Monday, October 22, 2007
Liberals, liberals, and liberals
I see a problem with the way the word "liberal" is used. We talk about how liberals have historically opposed fascism and communism, but which liberals are we talking about? Are we talking about liberals as classical liberals, which by definition support liberty? I'm certainly one of those. Or are we talking about liberals as the modernist Left, whicih supports communist ideas and helped to create the modern socialist and welfare states? Or are we talking about liberals as the postmodern Left, whose ideas were in no small part developed by the Nazi philosopher Martin Heidegger, giving us ideas such as political correctness? One of these has historically opposed fascism and communism. I can't say the same for the other two.
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2 comments:
The classical definition of "liberal" hardly matters any longer, since the contemporary meaning of the word has meant "execrable Marxist POS" for at least two decades. To associate yourself with any wing of the progressive, liberal mindset is daft.
skh.pcola
Indeed. That is why most classical liberals in the U.S. now call themselves libertarians. And that's why I typically use the term myself. But I still hear the term "liberal" used in all these senses, and it helps to have it pointed out at times, to remind people that their use of this word is becoming too fluid to mean anything.
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