After a short conversation with one of my more favorite AIs (claude-instant as it seems the most no-nonsense and least fluff), tell me what you think of its characterizations of the distinctions between:
authoritarian left, authoritarian right, libertarian left and libertarian right.
I’ll include a blank political compass for a visual.
NOTE: MOST PEOPLE ARE HYBRIDS AND NOT PURISTS
————–
“Here is how I would distinguish between authoritarian left, authoritarian right, libertarian left, and libertarian right:
Authoritarian left:
– Emphasis on strong state control over economic production and distribution of resources to achieve equality of outcome
– Typically advocates socialist/communist economic systems
– Government plays an active role in directing the economy
– Prioritizes collective interests over individual civil liberties at times
Authoritarian right:
– Places value on tradition, cultural/ethnic nationalism and assertive foreign policy
– Advocates free market capitalism but favors strong state intervention on social/cultural issues
– Prioritizes security/order over individual civil liberties
– Typically takes socially conservative positions
Similarities: Both authoritarian positions favor a strong state that takes an active role in directing and intervening in certain policies/issues.
Libertarian left:
– Supports civil liberties like free expression, privacy and diversity
– Believes in egalitarian distribution of political and social power to marginalized groups
– Typically advocates cooperative economic systems with decentralized planning
– Role of state is to empower people not dictate plans or outcomes
Libertarian right:
– Advocates for maximal individual civil/economic freedom and minimal government
– Supports free market capitalism and private property rights
– Takes socially liberal positions on issues like drugs and lifestyle choices
– Isolationist foreign policy, non-interventionist
Similarities: Both libertarian positions highly value civil liberties and individual autonomy. They differ primarily on views of political power vs economic power.
Differences: The axes of economic intervention vs civil liberties and individualism vs communitarianism. Authoritarians are more interventionist economically and socially, libertarians favor less intervention.