Inglehart Values Map

While not a geographic map, the Inglehart Values Map from political scientist Robert Inglehart charts out regions of the world as they appear along a bivariate chart of values.

via Wikipedia. - 2004 version

The x axis shows a continuum from survival values to those of self expression. Survival values place emphasis on economic and physical security. Those with higher self expression values are generally more financially secure and more free to express themselves without fear. They tend to emphasize personal freedoms and tolerance of others. The y axis shows traditional values (generally religious) vs secular values. The colors define regions. You can see how the former communist countries of Europe tend to be less religious but also less inclined towards self expression. Latin American counties are on the opposite end of this, being more traditional minded but having high self expression scores. 

Inglehart pointed out a correlation between the Protestant societies of northern Europe and high degrees of self expression and “secular rational” values. Catholic European countries fall closer to the middle of the chart while African nations are clustered in the lower left. The most interesting pattern is in the “Confucian” countries of East Asia that score very high in the secular-rational scale but diverge quite a bit among the survival-self expression axis.

Several versions and updates of this chart have been made over the years. Here is a 2023 version with slightly different regional breakdowns and a more subtle color scheme.

-via World Values Survey

Finally, here is a video where you can how this map changed between 1981 and 2015.

Bad Neo-Nazi Maps

The National Rally is a French right wing party founded by former Nazi SS members and run by people with similar views. They’ve changed the party’s name and softened the rhetoric to broaden their appeal even if their positions have not changed much. They have predictably inhumane and ignorant views on immigration and if this map is any indication their ignorance of geography is also significant.

via Liberation (France)

This map appeared in the journal “Cahiers de l’Europe“ in an issue about critical maritime routes. It has many of the hallmarks of artificial intelligence. The Gulf of Hormuz is located in the Red Sea (on the wrong side of the Arabian peninsula) while its strait is located at the Strait of Malacca, whose location on this map is off the coast of Australia. The Gulf of Aden is also off by almost 1,000 miles. 

Moscow is shown at Istanbul, Cairo at Tripoli, and Colombo, Sri Lanka is located twice, once in Indonesia and another one in Somalia. Even Beijing (Pekin) is off by many hundreds of miles. The map also features an unmarked mystery city in the desert of western China. Norway and Sweden appear as an island, something I’ve seen in other AI generated maps. As a final touch the Atlantic Ocean is labeled in West Africa.

From an article in Liberation (France) (translated, admittedly by AI but vetted with my mild comprehension of French): “In this issue—dedicated to ‘Maritime Routes: A Crucial Issue for Europe’—one finds a history of the sea evidently cribbed from Wikipedia; didactic illustrations of Roman or Phoenician sailors worthy of a children’s magazine; a fair number of AI-generated images of ships; and a whole host of maps—most of which are illegible due to frankly atrocious editorial work.“

Ignorance of geography cultivates hatred and usually leads to bad decisions that we all pay the price for.

 

ICE Tours Vermont

IceToursVT  has led tours of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities in and around Burlington, Vermont. “Think Hollywood star tours, but instead of celebrity mansions you get federal surveillance infrastructure. It's a little strange, a little spooky, and entirely real!“

-Map via Williston Observer

The goal is to raise awareness of how large a surveillance and prison apparatus exists in a very small metropolitan area. A bit ironic in a state where Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and the Von Trapp family came to escape from that kind of repression. The Department of Homeland Security is the fifth largest employer in the county with 8 different operations throughout the area. “So move over maple syrup, craft beer, and fall foliage-- ICE is the new attraction in Vermont!“

More specific information about the facilities can be found on their web site