IIRC, the terms left and right came from the seating arrangement of the French congress after the first revolution. Basically the left is liberal (or as it was then called, radical) and the right is conservative. Conservatives look more to the past, relying on tradition and past experience as a guide. Liberals look to the future, looking for experiment and change.

The Democratic and Republican parties are independent of the left/right distinction, but currently Democrats are seen to fit the left mentality to a greater degree, and Republicans the right. The ideas behind the parties are support for private industry on the Republican side, meaning low taxes and less government interference in business (the idea being that if the populace is allowed to work freely they will take care of themselves), and big Government on the Democratic side, meaning more taxes used to support social programs (the idea being that it's better for the government to take care of the people).

Religion is also independent of either party and I suppose technically from the conservative/liberal issue, though many religions have a strong foundation in tradition so tend towards the more conservative side. Currently, again, there is a lot more open religious support for the Republicans, and it seems to me that more of those who claim to be Atheist/Agnostic/Don't care about religion gravitate toward the Democrat side.

That's the basics for America at least. Of course there are liberal Republicans and conservative Democrats, strongly Christian Democrats, Atheist Republicans, and people with their own views on particular issues that may not fit the broader policy of their party. Also, there are more and less extreme views on all sides.

As for me, I consider myself to be a moderate, which means I'm kind of a loner here in the Backroom. I don't really get to join either side, and if I did I would occasionally disagree with them and get my club membership revoked . At home I feel very liberal, here at school (or probably anywhere in California) I feel much more conservative. I think a mix of both viewpoints is required for a healthy nation, and generally just wish people would take more time to openly think about any specific issue, instead of following whatever their party-line says is right and refusing to consider its fallibility.

Ajax