INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL IDEOLOGIES
Thursday, September 5, 2002
Susan V. Thompson, ed.
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CONTENTS
- Introduction: A Tool Kit for Discussion
- One Link: A Glossary of Terms
- Right vs. Left
- Liberalism vs. Conservatism
- Anarchism
- Marxism, Socialism, and Communism
- Libertarianism
- Fascism
- Other Resources
- Credits
- Get Involved
- About the Bulletin
INTRODUCTION: A TOOL KIT FOR DISCUSSION
Terms like right and left, liberal and conservative, socialist, communist, anarchist, etc. are used frequently in political discussions. But people frequently misunderstand or confuse the actual political ideologies that these terms refer to. We don't all have degrees in political science, and such terms are often loaded with assumptions that more accurately reflect the political leanings of the person using them than the ideologies themselves.
In an effort to clear up some of these misunderstandings, we are offering an online guide to political ideologies. This bulletin is meant to be an introduction to the most commonly mentioned political ideologies, including their definitions, frequently asked questions about them, criticisms of them, and their general positions on war with a look at the war on terrorism in particular (where possible). We try to treat all ideologies fairly, despite our own leanings. Ultimately, we hope that it will help you to approach others with more knowledge and understanding.
Note: Of course, we also recommend that you don't end your research about the various ideologies here. There is a wealth of information out there which examines these ideologies in far more depth and detail.
ONE LINK: A GLOSSARY OF TERMS
This excellent glossary of political and economic terms provides information on everything from anarchism to capitalism to "pork barrel" to "welfare state" in an easy-to-use and understandable format. If you have a question about a political term, chances are you can look it up here. Definitions from this glossary are used in several places throughout the rest of the bulletin.
RIGHT VS. LEFT
The traditional political spectrum places people on a line somewhere between "left" and "right." These terms originated with the seating arrangements of the French Assembly in the 1790s, where the monarchists sat on the right, and the republicans on the left. In current usage, especially in the US, left is generally associated with liberalism and right with conservatism.
This page on teaching the political spectrum includes a diagram of the traditional political spectrum, and includes summaries of liberal and conservative viewpoints.
Left-wing or leftist are:
"General descriptive terms for any of several otherwise quite varied political ideologies (socialism, communism, social democracy, welfare statism, contemporary American liberalism, some versions of anarchism,, etc.) that join in denouncing the extent of economic and social inequality in the present order of society and advocate the adoption of vigorous public policies to reduce or eliminate these inequalities"
Right-wing or rightist is:
"A general descriptive term for any of several otherwise rather different, conservative, reactionary or fascist political ideologies, the common denominator of which is their qualified or enthusiastic support for the main features of the current social and economic order, accepting all (or nearly all) of its inequalities of wealth, status and privilege (or even in some cases support for a return to an earlier, even more inegalitarian and hierarchical political-economic order.)"
This page lists some of the differences between the left and right in the US, as taken from the Left Guide and the Right Guide, which drew conclusions about the general characteristics after performing a survey of organizations.
If you aren't sure what your political ideology is, you can take the World's Smallest Political Quiz, which places you on a diamond-shaped political spectrum (rather than the standard left/right straight line). Bear in mind that it is a libertarian quiz. Still, it's a good tool for helping you to determine roughly where you fit.
LIBERALISM VS. CONSERVATISM
Liberalism
The term liberalism has a different meaning in Europe than in the US. In Europe, liberalism refers to a 19th century political ideology which is partially concerned with removing inhibitions on the capitalist economy, while in the US it has come to mean an ideology that advocates a stronger regulatory role for government, while still advocating civil liberties and progressive values.
According to this European definition of liberalism:
"The word liberal is derived from the Latin liber, free, and up to the end of the eighteenth century signified only 'worthy of a free man', so that people spoke of 'liberal arts', 'liberal occupations'. Later the term was applied also to those qualities of intellect and of character, which were considered an ornament becoming those who occupied a higher social position on account of their wealth and education. Thus liberal got the meaning of intellectually independent, broad-minded, magnanimous, frank, open, and genial. Again Liberalism may also mean a political system or tendency opposed to centralization and absolutism."
The definition of liberalism is followed by short descriptions of several different kinds of liberalism.
This liberalism FAQ provides a clearer and more concise definition of liberalism as it is generally meant today (and in the US), and answers questions about the differences between liberalism and socialism and what liberals believe. The liberal view of war, according to this FAQ, is as follows:
"Some liberals model their beliefs after Mahatma Gandhi, in that they are absolute pacifists, renouncing violence for any reason. However, most liberals see a legitimate need for self-defense, even on a national level with armed forces. The fight against Hitler is a commonly cited example. But liberals are united in their view that offensive military operations are wrong."
This is a list of some US-based liberal organizations.
