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I've no idea if I'm a Right Winger or a Left Winger, what are the characteristics I should look for in order to be assigned a label?
Left Wing = Support a bigger state, more government intervention and maybe more socially progressive.
Right Wing = Support a smaller state, less government intervention and maybe less socially progressive.
Although it's not that simple. I.E Old Labour tended to be less socially progressive but supported a bigger state. Some people on the populist right also think that way now. You also get people who want a much smaller state and are socially progressive in that the government shouldn't get involved in the personal lives of anyone.
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Re: So much for the views held here
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Originally Posted by Carth
right . . .
so what does 'support a smaller/bigger state mean exactly?
Are we about to dump Scotland and Wales, or take over the whole of Ireland?
It means the extent to which the State regulates/owns infrastructure and services, not the number of square miles under government control.
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Please also explain 'Socially Progressive' too, because for years I've just seen society go backwards.
I'm wondering if the Raving Looneys are the party for me, are they Left, Right, or out of this World?
Socially progressive is supposed to mean advocating for social justice, equality and civil rights. Whether it actually achieves any of that is debatable.
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Re: So much for the views held here
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Originally Posted by Damien
Left Wing = Support a bigger state, more government intervention and maybe more socially progressive.
Right Wing = Support a smaller state, less government intervention and maybe less socially progressive.
Although it's not that simple. I.E Old Labour tended to be less socially progressive but supported a bigger state. Some people on the populist right also think that way now. You also get people who want a much smaller state and are socially progressive in that the government shouldn't get involved in the personal lives of anyone.
LEFT = Support a bigger state, more government intervention and maybe more socially progressive. (As per Damien's Left Wing).
LEFT WING = LEFT + nationalise what you can; maximal governmental intervention; include migration within socially progressive policies; totally screw the rich (whoever that is defined as being). Oh - gas the Tories
RIGHT = Support a smaller state, less government intervention and maybe less socially progressive. (As per Damien's Right Wing).
RIGHT WING = ???? It's certainly not going to be RIGHT+. According to Starmer, it's anyone who supports demonstrations against the Connolly woman who tweeted something deemed to be racist in the heat of her distraught moment after the Southport murders. Even @Russ has a difficulty defining "right wing".
As Chris posted in October ‘22, the second-last time you raised this subject
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Originally Posted by Chris
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Originally Posted by Sephiroth View Post
We seem to understand what "lefties" means, but "right wing" needs more definition. In my lifetime, it meant fascism.
The Political Compass remains one of the best resources for teasing out these definitions. This is their exapliner, well worth 5 minutes of your time:
Long story short, if you try to describe economic and social politics in terms of “left” and “right” simultaneously you will come unstuck. You need to define someone’s position as economically left or right and socially authoritarian or libertarian. And one position by no means pre-ordains the other.
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Re: So much for the views held here
I'm trying to get Russ to define "right wing", which is a term he used in relation to GB News. He framed a question around that so, before I can answer him properly, I need to know what he means by "right wing". Russ has avoided obliging me with his definition.
I'm not surprised - it's not easy. Past "right wing" has been founded on the Mussolini/Hitler model. But that was then. I've noted what Hugh has researched:
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Long story short, if you try to describe economic and social politics in terms of “left” and “right” simultaneously you will come unstuck. You need to define someone’s position as economically left or right and socially authoritarian or libertarian. And one position by no means pre-ordains the other.
No wonder Russ cannot justify his "overtly right wing" description of GB News (and by association - Reform UK).
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