The "Progressive" Authoritarian Urge: Rising

If one was to examine political labeling and its inaccuracies, it would be fairly unreasonable to ignore the liberal usage of "Conservative." Many that label themselves liberal OR conservative tend to not be so.

-Matthew

I think that Bobby did not have in mind strictly classical considerations when he used the term "Liberal Consensus". Modern Liberalism, given a big boost by FDR, has some principle elements.

1. Equal protection and opportunity under the law for all races, sexes and religious persuasions.

2. Affirmation of the Bill of Rights with emphasis on Free Speech, Due Process and a strong line between religion and government.

3. Regulation and preservation of the environment the "people" share.

4. The recognition that Liberal Democracy and Free Markets require protection and promotion to ensure the security of Free People over time.

5. The promotion of international institutions that defend and promote human rights and conflict resolution.

7. The two-state solution in Palestine.

8. Government support of policies that provide a safety net for seniors, the poor and the disabled as well as regulation and support for public education and job training.

9. Desegregation and assimilation as well as limited affirmative action to redress discrimination.

10. (Later) the right for a woman to have an abortion when the fetus cannot survive outside the womb naturally.

11. The willingness to sacrifice in the name of defending allies, treaty obligations, and the Constitutionality of a military draft in times of national emergency.

12. The need to balance civil liberties with the contingencies of war whether a Cold War or a Hot one. (see Kennedy speech)

13. Limiting corporate welfare and the power of elites to petition the government with enough money to pervert policy and lower taxes for themselves.

Most of us remember this Liberal stance from FDR to LBJ. Although Carter mucked around with much of the Liberal Tradition, he did not radically change course during his term. Clinton promised a return to a New Democrat mindset, restoring the Liberal Tradition. The record is mixed though he did reject the Kosmunists.

One can use the term Liberal in a positive way. Progressive had a good feel which I liked. ?Progressive? scientists have recently offered a more likely mechanism for the origin of life than the RNA-first model. Who can criticize progress? Now the term means something a bit different.

What the Democratic leadership has dumped into the Party by inviting the Kosmunists in, is a displacement of the traditional (modern) Liberal notions with an ideology that clashes with Classical AND modern Liberal traditions. They oppose the Jeffersonian view of promoting Liberal Democracy abroad AND they pervert the modern Liberal stand on Free Speech, secret ballots, curtailing election fraud, and even the rule of law in regard to immigration.

I will continue to use a good word like Liberal, but I have long stopped using it to describe Kerry, Gore, Dean and others who borrow elements from Liberalism when promoting their NeoLiberal views. The big story is that Liberalism is being killed by Democrats and I suggest Republicans grab up the values lost. Maybe one day Ann Coulter will speak fondly of Liberal values (not that I care in the least) and focus her wrath on those that misused the term in seeking illiberal results. The same can be said of course, for conservatives, but the two terms, Liberal and Conservative were never meant to be equivalent OR mutually exclusive. Hamilton and Jay had some very Liberal ideas and were among the first abolitionists.

Again, Liberalism is not socialism or communism. It is not anarchy or majoritarianism. If one wishes to see some Classical Liberalism, click on the reply called Madison and Jefferson.

Really, Democrats should be ashamed of themselves and I wonder how many of us real Liberals can hold out on the fringe. Or do I have it completely wrong?