I'll start by saying that I haven't made this thread to criticise the American use of the word, but rather I'd like to understand it better. The use of the word "liberal" by the American media and many of the people on this website does not conform to the European academic application of the same word. As a student in the UK, I've never come across the American use of the word liberal so I'd like to hear an explanation of it from an American. I see a lot of the Libertarians on the site using the term, so i'd like to hear you guys chip in to the conversation, particularly because Libertarianism shares a great number of parallels with the European definition of the term "liberal", particularly classical liberalism.
i cant really explain it, different cultures have different meanings of the same word, or different of the same meaning...like the word cookie for example, and biscuit.
a liberal here in america, is usually a democrat, and conforms to liberal(democratic) ideas...also known as "the left", which in my opinion is a pretty damn annoying name for a democratic...also im not a democratic or a republican...but i think thats what it means
I rarely ever use the word "liberal", if at all, in political conversations. Both liberal and conservative have lost all their meaning. It's kind of nonsensical in American political discourse nowadays. People use liberal to describe the Democratic Party and those who support it, and conservative with the Republican party. However, both parties are neither liberal nor conservative, they're both neoconservatives. If you support Obama, you're not a liberal even though that's the label many people give you. Mainstream American political discourse is absolute shit. It's neocons arguing over different ways to use the state to violate the rights of the individual. It is all bullshit.
A liberal is a person who supports stealing liberally from people, and liberally spending it on other people, who will also spend it liberally, and in return, require a liberal amount of refunding to do it again. That is the only way I can see how "liberal" means "liberal" in the US. Lenny has it right. Though I am guilty of using it to describe brain-dead Democrats.
It started as it's true definition. Liberals were/are seen as the "liberal" party. They are liberal in terms of being open to gay marriage and pro choice. More "liberal" on laws. That is not tthe case anymore.
An American liberal is the equivalent of Europe's social democrat. In Europe you guys still use liberal in its accurate, historical meaning, but in America the progressives always take over all parties, thus cementing the one party system and perpetuating the 2-party myth. So in America we have classical liberals, or libertarians, as a differentiator to the progressive modern "liberals".
America's liberals are the equivalent of Europe's social democrats, both are left-center oriented with support for social equality, justice, welfare. I've been taking 2 comparative politics classes this semester (one of them focusing on Western Europe) and have noticed this myself. Edit: Also the Christian democracy parties are the European equivalent to America's Republican party.
Thanks for the replies guys. I'm doing a US domestic policy module next year so this will be a great help.
Has NEVER made sense to me.. I'm smack dab in conservative midwest N. America too so I get to hear it all the time. Makes zero sense..
Only in the bastardized conservative use of the word. Liberalism is founded in the ideas of equality. Indeed our Nations fore-fathers were liberal as is our Constitution. Perhaps the first modern state founded on liberal principles, with no hereditary aristocracy, was the United States of America, whose Declaration of Independence states that "all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights. among these life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness," echoing John Locke's phrase "life, liberty, and property". The association started to dissipate after the "New Deal" and became more associated with social liberalism through welfare programs.
Exactly. This is why we now call ourselves libertarians, in America at least. Out of necessity since the term liberal was stolen, ironically enough, by people who actively seek to destroy liberty.
[quote name='"ICGreen"'] Only in the bastardized conservative use of the word. e:[/quote] I agree.. That definition lacks Ironically republicans who claim they are freedom seekers use the word "Free" to insult their opponents. Both side are equally about laws and more laws. These days some republicans have adopted the name libertarian. Once again ruining a perfectly good word.