Saturday, February 16, 2008
I don't like labels but...
I like to keep up with the news back in my home town so from time to time I read the Courier Mail online. As I also like to keep up with developments on the internet I opened their technology>internet page. One of the articles described many tests that can be taken on the net to assess different aspects of your personality.
Political compass is a site that finds your place on the political spectrum and compares it with others. This spectrum has four sides. The way you answer the questions will register your position from left to right and from authoritarian to libertarian.
Mine came out almost in the middle of the libertarian left corner. They describe me as a libertarian socialist. Interesting, I accepted that label as a young man from reading George Orwell. I thought I'd mellowed with age and travel but there I am in the middle of this corner. Perhaps I was even further left when I was younger.
What is left wing? To me it means caring for those who are less fortunate than yourself. I believe most of the union movement in Australia has lost the right to be called 'left'. If you compare Australian workers to the world spectrum they already have good wages and conditions. If unionists were truly left, instead of campaigning for more for themselves they'd be fighting for the workers in countries like Cambodia, those whose conditions and pay are a fraction of what workers in Australia have.
How do I (or you for that matter) compare with some leading political figures? The political compass people have taken the trouble to answer questions on behalf of some leading world figures and give them a rating. They rate the Dalai Lama in much the same position as I am. I have no complaints with that. I admire the Dalai Lama greatly and am honoured to be compared with him.
Like to see how others rate? Here's how they rated the parties at the time of the recent Australian election. As you can see I'm not going to be represented too much by these guys. Even Labor is in the authoritarian right corner. And yes, I did vote Green.
Interested in the candidates for the forthcoming US presidential election? Most of them, including the front runners, are in the authoritarian-right corner. I guess that's the way it is. Mike Gravel might be a really cool guy but if the Democrats ran him I think he'd scare the US public too much. They'd vote for the Republican and keep America in the war. Better that Barack or Hillary becomes the Democrat candidate. The odds are that one of them will win and hopefully end the war.
I just find it ironic that the so-called 'free' world is run by so many authoritarian right wingers.
Political compass is a site that finds your place on the political spectrum and compares it with others. This spectrum has four sides. The way you answer the questions will register your position from left to right and from authoritarian to libertarian.
Mine came out almost in the middle of the libertarian left corner. They describe me as a libertarian socialist. Interesting, I accepted that label as a young man from reading George Orwell. I thought I'd mellowed with age and travel but there I am in the middle of this corner. Perhaps I was even further left when I was younger.
What is left wing? To me it means caring for those who are less fortunate than yourself. I believe most of the union movement in Australia has lost the right to be called 'left'. If you compare Australian workers to the world spectrum they already have good wages and conditions. If unionists were truly left, instead of campaigning for more for themselves they'd be fighting for the workers in countries like Cambodia, those whose conditions and pay are a fraction of what workers in Australia have.
How do I (or you for that matter) compare with some leading political figures? The political compass people have taken the trouble to answer questions on behalf of some leading world figures and give them a rating. They rate the Dalai Lama in much the same position as I am. I have no complaints with that. I admire the Dalai Lama greatly and am honoured to be compared with him.
Like to see how others rate? Here's how they rated the parties at the time of the recent Australian election. As you can see I'm not going to be represented too much by these guys. Even Labor is in the authoritarian right corner. And yes, I did vote Green.
Interested in the candidates for the forthcoming US presidential election? Most of them, including the front runners, are in the authoritarian-right corner. I guess that's the way it is. Mike Gravel might be a really cool guy but if the Democrats ran him I think he'd scare the US public too much. They'd vote for the Republican and keep America in the war. Better that Barack or Hillary becomes the Democrat candidate. The odds are that one of them will win and hopefully end the war.
I just find it ironic that the so-called 'free' world is run by so many authoritarian right wingers.
Labels: Australia, Cambodia, politics, US
