The New Political Compass © Paul H
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The New Political Compass Version 7.5.5* The New Progressives are In-Front, Deep Green, and Beyond Left vs. Right By Paul H. Ray, Ph.D. Integral Partnerships LLC The New Political Compass In Front On Big, Emerging Issues: Cultural Creatives, New Progressives (Calling All New Social Movements!) Wisdom Culture Paradigm Est. 45% of Voters Longing for the Old Ways 36% Cultural Conservatives Radical & Religious Right Southern Politics Paradigm 20% Est. 21% of Voters 12% Alienated 19% Standing Pat on the Left Modernist Liberals Conventional Left Politics 14% Big Government Paradigm Est. 15% of Voters Profits Over Planet and People Business Conservatives Economic Growth/Globalization Big Business Paradigm Est. 19% of Voters *This is a condensed and non-technical edit of Version 7.3, of April, 2002, adding a strategic analysis of the situations of both political parties, and supporting strategic surveys. It is missing most statistical tables and graphs of Version 7.3, but has more practical conclusions and an FAQ. For more detailed evidence, download version 7.3 from www.culturalcreatives.org © Paul H. Ray, 2003 [email protected] Table of Contents page Executive Summary............................................................................................................. 3 Action Points for Action People ............................................................................................ 4 Beyond the Demographics: A New Subculture in America............................................. 7 Beyond Left vs. Right: The New Political Compass ............................................................. 8 Two Dimensional Politics Makes a Political Compass Image ..............................................10 Going Forward, or North, are the New Progressives .......................................................15 The Inadequacy of the Muddled Middle................................................................................16 Unmet Political Demand........................................................................................................16 The Biggest Theme is Danger to Our Children’s Future.......................................................17 The Great Wave of Change Points to the Political North ................................................18 Six Dimensions of the Wave of Change Analysis.................................................................19 The Practical Political Implications: 1. A New Strategic Analysis (Mapping strategies onto the Political Compass) .............21 A Map of the Strategic Landscape.........................................................................................22 Comparing the Strategic Maps...............................................................................................23 Ten Strategic Imperatives: What Republicans Now Do and Democrats Need to Do ...........25 • Core Constituency Strategies of Republican and Democratic Parties (list+map) .....25 • Edge Strategies of Republican and Democratic Parties (list+map)...........................27 Emerging Issues and Edge Strategies ....................................................................................29 Three strategic maps for Democrats Edge Strategies: • Global Ecology Issues................................................................................................31 • National Health Care Issues.......................................................................................32 • National Education Issues..........................................................................................33 2. A Frequently Asked Question: Why hasn’t politics already adapted to the change? The Social Change Analysis ..................................................................................................34 3. More FAQs: So, is George Lakoff right? (Mostly, and so are a lot of other writers) How do we make all this real and practical for getting out the vote?....................................38 Distinctive Values and Opinions of Political North’s New Progressives (tables) 39 The New Political Compass © Paul H. Ray, 2003 2 Executive Summary to springboard to a values-based way to exactly identify who and where these Executive Summary: voters are, both for fund-raising and How can progressives actually win in the precinct walking. This new approach, face of the right wing political juggernaut, GeoValueGraphics, overlays political composed of big money, big media and values on the geo-demographic analysis religious right shock troops? This article of small area data (Zip+4 areas are very shows two of the necessary pieces that have fine-grained: 5 to 15 households). Once to be set up to win: we have this, it really would support 1) It connects values data to political people power: old-fashioned retail attitudes to show a clearer picture of politics could come back again, with politics than just left vs. right. It looks high tech support. like a political compass, and the four sides are described in detail. People power is coming back as a theme of 2) Once you look through the lens of values the Democratic Party, and as a theme of research, the new picture also leads to a awakening progressives, and the rise of new and very practical way to do Howard Dean is one of the results. It’s high political mapping for issues development time, because the party has concentrated for and campaign strategies. The article far too long on being Republicans-lite, and shows striking strategic imperatives for on being friendly to the money of big each party: the Republicans seem to business contributors. This has been a losing have figured their own imperatives out, strategy that Clinton’s temporary success and the Democrats haven’t. You can papered over. But the answer is almost actually see pictures of wedge-driving certainly not to go back to the liberal verities and bridge-building strategies. of the 1930s to 1960s. The general public has moved on, and what they want is not This clearer picture has 3 big consequences: being described by conventional pollsters, or 1) It points directly at bringing back people by the corporate-controlled news media. power in progressive strategies, because They want the politics to catch up to their there is a big, untapped voter population own concerns, and to speak to them in ways out there that is not in the mushy middle, they can believe in. and it looks like a potential for a new kind of progressive. This north-pointing Voters really do want politicians they can direction on the New Political Compass trust, and they really do want values more has twice the voters of any other than policy-wonk stuff—just not the values direction. We can win! A new political of the far right, and certainly not the world is possible. stripping away of the protections of middle 2) However, we need to acknowledge that class and working class Americans. What even though this big population accepts they want is more and better focus on the basic progressive ideas, 83 percent of real values of real people, not the narrow them reject any identification with the and intolerant values focus of the Religious left, or its language, or its tight focus on Right. Most who are somewhat conservative programmatic ideas. religiously, are nevertheless for quite a few 3) This analysis leads directly to a way to progressive values. develop a new voter mobilization database: with a new, updated Political Here’s an action summary of Political North Compass survey, we could use its results constituency on the New Political Compass: The New Political Compass © Paul H. Ray, 2003 3 Action Points for Action People 10% ‘Beyond Left-Right’ Political North reflects a change in • 37% Democrat vs. 29% Republican, political culture: 27% Independent, 3% 3rd Party • Identify much less with Left or Right A low marginal cost to mobilizing them: • Planetary more than nationalist interests • Volunteer more often and more hours • Ecological sustainability, not sentimental • Give more money to good causes environmentalism/resource management • Want to get actively involved • Feminism rather than heroic models • Involved in more New Social Movement • Personal growth over personal ambition constituencies, and believe their views • Condemn corrupt, globalizing mega- • Care more about changing the culture corporations • Want politics to deal more with the real • Get big corporate money out of politics emerging problems threatening our • Protect a positive future for our children future • Their most important issues are all Political North = “New Progressives” ‘outside the box’ to Washington politics 1. They’re unimpressed with conventional • None of their big issues were in the last politicians: 4 national election campaigns • Inauthentic, psychologically primitive: too much blaming, shaming, posturing, • It’s a kind of political market failure. hatred/conflict-driven, violence imagery Both Left and Right can call the Political • Bereft of innovative, or win-win ideas North’s issues the issues of the Left, but • Macho, not women-friendly, emotion- 83% of North don’t identify with the Left. ally undeveloped, spiritually empty We need a new way of speaking to them, • Nationalistic rather than planet-oriented and about them. “New Progressives” might not be a name they’d agree with. 2. They don’t like Left or Right political meetings or literature. Complain it’s all: Key Demographics of Political North • Crummy group dynamics, factionalism • 36%=70 Million Adult Americans • Vicious infighting and power struggles