Right? Left? Conservative? Liberal? Moderate? A Guide.

One of the problems with political discourse today are the terms we use. They can mean different things to different people. A person may be considered “Right wing” because he believes in limiting state power but then be called “Left wing” because they don’t like religion. Left wing? right wing? conservative? liberal? It can be very confusing until you realize that these terms can mean different things depending on if a person is talking about ethics, or politics.

Factor 1: Ethically Philosophy

Ethics deals with what you believe to be right and wrong behavior. Generally, if a person is more in favor of traditional ethics they are considered right wing, or conservative. Whereas if a person is more in favor of novel or non traditional ethical ideas they are considered left wing or liberal.

Factor 2: Political Philosophy

Just because a person things something is wrong in the world does not mean they believe they think the power and authority of the state should be used to fix the issue. The central political question is how much power and authority should be given to the state and how should that power be used. Those who favor more power and authority for the state are more authoritarian, and those who opposed using the power of the state are more libertarian or even (liberal). Matters of political structure are ultimately determined by your underlying notions about the nature of political authority and how much power you want to give to the state.

So when you look at the map above you can see where the different political groups fall and where the major parties are. However, this is a dynamic map. Our political parties shift to try to garner more votes depending on where people are at. More fundamentally, it is our cultural institutions (family, religion, academia, media, etc) that pull people in different directions in matters of both ethics and political philosophy. The battle for those institutions is the battle for society and is what determines the difference between living in a place like the United States vs North Korea. This is why our collective conversations about ethics and politics are so important.

“Politics is downstream from culture.”
- Andrew Breitbart

Terminology Clarification for the US: In most societies conservatives were conserving traditional political power/authority. So to be “right wing” or “conservative” in most societies was to be more authoritarian. However, in the US conservatives want to conserve the ideals of a revolution AGAINST authority. Ours was a libertarian revolution that was based on what are now considered traditional ethical values codified in the declaration and protected via the constitution. So while in many countries the conservatives (right wing) have been those in favor of more state authority, in the US the political conservatives (if they are truly conserving the principles of the American Founding) push for less government authority and power. After all, The constitution is ultimately a political structure founded to keep the state from growing overly powerful and authoritarian.

So the next time someone asks you if you are “conservative or liberal” or “left wing or right wing” ask them if they mean politically or ethically. It could start a good conversation that will help them have a better understanding of the sociopolitical landscape so they can think and decide more clearly about these matters.