An idea for a 2 dimensional politcal spectrum. Along with the traditional left and right along the x-axis, there is a gradiant between libertarian and authoritarian along the y-axis.

It looks like this:

                            libertarian
                                 /\
                               /    \
                             /        \
                           /            \
                         /                \
                       /                    \
                     /                        \
                   /                            \
                 /                                \
               /                                    \
             /                                        \
left wing   |                                          | right wing
             \                                         /
               \                                     /
                 \                                 /
                   \                             /
                     \                         /
                       \                     /
                         \                 /
                           \             /
                             \         /
                               \     /
                                 \ /
                           authoritarian

(appologies for the bad ascii art).

The Economist has graphed the temperament of countries along a similar scale.

   competent
       |
nice---+---nasty
       |
  incompetent

Examples:

Competent Nice: Poland
Competent Nasty: China
Incompetent Nice: Romania
Incompetent Nasty: Congo


The parallels to AD&D alignment are obvious.