Liberal - Let's Take It Back!

This is our word and we should reclaim it!

Music: Cea Serin - Embracing the Absence

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• libertarian
• libertarianism
• liberal
• liberalism
• classical
• liberty
• socialism
• united
• states
• history

[FlashVirus]

Xomniverse, I agree we should take back the word liberal. In fact I refer to myself as a classical liberal every time I get the chance. But isn't it hypocritical since we often call ourselves Libertarian, and Libertarians were originally on the Left? I would really want to know your opinion on this.

[XOmniverse]

@FlashVirus I can see your point. Ultimately, use whatever word puts the right idea into the head of the person you are talking to.

[PCRenegade]

Anyone who references Wikipedia to try and make a point loses all credibility with me. According to Wikipedia, I am a billionaire who lives with penguins on Uganda. What the matter? Couldn't bother to pick up a book?

[XOmniverse]

You think I've never read books about liberalism? Ridiculous assertion.

[Mangina9000]

Um, this is a bit of a simplistic etymology of the American definition of liberalism.

I'm sorry, in many cases you are quite simply wrong. It's a bit of a hodge podge of conflation. You draw parallels which do not in fact exist. Socialists did not call themselves liberals. In fact Socialists and Liberals were allies in the 19th century and had exchanged ideas in many cases, the fundamental reason being that they were both opposed to autocratic states and monopolies.

[XOmniverse]

Modern state socialists often call themselves liberals, even if they refuse to call themselves socialists.

One has to be careful with the use of both words, but the truth is that liberal used to mean (essentially) libertarian, whereas now it basically means something inbetween state corporatism and state socialism.

[grg61458]

If by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."

[john42t]

And also leftists even claim the word libertarian, such as Chomski does in this video: Noam Chomsky - Libertarian Socialism Contradicting terms

[PjPony123]

Good luck to you. I'm afraid the socialists have ruined the word liberal in American politics for many years to come. You'd be better off sticking with Libertarian. At least people know what that stands for.

[thirdshift47]

@nurbSoldier

There is also the obvious example of the role the Chicago School(who seems more neoliberal than 'classical liberal')in the anti-Communist Military dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet's Chile in the 70s.

As I said in the beginning,the notion that free,'liberal' economies produce free societies sounds good in economics conferences,but the de facto 'market science' makes a much more terrifying case.

[thirdshift47]

(continued)

....But according to the democratic index of Freedom House,Hong Kong(whom even Friedman has described as Laissez Faire) & Singapore(who's been governed by the same unicameral political party since 1959)are not free societies...

[thirdshift47]

@nurbSoldier

1.)Proving markets work better than government at bringing about prosperity is different from proving them to be better at promoting mass liberty.

2.)According to the index of economic freedom--established by the Heritage Foundation & The Wall St. Journal(hardly leftist institutions)--Hong Kong & Singapore have had the most free economies in the world since '95...

[nurbSoldier]

@thirdshift47 In other words, using the scientific method to prove that markets work better than government at most things. Sort of like how members of the Austrian school of economics have done, as well as the Chicago school of economics, the london school of economics, some of them vastly influential and possessing nobel prizes in economics

[thirdshift47]

@nurbSoldier

Lastly--

"Market Science?!!!!"

What the fuck?lmao

[thirdshift47]

@nurbSoldier

Secondly,show me exactly how I contradict myself;it's obvious that you're totally oblivious to the fact that 'liberalism' & 'classical liberalism' are two totally distinct intellectual developments in the history of philosophy.

Thirdly,if you don't even know the difference between small & big business then you shouldn't even be in this discussion.