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Didnt take him long...


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So, Pack, are you saying that using labels to categorize people is fraught with peril as it objectifies the person while not recognizing their individuality?

 

Hey I resemble that remark ;)

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TheScout, your unconvincing. While you can dice the semantics for the liberal and conservative term finer, the root is unchanged. Im convinced that the formation of the United States via Declaration of Independence, fighting the revolution and establishment of a democratic representative republic is an inherently Liberal concept. In fact there is a school of thought that holds that Conservatism, at its core, is the antithesis of the American version of Democracy.

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Classically speaking, American conservatives and liberals are both "liberal." In fact, in my opinion (as a biased conservative), the American conservative viewpoint is more liberal than the American liberal viewpoint (which I classify as being more progressive (which implies using the power of government to directly improve things)). A classical liberal viewpoint stresses individual freedom, free markets, and limited government. This includes the importance of human rationality, individual property rights, natural rights, the protection of civil liberties, individual freedom from restraint, equality under the law, constitutional limitation of government, and free markets.

 

Obama's administration does not have a classic liberal viewpoint. It has a progressive viewpoint.

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I don't think the terms are meaningless. They are a way to easily describe a particular viewpoint at a particular time. However one must be aware of that when they use it and make proper note of it.

 

It reminds me of the Whig Theory of History. A British theory about the progress of constitutional government in England which was developped in the 19th Century. One of the major faults that critics of it claim is that it tries to fit past political figures neatly into the current political spectrum.

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