Authority
How much power may the state take to keep order? This axis runs from hard limits on state power to a free hand for it.
Civil liberties
What this end means
The state is dangerous precisely when it feels justified. Only courts punish, speech stays free short of incitement, and surveillance needs warrants — because rules that bind the state are what make its power safe.
Positions from the quiz
- Only courts may punish — encounters and bulldozer demolitions are state lawlessness
- Protect even hateful speech; only direct incitement to violence is criminal
- No mass surveillance without a privacy law, oversight and warrants
- Internet shutdowns are collective punishment — courts must review them
Strong state
What this end means
Order is the first public good, and endless process is how the guilty escape. A state that acts visibly and fast — against criminals, rioters and threats — is a state that protects the honest.
Positions from the quiz
- Swift, visible justice for hardened criminals deters crime
- Zero tolerance for speech that insults the nation or a faith
- Expand surveillance — safety beats privacy; honest citizens have little to fear
- Clear the blockades; no group may hold the country hostage
Sitting near the middle
Near zero means case-by-case: decisive action, but inside limits you actually want enforced.
Commonly misread
This axis is not left-versus-right — every party’s base contains both poles. And it measures state POWER over people, not state CAPACITY to run things well.