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This is one of my favorite hobbyhorses. These current Leftists are NOT Liberals. Liberalism is a product of the Enlightenment, represented in the thought of such luminaries as Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and most of the Founders. True liberal values include: free individuals in a competitive society, free markets & free trade, rule of law, private property, trade, individual liberty, personal responsibility, Republics, Constitutions, small government.

This went downhill in the late 19th century with importation of German philosophical ideas and the related advent of Progressivism, which pretended to be Liberal in philosophy, but was anything but. The New Dealers hid their program of national socialism by calling themselves liberals.

Socialists and Communists detest Liberal values, but have used the name as a way to get into power through the Democrat Party. This has led what passes for conservatives in America to make “Liberal” a title of opprobrium, wrecking the brand forever. That’s a shame because it deprives many people, including most Freepers, of a concept that comes closer to their world view and values than “conservative.”