economically.

all true.  I'm a centrist, but I generally get low negatives (e.g., varying from -4 to 1, typically) on the economic scale.  But, as I commented before, on the populist vs. anarchist scale, it seems to bear out the posts of most of the posters.  don't you think?

Also, dibble = milton friedman 

[angus]

Economic Left/Right: 7.12
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -3.13

This may shock some of you, but my economic score was the exact opposite in March of this year. 0_o

My social score hasn't changed a bit.

Wow. So you basically used to be me, until March. :-)

Not really. I think the thing kinda scores you towards the left, intentionally or not. You see very few 10s in the right side, but many on the left. Plus there is the fact that some of the questions just plain suck. In reality I was only moderate-left economically.

all true.  I'm a centrist, but I generally get low negatives (e.g., varying from -4 to 1, typically) on the economic scale.  But, as I commented before, on the populist vs. anarchist scale, it seems to bear out the posts of most of the posters.  don't you think?

Also, dibble = milton friedman 

Yeah, it's somewhat more accurate on social issues, though only if the answers reflect your political views on them. I know a few Libertarians who are Christian fundamentalists, yet at the same time they think the state should allow gay marriage(though not their church), let people do drugs, and make all sorts of decisions they view as sinful. They'd score a positive on the compass, but they would really be a negative politically.

This Milton Friedman? Aww shucks, I'm not that much of an economics expert, I just had a good economics book to learn from. I'll look it up later.

EDIT - The book I used was called Principles of Microeconomics. I highly recommend it to everyone who wants to understand how the market works. There's a macroeconomics book by the same author as well. I'd get that if I had the cash to spare, but until my income increases my personal demand curve won't shift to the right.

nifty, I had Mankiw's "Principles of Macroconomics" for the macroeconomics course I took, but for microeconomics I think I had a book called "Microeconomics" by Browning and Browning (?).  They're all pretty much the same.  Interesting topic.  But remember, you do have to buy into some assumptions in order to draw the conclusions of Price Theory.  And some of them are a bit of a stretch (the old ceteris paribus, for example, since all things never really are equal, and for another, the assumption of freedom of market forces to adjust to equilibrium, since they don't take into account tariffs, trade laws, communist states, etc.)  Still, I must admit that the courses were profoundly influential on me.  Up to that point I had been a card-carrying dues-paying member of the Socialist Workers Party.  After the course I lurched right a bit and became a Socialist.  Over the years I eventually drifted rightward to a Clintonite, and there I stuck.  Thus the centrist economic score (give or take some points depending on my mood) and the mid-negative libertarian score (~ -5).  Still, I remain absolutely convinced that Bush is a better man for this job at this time than Kerry.  Though I have been persuaded to vote for 3d party pres. candidates in the past.  Maybe next time.  Keep campaigning!

[angus]

masses in Ordinary Time will do that to ya.

wait till Lent!  you'll be a -10/+10 by then.

[angus]

masses in Ordinary Time will do that to ya.

wait till Lent!  you'll be a -10/+10 by then.

Lent? masses? Im a Baptist

ah, like Bill Clinton. 

yeah, okay.  still, all that plate-passing makes folks a bit more socialist, don't ya think?  you'll become progressively more plutocratic as the workweek wears on you.  It's a cycle.

[angus]

You hover to my right, and I certainly don't consider myself a leftist.  (in fact, I'm a registered republican in california, but don't tell anyone!)  I'd call you a centrist. 

[angus]

Economic Left/Right: -3.50
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -2.88
 

 
 

I think you should consider changing parties with a score like that.

what should he change to colin? seems like a pretty typical democratic score

Thats what I was implying.

not the way to build a big tent

you must be one of those scorched-earth republicans! 

[angus]

 redefeatbush04,
I didn't mean to put down your efforts.  you obviously put quite a bit of work into your compendium of political and social leanings, and I'm sure it will be a good reference.  someone did this before.  Lidaker maybe?  back in about march?  but the list is interesting.  a potential problem is that we look at it and say, oh, okay Gabu and ilikeverin are close to me, so I'll watch their posts to see what they say.  this is a danger.  For example, Peterbell comes very close to me economically, but is generally a twit and manages to piss me off with almost every post he makes.  (I assume the converse holds as well.)  so be careful not to use this list as a source of Gospel.  Don't think that just because King and Cashcow (a great screenname, by the way) are close to you politically, you always have to buy into everything they say.  Many of the problems our congress has is due precisely to this phenomenon.  For example, right now I'm watching Kind (D-WI) and Inslee (D-WA) on CSPAN debate an energy bill (debate is the wrong word, as they're deep into a mutual masturbation fest just now).  The problem is, Kind makes great sense.  He talks about moving the US forward, making us independent of foreign oil by investing in alternate energy research, etc, whereas Inslee is going off on partisan tangents about how "we're falling behind the Danes, for god's sake..." and how when "our children ask us about an extinct animal called the Polar Bear, what will we tell them?" and...  well, you get the point.  One is a reasonable member of the House trying to get the congress to consider reasonable proposals, while the other is a total jackass enjoying the fight.  But, because they're both on the "same side" they'll be lumped together.

In no way do I mean to impugn your attempt to organize the general leanings of the posters.  In fact, I appreciate the effort.  I will refer to it often, as sometimes such data can be helpful to analyses, but be careful about taking it as a necessary guide to truth or political aliance.

[angus]

haven't we all:

Economic Left/Right: -3.25
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -5.03


three and a quarter is my leftmost score yet, and I got it with a clean mind in the morning, taking the test before I read any newspapers or any on-line or radio or TV accounts of current events.

It's not unusual for my economic score to bounce around, though, and I've noted that my anarchist/authoritarian score hasn't changed.  It is always around -5.  Having taken the test about ten times over the past year I conclude that my politics are somewhat flexible, responding to external stimuli, and generally are pulled rightward when I start reading the news.  My up down score remains unaffected though.

anyone else notice this effect?

[angus]

Economic Left/Right: -3.38
Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -4.92


blame it on Deutsche Telekom.

[angus]

oh yeah, well, I still liked you better as a naked, overweight, bearded pentagenarian with poor eyesight.