| | Furthermore, the old fashioned left-right model is fatally flawed. The model implies that if you "go too far" (i.e., are consistent) with any political idea, you end up, in some inexplicable way, at [[totalitarianism]] or anarchism, or maybe both. Pursue conservative thought to its logical extreme, according to this model, and you somehow end up at fascism, which is national socialism, or white supremacy or some other authoritarian position. If you pursue liberal thought too far, you supposedly end up at socialism or communism. This is inconsistent, and it ignores large philosophical differences between, liberalism and communism, and conservatism and fascism. | | Furthermore, the old fashioned left-right model is fatally flawed. The model implies that if you "go too far" (i.e., are consistent) with any political idea, you end up, in some inexplicable way, at [[totalitarianism]] or anarchism, or maybe both. Pursue conservative thought to its logical extreme, according to this model, and you somehow end up at fascism, which is national socialism, or white supremacy or some other authoritarian position. If you pursue liberal thought too far, you supposedly end up at socialism or communism. This is inconsistent, and it ignores large philosophical differences between, liberalism and communism, and conservatism and fascism. |
| | + | In politics, '''right-wing''' historically referred to a society run by natural law or tradition. It currently can refer to a belief set made up of economic and social conservatism, and support for a strong military and an active foreign policy. The term, as well as left-wing come from the French Revolution, a reference to where people sat in parliament. |
| | + | It is widely accepted, however, that there is not just one dimension of political thought, so that people can unambiguously be classified as 'right' or 'left'. Nonetheless, the [[political spectrum theory]] still has wide currency. |
| | + | Usage of terms like "right wing" and "far right" by liberals about conservatives is usually intended to conjure up images of Nazi genocide (though an objective interpretation of the left-right political spectrum would reveal that the fascist regimes of WWII Europe were more statist than right-wing). Indeed, some critics openly liken Israel and its leaders to "Nazis", even though Israel is the most democratic country in the entire Middle East.<ref>Arabs have full citizenship rights in Israel, even serving as judges and legislators.</ref> |