what does left wing and conservatives mean?

i've never understood what political parties were all about. here's a bit of clarification.

https://www.history.com/news/how-did-the-republican-and-democratic-parties-get-their-animal-symbols

https://www.dictionary.com/e/leftright/

https://www.history.com/news/how-did-the-political-labels-left-wing-and-right-wing-originate

https://www.diffen.com/difference/Left_Wing_vs_Right_Wing
the chart below came from Diffen.com (visit the link above to learn more)

Comparison chart

L

eft Wing versus Right Wing comparison chart

	Left Wing- Dem	Right Wing- Rep
Political Philosophy	Liberal	Conservative
Economic Policy	Income equality; higher tax rates on the wealthy; government spending on social programs and infrastructure; stronger regulations on business.	Lower taxes; less regulation on businesses; reduced government spending; balanced budget.
Healthcare Policy	Believe that access to healthcare is one of the fundamental rights of all citizens. Support universal healthcare, the Affordable Care Act, expansion of Medicare and Medicaid.	Oppose government-provided universal healthcare and the Affordable Care Act. Favor competition to Medicare from private insurance companies; oppose Medicaid expansion.
Immigration Policy	Pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants; moratorium on deportations or prosecutions of undocumented immigrants who are young adults and have no criminal record.	No "amnesty" for undocumented immigrants; stronger border patrol and fence to check illegal immigration. Belief that illegal immigration is lowering wages for citizens and documented immigrants.
Education Policy	Favor expanded free, public education.	Believe parents who want to home-school their kids or send them to private school should be able to get vouchers for opting out of the public school system. Generally not opposed to public education.
Abortion	Generally in favor of unpenalized access to abortion and of both adult and embryotic stem cell research.	Generally against abortion rights, support only adult stem cell research.
Gay Rights	Generally support gay marriage; support anti-discrimination laws to protect LGBT against workplace discrimination.	Generally opposed to gay marriage; opposed to certain anti-discrimination laws because they believe such laws conflict with certain religious beliefs and restrict freedom of religion.
Gun Rights	In favor of gun control laws like background checks or waiting periods before buying a gun; banning automatic weapons; and disallowing concealed weapons.	Strongly opposed to gun control laws; strong proponents of the Second Amendment (the right to bear arms), believing it's a deterrent against authoritarian rule.
Environmental policy	Generally conservative, preferring to ban economic activity that may create jobs but could potentially harm the environment.	Generally more permissive, considering economic impact of environmental regulation. Believe the free market will find its own solution to environmental problems.
Voter ID Laws	Against voter ID laws citing (a) undue burden on lower income groups causing them to be disenfranchised, and (b) virtually no evidence of voter fraud actually occurring.	For voter identification laws to combat voter fraud.
% of U.S. population self-identifying	23%	38%
Associated Political Parties	Democratic Party, Green, Socialist	Republican Party; Constitutional Party
Associated Media	The New York Times, MSNBC, Washington Post, CNN	National Review, Fox News, Wall Street Journal, Washington Times
Ideologies	Social Democracy; Federalism; Socialism, Communism; Collectivism; Marxism	Capitalism; Conservatism.
Famous Proponents of Ideology	Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, Einstein, Barack Obama, Francois Hollande, Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi, Noam Chomsky, Warren Buffett.	Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, George Washington, Winston Churchill, George W. Bush, Mitch McConnell, Rupert Murdoch, Rush Limbaugh, Tony Abbott, Mitt Romney
Core Beliefs	Minority rights, economic equality, gun control, environmental protection, expanded educational opportunity, social nets for those who need them.	Limited Government at National or Federal Level. Local Governments should have the most control over decisions affecting local population. Individual freedom and personal property rights.