Conservatism
Conservatism is generally used to mean:
"A general preference for the existing order of society and an opposition to all efforts to bring about rapid or fundamental change in that order. Conservative ideologies characteristically strive to show that existing economic and political inequalities are well justified and that the existing order is about as close as is practically attainable to an ideal order. Conservative ideologies most often base their claims on the teachings of religion and traditional morality and tend to downplay the reliability of purely rational or deductive social theories propounded by secular philosophers, economists, and other social thinkers."
According to this FAQ on conservatism (by a conservative), conservatism is largely about allowing tradition to mediate individual thought.
ConservativeTruth.org bills itself as dedicated to offering you the news that the "liberal slant" in the major media censors. According to their site, most Americans are conservative, since:
"Most Americans believe that patriotism is a good thing; that government should be kept out of religion, but that our Founding Fathers never intended to keep religion out of public life; that murder of an unborn child is wrong; that homosexuals should not be given special privileges; and that our children should not be taught revisionist history which makes them ashamed to be Americans."
In this article which is critical of the hawkish tendencies of conservatives, the author states that, "We've been told for years that to be a 'true' conservative, one must desire a huge military and have a love for internationalism (imperialism)."
President Bush calls his approach to politics "compassionate conservatism."
In this compelling essay, the author examines the relationship between the war on terrorism and compassionate conservatism as it is defined by President Bush.
"Bush and his speechwriters are using the language of 'compassionate conservatism' to tie together all the pillars of their war rhetoric: national unity, firm resolve to pass the test, and obedience to God’s will, insuring continuing divine guidance. However, they are also using the language of war to rescue 'compassionate conservatism.' They turn the genuine compassion of so many Americans into evidence of a 19th century-style moral reform...this is a vision to warm a conservative’s heart. For conservatives, the victory comes not in eradicating sin, but in fighting it forever. As long as sin threatens and the whole nation is mobilized to do battle against it, conservative values and policies will prosper.
This conservative columnist argues that the US must attack Iraq:
"International law runs counter to our need to take pre-emptive action against terror. But our leaders swear to uphold the Constitution, not the United Nations charter or the World Court’s laws. In this war, we cannot simultaneously protect our people and our Constitution and also follow international law. Such a decision should be easy for our leaders. The pursuit of a policy of first-strike is not the kind of decision that politicians generally like to make. But the failure to do so in this war will mean many more American deaths - thousands more."
A list of conservative organizations.
A list of US conservative political organizations.
ANARCHISM
Anarchism is "an ideology that regards abolition of government as the necessary precondition for a free and just society. The term itself comes from the Greek words meaning 'without a ruler.' Anarchism rejects all forms of hierarchical authority, social and economic as well as political." The definition of anarchism provided on this page is followed by information on anarchist thought and anarchism in practice.
Anarchism FAQ.
There are several methods of decision-making that anarchists may employ, which include direct democracy, federations and networks, consensus, affinity groups, and collectives. This page provides links to summaries of all of these forms of decision-making after a brief introduction on anarchism's goal of putting principles of non-authoritarianism into practice.
The author of this pamphlet asserts that the mass mobilization of citizens in a war often empowers them to begin making their own decisions, and thus can be dangerous for states. He urges anarchists to build on the popular resistance to the war with the long-term goal of abolishing the state.
This anarchist analysis of the war in Afghanistan frames it as the result of decades of war between states; thus imperialism and the competition between states is the biggest threat to peace.
Anarchists are often labeled as terrorists. This pamphlet attempts to disprove this notion while admitting that some anarchists employ violence:
"Anarchists have been labelled as terrorists for many years, despite the fact that anarchists don't engage in the type of political violence that is typical of most terrorism. For one thing, many anarchists adhere to the philosophy of nonviolence. Other anarchists engage in violence, but it is usually directed at a specific political target, such as a police officer."
A common critique of anarchism is that it is a Eurocentric/white/male/middle-class political ideology. As such it may exclude people of color, women, and other groups. The article linked here is a feminist critique which acknowledges the attraction of anarchism for feminists, since it acknowledges that all authoritarian structures, both economic and otherwise, are the source of oppression. However, she also highlights the slow acceptance of the idea of the oppression of women by many anarchists: "Equal recognition of different oppressions avoids socialism's premise that capitalist class relations are the ultimate form of oppression through which all other oppressive forces are filtered. It is impossible to understand, and therefore change, the complexities of women's oppression (or racial, homosexual oppression) if class and capitalism are ultimately seen as the origins of injustice. A feminist relationship to anarchism would mean exploring authoritarian structures as fundamental to women's oppression and an anarchist relationship to feminism would mean recognising that patriarchy is a paradigmatic example of authoritarian structures."
Anarchist International is a global anarchist organization.
