The Spectrum of Political Attitudes

The Spectrum of Political Attitudes

The spectrum of political attitudes is a diagram that divides political thoughts and ideologies into two parts or halves: the left and the right. From the center, moving to the left, the attitudes and ideologies grow more liberal, from liberal to radical and from liberalism to communism. From the center, moving to the right, the attitudes and ideologies grow more conservative, from conservative to reactionary and from conservatism to monarchism or fascism. The division evident in this diagram is very useful in helping to explain and categorize individuals that are both republican and democratic in the United States.

When discussing liberalism and conservatism in the United States today, there seems to be a great division between the two sides or parties. The left side of the spectrum includes the more liberal, forward-looking thinkers: the democrats. The right side of the spectrum is where the more conservative thinkers, that are holding onto the past can be found

Democrats tend to look towards the future and make decisions now based on the future value or use of their decision. Examples of this would be the concern of the education system in the United States and the democrats willingness to give more federal funding to programs that will benefit many inner-city schools, where a larger percentage of students at higher levels are unable to read and write. It is also clear to see the attempts to improve the systems and assist students in the increase in federal aid available for students attending college that would otherwise not be able to afford it.

Although also concerned about education, republicans are less likely to agree to increase federal funding for inner-city schools or federal aid for college students. Also, republicans tend to be far less concerned will the social ills of this country. They admit that problems exist in certain areas, but seem reluctant to do much to help advance the people living in these areas or the people that are trying to support a family of four, living below the poverty line. In general, republicans are far less concerned with equality than are the democrats.

Another area of difference between the liberals and conservatives, or democrats and republicans is in their ideas of democracy. It seems that liberals have far more faith in the people of the United States than do conservatives and liberals seem to want more people to be actively involved in politics than do the conservatives.