[PapaNew]

As Reagan said, it's not right or left, it's up or down. The problem with that graphic is it is inverted.

Small government and expansive free market enterprise takes a society UP, whereas big government takes a society DOWN, like a giant weight until they're "sleeping with the fishes."

[Phlyer]

As Reagan said, it's not right or left, it's up or down.

Any description of human interaction is going to be complex, but I think Reagan's is close enough to be useful. The most important dimension (however you graph it) deals with whether rights and responsibilities are individual or collective. On one end are anarchists, and on the other are 'socialists' (which includes fascists, communists, 'progressives', Marxists, and so on).

There are distinctions among the collectivist end that some people think are important, but they are minor in comparison to their similarities.

On that scale, the mass of people are truly 'moderates' wanting some government for some purposes (unlike anarchists), but not wanting government intrusion into every decision they make. That dynamic - how much and what authority should government have versus the individual - is the core of all philosophies of government. I happen to think the US Constitution describes an amazingly wonderful form of government - far superior to the one we live under.

However, as Hayek expressed very well, you can't control part of an economy. So the collectivists always demand more and more control over more and more decisions until there is no independent choice left to anyone who is not part of government. The inevitably destroys the middle class and economic strength.