Anarchism is perhaps the polar opposite of totalitarianism, which involves ultimate government control. Both fascist and communist regimes can be called "totalitarian" regimes, since they can have the following characteristics:
"Domination by a single, like-minded governing elite of all (or virtually all) organized political, economic, social and cultural activities in a country by means of a single-party monopoly of power, police repression not only of all forms of dissent and opposition but also of all forms of independent private organizations as such, rigorous censorship of the mass media, centralized state planning and administration of the economy, and pervasive propaganda to inculcate the principles of the obligatory official ideology."
MARXISM, SOCIALISM AND COMMUNISM
Marxism, socialism, and communism are often misunderstood, in large part because they are used as synonyms for one another quite frequently. They are in fact all closely related, but socialism and communism are not necessarily the same thing. Marx wrote the seminal works of theory which described the strengths and weaknesses of the capitalist economic system, and argued that it would eventually be overthrown in order to bring about a more just and equal society. This would mean first implementing a socialist system, followed by a true communist system. According to Marx, all injustices and inequalities in the world can be traced to the class struggle, or the inequalities inherent to the capitalist system. Those people who believe in Marx's ideas and work to implement them call themselves Marxists, and may be socialists or communists.
Marx's life and work are described briefly in this biography.
Communism is "[a]ny ideology based on the communal ownership of all property and a classless social structure, with economic production and distribution to be directed and regulated by means of an authoritative economic plan that supposedly embodies the interests of the community as a whole."
Socialism is a political and economic theory of social organization based on collective or governmental ownership and democratic management of the essential means of the production and distribution of goods. It can often be difficult to define, since different people have different ideas about what a socialist society would look like. There are a number of similarities between socialism and communism, but they are not the same thing.
"Socialism and communism are alike in that both are systems of production for use based on public ownership of the means of production and centralized planning. Socialism grows directly out of capitalism; it is the first form of the new society. Communism is a further development or 'higher stage' of socialism." Thus, not everyone who is a socialist is also a true Marxist/communist, although every Marxist/communist is a socialist.
This excellent overview of Marxism, socialism, and communism (scroll past the introductory information on anarchism) will help you understand the influence of Marx and his theories, and the evolution of political movements based on them until the present day . Highly recommended to help explain Marxism, socialism, and communism and to put these ideologies into perspective.
This FAQ on socialism answers such questions as whether the experience of the former U.S.S.R. demonstrates that socialism doesn't work. It is written from a socialist perspective.
This extensive Marxism FAQ was complied by the Youth for International Socialism.
Marxists are not necessarily opposed to war as such; however, Marxists analyze war in terms of class struggle.
Michael Albert of Znet (who advocates a system called participatory economics) debates the merits of Marxism with Alan Maas of the International Socialist Organization. Among his criticisms of Marxism are that it will help bring power into the hands of a new elite, and that its focus is often too narrow.
Marxists.org is an extensive Internet archive which has almost everything you could want to know about Marxism. The information is available in several different languages.
A list of communist parties around the world.
Whether you agree with Marxism or not, in order to better understand these political theories and their impact on modern sociological thought (which has been considerable), you may want to do some more reading on Marx and post-Marxian theorists. Recommended to get you started are: The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx Capital, Karl Marx Theories of Social Inequality: Classical and Contemporary Perspectives, Edward G. Grabb
LIBERTARIANISM
Libertarianism and liberalism once meant the same thing. Now that liberalism is evolving into an ideology (in the US) that advocates some government control, however, libertarianism can be seen as distinct from liberalism. Libertarianism is:
"[a] contemporary 20th century political viewpoint or ideology derived largely from 19th century liberalism, holding that any legitimate government should be small and should play only the most minimal possible role in economic, social and cultural life, with social relationships to be regulated as much as possible by voluntary contracts and generally accepted custom and as little as possible by statute law. In other words, libertarians believe that the individual should be as free as is practically feasible from government restraint and regulation in both the economic and non-economic aspects of life."
A FAQ on libertarianism.
This non-libertarian FAQ on libertarianism attempts to point out some of the short-falls of the ideology, thus providing fuel for Internet discussions with Libertarians.
In this critique of libertarianism from Salon.com, the author notes: "In its ironclad internal logic, its unswerving ideology and the fervor of its disciples, libertarianism, like Marxism, resembles a religion almost as much as it does a political philosophy."
The official US libertarian response to 9-11 is outlined in this press release from the National Libertarian Party (US). Among other things, the party calls for "a foreign policy that limits our intervention in the affairs and quarrels of other nations" and for US citizens to "remain ever vigilant that terrorists don't win by turning America into the kind of nation where our cherished freedoms are only a fading memory."
The Executive Director of the Libertarian Party (US) argues that the greatest threat to American freedom is not terrorism, but the US government's expanded powers, which are growing even more with the threat of war with Iraq.