Most Democrats are NOT liberals

[UnrepentantLiberal]

[LostOne4Ever]

1. Now

Tell us something we don't know.

[sendero]

2. Or at least not..

.... the caricature of what a liberal is supposed to be.

I am a "liberal" because of economic justice issues and civil liberties issues. There's plenty of stuff that is supposed to come with "liberal" that I can do without.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

8. Like what?

I'm curious.

There's plenty of stuff that is supposed to come with "liberal" that I can do without.

[pampango]

3. Depends on your definition of "liberal". From the wiki definition of liberalism, most Democrats are.

Liberalism (from the Latin liberalis) is a political philosophy or worldview founded on ideas of liberty and equality. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally they support ideas such as free and fair elections, civil rights, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, free trade, and private property.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism

"Harry" was not.

[Spider Jerusalem]

5. The term doesn't mean that in American political discourse.

In the American context "liberal" seems to mean what the rest of the world calls a "social democrat":

Social democracy is a political ideology that considers itself to be a form of reformist democratic socialism. It advocates for a peaceful, evolutionary transition of the economy to socialism through progressive social reform of capitalism. It asserts that the only acceptable constitutional form of government is representative democracy under the rule of law. It promotes extending democratic decision-making beyond political democracy to include economic democracy to guarantee employees and other economic stakeholders sufficient rights of co-determination. It supports a mixed economy that opposes the excesses of capitalism such as inequality, poverty, and oppression of various groups, while rejecting both a totally free market or a fully planned economy. Common social democratic policies include advocacy of universal social rights to attain universally accessible public services such as education, health care, workers' compensation, and other services including child care and care for the elderly. Social democracy is connected with the trade union labour movement and supports collective bargaining rights for workers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_democracy

[pampango]

9. While I consider myself a social democrat, as most liberals in Europe seem to be,

the classic definition of "liberalism" is not bad just somewhat extreme and a bit dated. Liberalism developed in opposition to royal rule in which everything belonged to or existed at the whim of the king.

"Social liberalism" may also be a better definition of modern liberalism:

Social liberalism is the belief that liberalism should include a social foundation, implicitly on a collective basis. It differs from classical liberalism in that it believes the legitimate role of the government includes addressing economic and social issues such as health care and education while simultaneously endorsing a market economy and expanding civil and political rights and liberties. Under social liberalism, the good of the community is viewed as harmonious with the freedom of the individual. Social liberal policies have been widely adopted in much of the capitalist world, particularly following World War II. Social liberal ideas and parties tend to be considered centrist or centre-left. The term social liberalism is often used interchangeably with modern or new liberalism to diferentiate it from old or classical liberalism.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_liberalism

Social liberalism and social democracy seem to have a lot in common.

[no_hypocrisy]

4. I'd say there is a significant contingent of liberal republicans who left their

rightwing nutjob party who became blue dog dems.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

7. Which is why they love Obama so much.

[Fla_Democrat]

6. Unthinkable

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0914863/


[first lines]

Steven Arthur Younger: {into video camera} My name is Steven Arthur Younger. I am an American citizen.

I think it's a great exercise. With no pressure, we can examine ourselves, we can hold true to ideals, and flat out state we would never do that. But, in truth, most people would never be in the situation to personally have to make the call.