1. Where am I on the Political & Economic Spectrum?
By: Kristen ter Steege
The position along the political and economic spectrum that best defines my beliefs and
values is the right side. I would place myself half way between the center of the spectrum and
the very end. After studying both the left and right sides I feel that the right side better suits
me. Three beliefs and values on the right side that I strongly agree with are Crime and
Punishment, Property Ownership, and Authoritarian Control. I strongly agree with the
statements about Crime and Punishment on the right side. I believe that if an individual breaks
the law set in place, they should have to serve the consequences for their actions. If the law is
set for everyone why should one single person get special allowance to disobey that law?
Another right side belief that I agree with is the topic of property ownership. If an individual has
to pay for something themselves they are more likely to take care of it. For example in society
the government or some other organization builds a public park, if an individual were to walk
past the park today they would notice graffiti, broken playground equipment, etc. Because each
individual using the park didn’t have to give money straight from their pockets, they aren’t
concerned about the well being of the park. Lastly, I strongly agree with the right sides’ opinion
on Authoritarian Control. I like to know that I am living in a safe society where the police and
government have their citizen’s best interest at heart. I don’t mind government or police having
more power if it creates comfortable living situations for the residents in the town or city. An
important key in the right sides belief is that the government control is moderate. I also
strongly agree with the fact if you are doing everything perfectly okay and a police officer pulls
you over to check your driver’s license it is not an invasion of privacy. The police are not doing
this to annoy you; they are doing it to keep the society safe.
As we have studied both the right side and the left side I have come to realize that there
are some values and beliefs on the left side that I don’t necessarily agree with. I don’t agree
with the left side’s opinion on controls on authority. Society has proven enough times that they
are not to be trusted. By checking drivers license’s randomly the police have discovered many
unlicensed drivers that are driving cars that may end up harming you or your family. Equality on
the left side is another value that I don’t strongly agree with. I believe if no one has to work for
what they have, on one will work. If everything is provided to an individual to make everything
even they have no reason or desire to try and get ahead in their job or in society. If an
individual tries hard enough and believes in themselves they can do almost anything even if
that seems near impossible at the time.
At this point in my life I believe that I am on the right side because of family influence.
My dad is a very right side person and he has explained and backed up his beliefs and they

2. make sense to me. Most of the values or beliefs on the right side make sense to me. Although I
like to think the best of people through past experiences this can sometimes lead to hurt and
therefore I am leaning towards the right on the political economic spectrum.