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From: comm@zeus.bris.ac.uk (M. Murray)
Subject: Re: left/right 
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Date: Tue, 11 Feb 1997 12:58:30 GMT
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Esperanto League N America (elna@netcom.com) wrote:
: John Davies <john@redwoods.demon.co.uk> writes in a recent posting (reference <13KJJGAC8x+yEwVU@redwoods.demon.co.uk>):
: >
: >The problem with "left" and "right" in characterising political
: >views/regimes is that they offer a one-dimensional scale, whereas in the
: >real world political differences are multi-dimensional.
: >
: Is not the origin of this one-dimensional scale the British Parliament?
: The Tories sit on the right side and the Labor MPs sit on the left. Or is
: this just an "urban etymology"?
: 
: Miko SLOPER              elna@netcom.com              USA  (510) 653 0998

How weird! The Tories have sat on the left for the last 18 years, but only
because they have happened to be the ruling party for that time. Before
that, Labour were on the right, and before even I was born, the Liberals
were on the right. Government on the right, Opposition on the left is the
rule in Britain. 

Where oh where did Miko Sloper get such a distortion of the facts from? 
The explanation from F.Helenius about the French parliament is the one 
I've always believed too. 

Does Esperanto really addle the brain that much:-)

  -- 
Martin Murray :: School of Chemistry, Bristol University, BS8 1TS, England
