A Few Things About Smittie: Political Center

My political compass

  • Economic Left/Right: 1.25
  • Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -2.62

I want less government because I don’t believe that the government is the best way to get most things done. There are few things that absolutely need to be the responsibility of the government.

Although I am a registered Republican I feel that all politicians are not to be trusted. My observation is that politicians work first and foremost to get themselves re-elected. What is best for their constituents, their community, their State and their country is secondary.

I believe in a free market but also acknowledge that some times regulation is necessary. When regulation is needed, I think economic incentives work better than governmental regulations. I would like to see consumers putting more thought into how and where they spend their money, thereby exploiting free market principles rather than expecting the government to protect us from ourselves. To wit, make an effort to spend your money at businesses that support that which you believe in and avoid those that do not.

I’m more interested in economics than politics but I can’t honestly say that I’m strongly interested in either. American Politics strikes me as a run away train. At the end of the day, I have little real influence over the political process. I fall in the center of the political spectrum, which is not to say that I am, necessarily, a Centrist. At least not in the sense that the term is used by many of the Conservative Right. I live in an area that is renowned for its liberal political views while my father is a fan of Conservative Talk Radio. Generally speaking, I usually manage to keep my friends and my father angry at me with my political outlook.

Political Compass is another of the online tests that I love. Political Compass first expands the paradigm used to discuss political position. The Right vs Left paradigm links economic and social view. Yet, these view are not necessarily linked. I don’t think Political Compass is by any means perfect or in any way authoritative. It does provide a standard, or measure by which to compare.

Aloha

[posted with ecto]

——————–
Today’s run stats:

  • 4 miles in 42:46
  • Pulse one minute after finish: 144
  • Pulse five minutes after finish: 112

Technorati Tags: ,

Leave a Comment