liberalism vs. classical

[kentj44]

liberalism anyone care to explain.

[angstlessk]

1. you go first! n/t

[kentj44]

3. actually classical liberalism is really

conservatism,i think.liberalism today would assume the liberal approach to the constitution,i think.but please help me out.

[angstlessk]

7. I think you are referring to the neocons who claimed they were liberals

in the last century. How the tenets of the Chicago School of Economics (aka Milton Friedman) came to be called 'neo liberalism' is beyond my capacity to know! John Kenneth Galbraith was a 'liberal' economist and he did NOT embrace the Chicago School. I suppose a few former liberals did claim it was liberal because at the time liberalism was the accepted economic view...so it was just propaganda.

[kentj44]

8. thank you just

trying to learn something.

[chknltl]

2. Here, let an ex POTUS explain being a liberal:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2834281

[kentj44]

4. your point and kennedys is

well taken,i have always thought that democrats of today run from the term liberalism whereas jfk embraced it,his openmindedness,his pragmatic approach to solving problems are the key.

[chknltl]

9. I am not so sure that we "run" from this

I suspect most progressives are honored to have someone like President Kennedy to draw from. No, please do not ask me to define the differences between 'liberal' and 'progressive'...I use progressive instead of liberal because the word liberal has been so deliberately ruined by the neocon scream machine. For me they mean the same thing.

Although I hesitate at your word "run" I am ill-equipped to say why but I'll try anyway:

America, well the people of America have been so pulled to the right that these things spoken of by President Kennedy appear almost like "just so much far left wing fantasies" to many. Ralph Nader expresses the same views we progressives hold near and dear and yet he will not see many of us jumping onto his bandwagon right now. Rep. Kucinich bumped into this as well. You will find many more of our fellow DUers then not who agreed with his positions yet less than half of us who agreed with him backed him fearing his 'elect-ability' to be his big problem. See? Nobody here "ran" away from him because of his position, we chose to back folks much more 'centrist' instead because we wanted to have the best shot when it comes to retaking the White House.

I have suggested in past threads that American's, sans a catastrophe like 9-11, will move slowly to the left or the right in long pendulum-like arcs. These take time, decades even. Dennis Kucinich is on the correct side (imo) of this arc but at the wrong time. Regardless of what you or I or anyone here might want, America is not ready or willing to be suddenly lurched that far back to the left. (Forgive me Mike Malloy but here is where you and I disagree!)

In my heart, I feel that Senator Obama, (my choice of candidates) represents a halt and return of that pendulum. Is he "left" enough for me? Well so far I would have to say no but what he does should he take office remains to be seen and I feel that we all will be happily surprised at just how Progressive this man will turn out to be! (Hence a large reason he has my support!)

So do we 'run' from our liberal heritage? No, I would suggest that we 'liberals' are working from the inside center trying to return our country back to the left in order to recapture those liberal views we share with President Kennedy. I can think of no other viable way to get back to that heritage any faster.

[stellanoir]

5. Yeah these terms are totally antiquated.

Jon Stewart said it best in '00.

"We no longer have liberals and conservatives. We have moderates and extremists."

The "tax and spend" mantra about the Dems is BS when that is simply what most governments do. These alleged conservatives have looted and wasted the treasury entirely with no accountability and they've trashed the economy. What the heck is even remotely conservative about that?

[kentj44]

6. excuse me

but this current administration borrows and spends which is worse than tax and spend for taxing pays for the spending at least supposedly.most extemeists as you call them forget that if you want certain things they must be paid for some way.

[stellanoir]

10. that's why I referred to it as a "loot and waste" approach.

yoohoo. They've raided the treasury sans any accountability whatsoever.

No problemo right?