Joseph Stalin Mao Zedong Thomas Hobbes Margaret Thatcher Emma Goldman Pyotr Kropotkin Ayn Rand Friedrich Hayek portrait by Original uploader was DickClarkMises at en.wikipedia. Later version(s) were uploaded by Beao at en.wikipedia. - Transferred from en.wikipedia; transferred to Commons by User:JohnDoe0007 using CommonsHelper.. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Friedrich_Hayek_portrait.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Friedrich_Hayek_portrait.jpg

Welcome! It’s timely to stress that The Political Compass has been on the internet since 2001. The uniqueness of our take on politics is reflected in the gratifyingly enthusiastic reviews we’ve enjoyed in the national media of many countries from our earliest years — as well as from many teachers and academics who continue to use our work.

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The Death penalty and the Authoritarian Personality

Robert Dunham, Executive Director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington DC, discusses with Wayne Brittenden the ethical and legal situation of capital punishment globally — but particularly in the US, which is the only western democracy that — at least in 29 states — can still execute its citizens.

    How the US Overthrew Iran’s Democracy in 4 Days

    A little-known history that needs to be told, and the US National Public Radio does a fine job.

    As the Sufi poet philosopher Omar Khayyam put it: When I want to understand what is happening today or try to decide what will happen tomorrow, I look back.

      Iconochasms

      Gandhi

      The chasm between your icons and what you probably don’t know about them

      Gardens and Politics

      What your garden reveals …

        The Forgotten Revolutionary

        Thomas Paine, Engraving by Marion Doss licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

        Your chance to know Thomas Paine, the British born founding father of the American Revolution — and certainly the most colourful and passionate one.

        He also had an important role in the French Revolution and was an unblinking critic of tyranny, superstition, religious oppression, special privilege and exploitation. He was also the 18th century’s most widely read writer.

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          The Political Compass in a nutshell

          Our amusing video explains so much in less than 5 minutes!

          Heroes — Do we need them?

          Some of our most celebrated heroes have had dark sides that history’s air-brushed out in order to exaggerate their virtues. Wayne Brittenden discusses heroes and our apparent need for them with Dr Binoy Kampmark of RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia.

            The Secrets of National Songs

            Professor Erik Levi

            All you need to know about the making and meaning of national songs! Erik Levi, Professor of Music at Royal Holloway, University of London, talks about the musical devices that stir emotions in patriotic songs and takes a critical look at some interesting examples.

              Lenin and The Ukraine

              Vladimir Lenin’s view on THE UKRAINE was vastly different from Vladimir Putin’s!

              What Big Oil knew about climate change, in its own words

              Four years ago, I traveled around America, visiting historical archives. I was looking for documents that might reveal the hidden history of climate change — and in particular, when the major coal, oil and gas companies became aware of the problem, and what they knew about it …