'                BIG BLUE DISK presents:
%          POLITICAL PREFERENCE SURVEY
                 By Daniel Tobias
"               Copyright (C) 1987.
%             Press any key to begin. 
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;                            Your choices for each question:
:                 (1) - Strongly agree with this statement.
8                 (2) - Mildly agree with this statement.
E                 (3) - Neither agree or disagree with this statement.
;                 (4) - Mildly disagree with this statement.
=                 (5) - Strongly disagree with this statement.
-                 (0) - Quit this program now.
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3                      E C O N O M I C   I S S U E S
E        L E F T                 C E N T E R                 R I G H T
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   In 
, you tend towards the 
left.
middle of the road.
right.
1                      Press any key to continue. 
Libertarians
Democratic Socialists
	Democrats
Middle-Of-The-Roaders
Republicans
Falwellians
Communists
Fascists
Totalitarians
1Now it is time to show the results of the survey.
LThe conventional left-right political spectrum is inadequate to describe the
Apolitical beliefs of many people, since both ends of the spectrum
Icontain a "package deal" of positions on domestic, foreign, economic, and
Dsocial positions.  In addition, the very far ends of the traditional
Gspectrum are really very similar; while pure fascism and pure communism
Hhave certain philosophical differences, they're rather difficult for the
Kaverage citizen to distinguish; all he knows is that his life is thoroughly
Icontrolled by edicts from above, and he is persecuted if he expresses his
disagreement.
FThus, to get a better handle on where your true political beliefs lie,
?your positions have been broken down into three separate areas.
GThey are domestic economic issues (taxes, government spending, economic
Iregulations, etc.), other domestic issues (civil liberties, morals legis-
Blation, etc.), and foreign policy issues (defense policies, etc.).
<Let's look at domestic economic issues first.  Press a key. 
GIn the area of domestic economic issues, the "left" position is defined
Ias that desiring a high level of government spending and taxation, and in
Lgeneral a great deal of regulation designed to redistribute wealth, restrict
Ithe activities of "big business" and the rich, and aid the less-well-off.
FIn the left-wing view, economic problems are caused by the anti-social
Hactions of corporations and the rich, and should be solved by giving the
+government more involvement in the economy.
JOn the other hand, the "right" believes that the interests of all are best
Mserved by a free-enterprise system with a minimum of government intervention.
LThey see government "meddling" in the economy as the major cause of economic
Jtrouble, and would like to see lower taxes and reduced spending on welfare
and other social programs.
KThe "center", or middle-of-the-road, seeks some sort of balance in a "mixed
8economy" with elements of both capitalism and socialism.
BNow, let's see where you stand.  Press a key to see a chart of the
?spectrum, with a pointer showing where your position shows up. 
economic issues
INext come the other domestic issues.  Here the "left" position is defined
Mas that seeking individual freedom, and resisting efforts to impose a "common
Mmorality" on everyone.  In general, "left-wingers" think that what consenting
+adults do in private is their own business.
HOn the other hand, "right-wingers" generally believe in a fixed (usually
Greligious) morality, and wish it to be enforced as law.  They feel that
Hfree speech should be limited by standards of public decency, to prevent
Lwhat they see as "vile smut."  Many favor vigorous government action to curb
Isex, drugs, rock & roll, and other things bringing about the collapse (in
5their opinion) of Western civilization as we know it.
IOnce again, "centrists" try to strike a balance between the positions, if
Fthere is any conceivable compromise position that can possibly satisfy
/the Moral Majority and the ACLU simultaneously.
$To see where you stand, press a key.
other domestic issues
4The final category is that of foreign policy issues.
KThere, the "left-wingers" are those who tend to favor a non-interventionist
Hforeign policy, where the U.S. leaves other countries alone to run their
Linternal affairs as they wish.  Left-wingers feel peace can best be achieved
Hby working towards disarmament, and tend to oppose increases in military
	spending.
I"Right-wingers", on the other hand, feel that communism is a major threat
Kwhich must be contained through aggressive policy.  They favor intervention
Fin other countries to that end, and would like to see a large military
=budget for this, and to build weapons systems as a deterrent.
DThose in the center have some intermediate position on these issues.
"Press a key to see your position. 
foreign-policy issues
EYou have now seen where your views fall on the conventional political
,spectrum, for each of three different areas.
JIf you are like many people, you found that your views are not on the same
Jside of the spectrum consistently in all areas.  Thus, by the conventional
Nview, people who are "right" in economics and "left" elsewhere have "inconsis-
tent" positions.
FHowever, some new theories of political positions have been formulated
Krecently, which allow positions outside the conventional "left" and "right"
2to be cataloged and shown on a consistent diagram.
HThe basic idea is to replace the one-dimensional political spectrum with
Ha two-dimensional chart showing one's positions on economic and personal
Hdomestic issues.  (Actually, a three-dimensional graph including foreign
Kpolicy as well would be ideal, but your computer screen has only two dimen-
/sions.  We'll deal with that third area later.)
$To see how this works, press a key. 
7      This chart has two axes, for economic issues, and
;      personal issues.  The first category comprises issues
<      pertaining to economic, business, financial, taxation,
<      and government spending areas.  The second encompasses
=      all other domestic policy areas, such as legislation of
%      morality, civil liberties, etc.
/                    Press any key to continue. 
=      The left-right axis shows positions on economic issues.
A      Here, the left side represents a desire for more government
<      control in this area, while the right side wishes less
9      intervention, trusting individuals to run their own
      affairs.
9      The up-down axis represents personal issues.  Here,
9      positions towards the top represent less desire for
>      government intervention, while the bottom side indicates
<      those who wish more state control of people's actions.
/                    Press any key to continue. 
9      This chart is known as the "Nolan Chart," after its
:      creator, Colorado advertising executive David Nolan.
>      Recently, this method of charting the political spectrum
;      has been receiving interest in academia, largely as a
>      result of a book by professors William Maddox and Stuart
<      Lilie entitled Beyond Liberal and Conservative.  (Cato
      Institute, 1984.)
;      Maddox and Lilie divide political positions into four
5      quadrants, Liberal, Conservative, Populist, and
      Libertarian.
<          Press any key to see these positons on the chart. 
6             LIBERAL                       LIBERTARIAN
:        Economic control,                Economic freedom,
:        personal freedom.                personal freedom.
?   Press any key to see where some specific positions show up. 
7             POPULIST                      CONSERVATIVE
:        Economic control,                Economic freedom,
:        personal control.                personal control.
&Press any key to see where YOU stand. 
Press any key for a summary. 
LOf the four quadrants, your current political views can best be described as
8Libertarian.  You favor individual liberty in all areas.
KLiberal.  You favor personal freedom, but with government economic control.
DConservative.  You support free enterprise, but wish social control.
<Populist.  You support government intervention in all areas.
LHowever, your domestic positions were all close to the "middle of the road,"
Gindicating that you either lack strong convictions in any area, or your
3positions do not consistently favor either extreme.
KYou should bear in mind the old saying:  "He who stays in the middle of the
#road will get hit from both sides."
8We have not yet considered your foreign policy position.
IThis does not necessarily correlate with domestic positions.  However, in
Jgeneral, conservatives and populists favor a "right-wing" position in this
6area, while liberals and libertarians are to the left.
9Your foreign policy position agrees with this prediction.
IYour foreign policy views do not agree with this prediction; they are too
far to the 
right.
left.
9This concludes the survey.  Do you want to try it again? 
RETURN.CHN
POLIPREF.DAT
=                    Are you sure you wish to quit now? <Y/N> 
;               Do you want to try this survey again? <Y/N>