RE: Am I a "liberal"?
September 3, 2009 at 2:32 pm
(This post was last modified: September 3, 2009 at 2:35 pm by bozo.)
It's a bit tricky this one, because liberal probably doesn't mean the same in the uk as it does in America.
In the uk we have a Liberal Party, which positions itself in the centre in an attempt to break the stranglehold the two more electorally successful parties have enjoyed under our first-past-the-post voting system. Those 2 parties USED to offer a choice between left and right, socialism and capitalism. The party of the left being the Labour Party and the Conservative Party being the party of the right.
That changed however when the Labour Party was taken over by right-wingers and Tony Blair became leader in 1994. Since then, it ceased to be a party of the left, rather another version of conservatism.
The Liberal Party talks left on some issues and right on others, depending who is listening.
So being termed liberal in the uk would probably indicate support for the party of that name, rather than indicating any political ideology.
I understand ( I think ) what the term means in America and I prefer liberal views to right-wing ones.
In the uk we have a Liberal Party, which positions itself in the centre in an attempt to break the stranglehold the two more electorally successful parties have enjoyed under our first-past-the-post voting system. Those 2 parties USED to offer a choice between left and right, socialism and capitalism. The party of the left being the Labour Party and the Conservative Party being the party of the right.
That changed however when the Labour Party was taken over by right-wingers and Tony Blair became leader in 1994. Since then, it ceased to be a party of the left, rather another version of conservatism.
The Liberal Party talks left on some issues and right on others, depending who is listening.
So being termed liberal in the uk would probably indicate support for the party of that name, rather than indicating any political ideology.
I understand ( I think ) what the term means in America and I prefer liberal views to right-wing ones.
A man is born to a virgin mother, lives, dies, comes alive again and then disappears into the clouds to become his Dad. How likely is that?
