10/14/2015

Home
Takethetest
English
Espaol
Portugus
Deutsch

Analysis
Your
Personalised
Certificate
Ideological
Music

ThePoliticalCompass

AboutthePoliticalCompass
Intheintroduction,weexplainedtheinadequaciesofthetraditionalleftrightline.

Ifwerecognisethatthisisessentiallyaneconomiclineit'sfine,asfarasitgoes.
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
wouldbesomeonelikethatultimatefreemarketeer,GeneralPinochet.
Thatdealswitheconomics,butthesocialdimensionisalsoimportantinpolitics.
That'stheonethatthemereleftrightscaledoesn'tadequatelyaddress.So we've
addedone,ranginginpositionsfromextremeauthoritariantoextremelibertarian.

Iconochasms
Composers'
Political
Compass
Contact
FAQ
ReadingList
Authoritarian
Left
Authoritarian
Right
LibertarianLeft
Libertarian
Right
Related
Reading

Buildyourown
chart
Media
Coverage
Professional
Feedback
Political
Compass
Seminars
Sponsorship
RegionSpecific

Canada2015

Both an economic dimension and a social dimension are important factors for a
properpoliticalanalysis.ByaddingthesocialdimensionyoucanshowthatStalin
wasanauthoritarianleftist(iethestateismoreimportantthantheindividual)and
thatGandhi,believinginthesupremevalue of each individual, is a liberal leftist.
Whiletheformerinvolvesstateimposed arbitrary collectivism in the extreme top
left,ontheextremebottomleftisvoluntarycollectivismatregionallevel,withno
state involved. Hundreds of such anarchist communities exisited in Spain during
thecivilwarperiod
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 nonsocialist side you can distinguish someone like Milton
Friedman,whoisantistateforfiscalratherthansocial reasons, from Hitler, who
wanted to make the state stronger, even if he wiped out half of humanity in the

https://www.politicalcompass.org/analysis2?ec=1.63&soc=2.15

1/5

10/14/2015

ThePoliticalCompass

Canada2011

process.

Canada2008

The chart also makes clear that, despite popular perceptions, the opposite of
fascism is not communism but anarchism (ie liberal socialism), and that the
oppositeofcommunism(i.e.anentirelystateplannedeconomy)isneoliberalism
(i.e.extremederegulatedeconomy)

Canada2005
UKParties
2015
UKParties
2010
NewZealand
2014
NewZealand
2011
NewZealand
2008
German
Election2013
(auchauf
Deutsch)

Germany2005
(auchauf
Deutsch)

Australian
Election2013
Australian
Election2010
Australian
Election2007
USPresidential
Election
2012
USStates2008
USPresidential
Election2008
USPresidential
Election2004
IrishParties
2011
EU
Governments

The usual understanding of anarchism as a left wing ideology does not take into
accounttheneoliberal"anarchism"championedbythelikesofAyn Rand, Milton
Friedman and America's Libertarian Party, which couples social Darwinian right
wingeconomicswithliberalpositionsonmostsocialissues.Oftentheirlibertarian
impulsesstopshortofoppositiontostronglawandorderpositions,andaremore
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
collectivismofanarchosyndicalism ( libertarian socialism) belongs in the bottom
lefthandcorner.
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 rightwinger. His economic
policieswerebroadlyKeynesian,andtotheleftofsomeoftoday'sLabourparties.
If you could get Hitler and Stalin to sit down together and avoid economics, the
twodiehardauthoritarianswouldfindplentyofcommonground.
AWordaboutNeoconsandNeolibs
U.S. neoconservatives, with their commitment to high military spending and the

https://www.politicalcompass.org/analysis2?ec=1.63&soc=2.15

2/5

10/14/2015

ThePoliticalCompass

global assertion of national values, tend to be more authoritarian than hard right.
Bycontrast,neoliberals,opposedtosuchmoralleadershipand,moreespecially,
the ensuing demands on the tax payer, belong to a further right but less
authoritarian region. Paradoxically, the "free market", in neocon parlance, also
allows for the largescale subsidy of the militaryindustrial complex, a
considerable degree of corporate welfare, and protectionism when deemed in the
national interest. These are viewed by neolibs as impediments to the unfettered
marketforcesthattheychampion.

YourPoliticalCompass
EconomicLeft/Right:1.63
SocialLibertarian/Authoritarian:2.15

Showchartinaseparatewindowforprinting
SeeyourpositionplottedagainsttheUKpartiesinthe2015generalelection

Abrilliantconversationpieceforyourofficeorstudy

Clickhereto
downloadand
printyour
Personalised
Political
https://www.politicalcompass.org/analysis2?ec=1.63&soc=2.15

3/5

10/14/2015

ThePoliticalCompass

Compass
Certificate

Join 26 caricatures of your most loved and loathed political

figuresinapersonalisedcolourcertificatethatyoucandownload
asapdfandprintinmoments.
It's beautifully designed by political cartoonist Ralph Izzard and
serves as a permanent record of your position on the Compass,
andthepoliticalcompanyyoukeep.

HowYouCanHelpUs
AgreatdealofeffortliesbehindthedevelopmentofThePoliticalCompass,and
therealisationofitinpracticalform.Ithasoccasionallycometoourattentionthat
other sites have tried to exploit our work by copying it, adopting our name, or
linkingtousinadishonestfashion.
If you should come across any such sites, please let us know so that we can
takeappropriateaction.
Afewcriticsbelievethatweshouldblowwithprevailingpoliticalwindsandnarrow
theactualparameters.PleaseseeourFAQ21.
We have consistently resisted many approaches for banner and popup ads or
permanent corporate sponsorship because of the potential compromises that
such arrangements almost inevitably entail. However if you like The Political
Compassenoughtohelpus,pleaseleaveatipbelow:

https://www.politicalcompass.org/analysis2?ec=1.63&soc=2.15

Pay

4/5

10/14/2015

ThePoliticalCompass

ThanksfromthePoliticalCompassteam.

UKElection2015
USElection2012
Afewwordsabout"TheExtremeRight",andalookatthetheUK
politicalparties
ICONOCHASMS:Howwelldoyouknowyourpoliticalicons?
NewmaterialisregularlyaddedtoThePoliticalCompasspleasekeepcoming
back!

Advertisements are placed here by Google, and in no way imply endorsement by The Political
CompassorPaceNewsLtd.
Lastupdated:Friday4September2015

ThiswebsitecopyrightPaceNewsLimited20012015.
Reproductioninwholeorinpartinanymediumwithout
priorwrittenpermissionstrictlyprohibited.

https://www.politicalcompass.org/analysis2?ec=1.63&soc=2.15

5/5