- Apr 9, 2002
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I think a lot of people do not distinguish between "leftism" and "liberalism".
This is a grave error.
Since the dawn of our nation, it has been founded on principles of liberty. Liberalism, in the classical sense, refers precisely to such principles; as Voltaire put it, "I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
Liberalism implies the right to do, or even be, something other people don't like. What it does not imply is the right not to be offended! Some modern groups have begun to champion a variety of "diversity" in which people who do not like a given thing are prohibited from saying so. This is not liberalism! A classical liberal would defend fervently the right of others to speak negatively of him.
What makes this interesting is that, on many issues, we end up with both the conservatives and the liberals adopting positions hostile to classical liberalism. For every person demanding that gay people be prohibited from kissing in public spaces, another demands that people not be allowed to say bad things about gays. Classical liberalism is opposed to both, defending both the right to publically display affection, and the right to tell people what you think of them.
People interested in learning more about the history of this much-misused word might find this interesting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism
This is a grave error.
Since the dawn of our nation, it has been founded on principles of liberty. Liberalism, in the classical sense, refers precisely to such principles; as Voltaire put it, "I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
Liberalism implies the right to do, or even be, something other people don't like. What it does not imply is the right not to be offended! Some modern groups have begun to champion a variety of "diversity" in which people who do not like a given thing are prohibited from saying so. This is not liberalism! A classical liberal would defend fervently the right of others to speak negatively of him.
What makes this interesting is that, on many issues, we end up with both the conservatives and the liberals adopting positions hostile to classical liberalism. For every person demanding that gay people be prohibited from kissing in public spaces, another demands that people not be allowed to say bad things about gays. Classical liberalism is opposed to both, defending both the right to publically display affection, and the right to tell people what you think of them.
People interested in learning more about the history of this much-misused word might find this interesting:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism