Political Circle
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"Society needs clear rules and reliable standards to function well"
At 12 o'clock, you sit at the top of the political circle — prioritising order, stability and clear national standards above all else. You believe that strong authority and consistent rules are essential for a safe, fair and cohesive society. Chaos and drift worry you more than the occasional bit of heavy-handedness.
You're comfortable with robust policing, uniform regulations and decisive government action when needed. You see authority as a protective force rather than a threat, and you value predictability over radical change. For you, freedom flourishes best when there's a firm foundation of order beneath it.
Your position at 12 o'clock tells us your direction, but how far you are from the centre tells us the strength of your convictions. The Political Circle recognises three levels:
"Rules and standards help, but heavy-handedness worries me"
If you're a 12 o'clock moderate, you're the pragmatic conservative who values order but worries about authoritarianism. You like clear rules and shared standards, but you're wary of heavy-handedness. You'll accept tidy guardrails when they help people get on with their lives, but you don't want a police state.
Historical example: David Cameron — combined social conservatism with metropolitan sensibilities, valuing order within liberal democracy's constraints.
"Order and reliability come through national standards and firm rules"
You have clear convictions about order's importance. You prioritise stability and national cohesion. Firm rules and strong institutions aren't optional; they're essential for a functioning society. You're not apologetic about wanting robust authority.
Historical example: Margaret Thatcher — firm policing, strong defence and decisive leadership, combined with 1 o'clock market economics.
"Strong authority keeps society safe and fair — decisiveness matters more than consensus"
Far from centre at 12 o'clock, you're uncompromising about order's necessity. You think strong authority keeps society safe and fair. You're comfortable with robust policing, uniform national standards and decisive action to prevent drift or disorder.
Historical example: Thomas Hobbes — in Leviathan (1651), argued that peace requires a sovereign with undisputed power to enforce rules.
UK Prime Minister (2010–2016)
Cameron combined social conservatism with metropolitan sensibilities, supporting same-sex marriage while championing British institutions and traditions. He wanted effective policing but opposed ID cards as too intrusive. His legacy shows the contradictions of moderate 12 o'clock: balancing security with liberty satisfies neither libertarians nor authoritarians, but that tension is the essence of the position.
German Chancellor (2005–2021)
Merkel's leadership emphasised stability, institutional strength and the rule of law. She was cautious, orderly and conventional, the opposite of populist demagoguery. She maintained fiscal discipline and civil liberties, and respected democratic norms even when they constrained her. Reliable authority within liberal democracy.
Irish-born British statesman and political thinker
Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790) defended tradition, gradual reform and institutional stability while warning against revolutionary disruption. He valued the "little platoons" of civil society, such as family, church and local community, and wanted a strong state maintaining order. Not reactionary, not authoritarian, but deeply cautious about radical change.
UK Prime Minister (1979–1990)
Thatcher embodied clear 12 o'clock thinking combined with 1 o'clock market economics. She believed in firm policing (she broke the miners' strike), national unity, strong defence and decisive leadership ("not for turning"). She respected democratic processes and left office when removed by her party, but had clear convictions about authority's necessity.
UK Prime Minister (1940–1945, 1951–1955)
Churchill combined love of British institutions with a willingness to use state power decisively. His wartime leadership showed clear 12 o'clock characteristics: mobilising national unity, accepting necessary restrictions on liberty and demanding sacrifice for collective security. But he wasn't authoritarian in peacetime.
President of France (1958–1969)
De Gaulle rebuilt the French state after near-collapse during the Fourth Republic. His Fifth Republic constitution concentrated power in the presidency, reduced parliament's role and emphasised national unity and grandeur. He combined firm authority with democratic legitimacy: order requires strength, but legitimacy requires democracy.
English political philosopher
Hobbes lived through the English Civil War and saw what happens when authority collapses. His masterwork, Leviathan (1651), argues that without government life is a "war of all against all", and only a sovereign with undisputed power can bring peace. Modern strong 12 o'clock thinking echoes him: order isn't the enemy of freedom; it's the precondition for it.
Prime Minister of Singapore (1959–1990)
Lee took over a poor, ethnically divided port city and left one of Asia's wealthiest, most stable and efficiently governed states. His method was strict rules, ruthlessly enforced, with low tolerance for disorder, corruption or dissent. He argued that Singapore needed order first, prosperity second, and perhaps gradual liberalisation third.
Louis XIII's chief minister
Cardinal Richelieu transformed France from a weak, decentralized kingdom into Europe's dominant power through centralization and ruthlessness. He suppressed rebellious nobles who challenged royal authority, destroyed Protestant fortifications (while tolerating Protestant worship — he cared about political power, not theology), created a network of spies and informers throughout France, and established the bureaucratic state apparatus that would last centuries.
The "Iron Chancellor" (1864–1871)
Bismarck unified Germany through war and Realpolitik — practical power politics over ideological purity. Once unified, he built a strong centralized state. Bismarck's genius was combining authoritarian governance with social welfare. He introduced the world's first old-age pensions (1889), accident insurance (1884) and health insurance (1883) — not out of progressive sentiment, but to bind workers to the state and undercut socialist appeal.
The new book, 'Beyond Left and Right: Understanding the Political Circle' is now available on Amazon.
Containing a wealth of information, the book explores all of the 12 philosophical positions with detailed analysis on each of the three levels.