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Liberal, Progressive, or Leftie?


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AnitraMar 20, 2006 7:27pm
In Seattle's activist community, and probably elsewhere, the word "liberal" has fallen into disrepute, and not just among conservatives. The alternative label, "progressive," hasn't impressed a lot of people, either. "Liberal" has come to mean "someone who thinks that guilt substitutes for action." "Progressive" has come to mean "someone who cares far more about correct process than about actually accomplishing a damn thing." Maybe the progressives elsewhere are different; Seattle does seem to have an obsession with process.

I myself like the term "radical," because it means "going to the root;" I like going to the root cause of social problems. That is just one of the dictionary definitions, though. For many people, the word "radical" has connotations of "polarized extremist who wants immediate change at any cost and ignores anyone else's opinion." I myself refuse to refer to "neo-conservatives" as "conservatives," even neo ones; they are radicals, who want to drastically change almost everything, who polarize against any opposition and discount any dissent.

I am willing to be called a "leftie," but rarely use the term myself, because I dislike and disagree with the polarization of "left versus right" and even take a "conservative" position on some issues.

I self-identify as an 'activist' -- someone who doesn't just talk about an issue, but actually does something about it.

Recently I told the other members of a committee on ending homelessness, "If you think you are going to create systemic change without getting confrontational with anyone, you are wasting your time." In my experience, change always involves conflict. There is, however, healthy conflict, with dialogue; and unhealthy conflict, with polarized debate instead.

My personal preference is to rehabilitate the term "liberal" to mean someone committed to humanist values, who isn't afraid of conflict, and who deals with conflict without polarization, violence, or acting like a spoiled brat.

What's your self-identification, and why?
958199Mar 20, 2006 9:22pm
Proud to be a patriotic, free-thinking, un-Republican. Why? Have you been hiding under a rock the last 5 years? The Bush administration is destroying this nation "from sea to shining sea", from field to sky, and from mind to mind.

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SteviethemanMar 20, 2006 11:15pm
I'm what I would term a radicalized centrist and populist. I agree with a good majority of progressive/liberal positions, but what I don't like about most progressives/liberals is that they don't seem to want to fight, like it's too "icky" or something. They're also too afraid of guns when they need to be embracing the 2nd amendment (as that's all they may have available to ultimately save the republic from the reich-wingers).
958199Mar 20, 2006 11:38pm
#3: Agreed. The DNC runs from the Second Amendment like I run to a barbecue... as fast as possible. If we looked at voting trends, I would be a Democrat, hands down. I have yet to vote for a Republican, or an Independent. Being from Ohio, Independents are few and far between, and those that are out there are a joke to some extent.

I also agree that Dems don't stand up more forcefully, as if it were the "wrong thing to do". Then again, I vote for their ideas, not their backbone.

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AnitraMar 21, 2006 6:10am
I'm one of the many who abandoned the Democratic party years ago, because the Democratic party had abandoned me -- and then came flooding back in 2004 because we had to do something to get the Village Idiot out of the White House and back to Crawford, and the Democratic party was the only tool we had, flawed as it is. A struggle started then that has mostly gone on behind the scense, between the grassroots activists who want to move the party back left and the leadership who want to keep it corporate.
1148104May 13, 2006 12:39am
3- maybe it's cause they spend too much time on the fucking internet instead of actually DOING something

hotbutterednickJun 20, 2007 2:05am
If there's one thing that can be said about the Democratic party, its that it is neither liberal or progressive anymore (if it ever was). By liberal I mean, working towards increasing individual liberty, and by progressive I mean, coming up with new, original, engaging ideas.

I haven't really found a political party that addresses the issues I find most important. There's Green, Reform, Socialist - all have elements of what I am interested in.

I also should admit, I'm a bit concerned with the "process" in this country. I think it is totally broken. Money buys office. Offices perpetually renew themselves (i.e. entrenched legislatures). I think that unrestricted democracy, unrestricted capitalism, unrestricted totalitarianism, unrestricted socialism, are all destined to fail. We're too democratic at the moment, and we're paying for it with generally crappy politicians. We vote based on perceived image ("I don't like Hilary. She seems cold and calculating" I'm sure we all have heard) rather than the merits of an individual. How many of us knew during the election, or would ever have guessed, that Kerry received worse marks in college than Bush? Further, a candidate's allies are more important than the candidate. Anyway I could ramble forever about the flaws in our system (times have changed drastically since 1776 - when our process WAS the best in the world, and our system needs to catch up!). The key problem to me is the hesitance to talk about some options, or any options. Everything needs to be brought to the table. And as is generally true in politics, some hybrid mishmash of lots of ideas will probably be the best solution.


Liberal, Progressive, or Leftie?

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