Right-wing politics

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Right wing is also a term used in several sports; see winger (sport).

In politics, right-wing, the political right, or simply The Right, are terms that refer to the segment of the political spectrum often associated with any of several strains of conservatism, the religious right, and areas of classical liberalism, or simply the opposite of left-wing politics. In some contexts, the term right-wing also can include authoritarian nationalism, but that is generally considered part of the far right, which this article does not cover in any great detail.

The term comes originally from the legislative seating arrangement during the French Revolution, when monarchists who supported the Ancien Régime were commonly referred to as rightists because they sat on the right side of successive legislative assemblies.

As this original reference became obsolete, the meaning of the term has changed as appropriate to the spectrum of ideas and stances being compared, and the point of view of the speaker. In recent times, the term almost always includes some forms of conservatism.

Some consider the political Right to include those forms of liberalism that emphasize the free market more than egalitarianism in wealth, but many free-market advocates, including most libertarians, share certain political ideologies with the left-wing and conceive of a two-dimensional political spectrum that they say more accurately portrays their political position.[1] (See Nolan chart, Pournelle Chart). Many anarchists (including libertarian socialists) also avoid placing themselves on the classic political spectrum.

See political spectrum and left-right politics for further discussion of this kind of classification.

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Right-wing issues

In the 20th century, outside the United States (where capitalism was always supported by many politicians and intellectuals), the most notable distinction between left and right was in economic policy. The right advanced capitalism, whereas the left advocated socialism (often democratic socialism) or communism. This distinction has decreased somewhat since the collapse of the Soviet Bloc, as many politicians now accept limited capitalism to a large degree, but in a socialistic form in which government mandates significant amounts of social spending on the military, education, infrastructure development, economic regulation, and wealth redistribution measures to prevent poverty. Still, many on the left advocate for greater social spending, such as nationalized health care in the United States, for example.

The dominant modern strand of right wing thought is concerned with traditional values (often Christian in nature) and preservation of individual and corporate rights through constraints on government power. In a hard-line form the second and third of these priorities are associated with libertarianism, but some on the right reject the most ardent assumptions of libertarianism, especially outside of the United States. Many libertarians do not consider themselves to be right wing and reject the traditional two-dimensional political spectrum, preferring to think in terms of liberty vs. authority rather than socialism vs. capitalism.

A more obscure strand of right wing thought, often associated with the original right wing from the times of monarchy, supports the preservation of wealth and power in the hands that have traditionally held them, social stability, and national solidarity and ambition.

Both of the above strands of right wing thought come in many forms, and individuals who support some of the objectives of one of the above stands will not necessarily support all of the others. At the level of practical political policy, there are endless variations in the means that right wing thinkers advocate to achieve their basic aims, and they sometimes argue with each other as much as with the left.

The values and policy concerns of the right vary in different countries and eras. Also, individual right wing politicians and thinkers often have individual priorities. It is not always possible or helpful to try to work out which of two sets of beliefs or policies is more right-wing (see political spectrum).

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History of the term

See the Left-Right politics article for more detailed discussion of the history and development of the term

Since the French Revolution, the political use of the terms "left" and "right" has evolved across linguistic, societal, and national boundaries, sometimes taking on meanings in one time and place that contrast sharply with those in another. For example, as of 2004 the government of the People's Republic of China claims to remain on the "left," despite an evolution that has brought it quite close to what is elsewhere characterized as "right," supporting national cultural traditions, the interests of wealth, and privately owned industry. Conversely, the late dictator of Spain, Francisco Franco, who was firmly allied internationally with the right and who brutally suppressed the Spanish left, nonetheless pursued numerous development policies quite similar to those of the Soviet Union and other communist states, which are almost universally considered to be on the "left." Similarly, while "right" originally referred to those who supported the interests of aristocracy, in many countries today (notably the United States) the left-right distinction is not strongly correlated with wealth or ancestry.

Fascism is generally considered right-wing, although some scholars dispute that classification. Others argue that there are elements of both left and right ideology in the philosophy underlying the development of Fascism. See: Far right and Fascism and ideology.

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See also

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External links

fr:Droite (politique) es:Derecha política id:Sayap kanan ja:右翼 ko:우익 nl:Rechts nn:Høgresida pl:Prawica pt:Direita sv:Politisk höger zh:右派

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