What's a "Liberal"?
I understand the general meaning of liberalism but what do Americans specifically mean when they say someone is a "liberal"?
Genuine question, these last months have been really confusing.
>>2146297
A lot of people just call everybody that disagrees with them a 'liberal'. Especially right-wingers.
It's kind of how some/a lot left-wingers use conservative as an insult.
Nothing more, nothing less.
>>2146297
"Liberal" nowadays in the US just means the new Left wing, which although doesn't exactly believe in Bolshevik communism, believes in socialized services like healthcare and more equitable wages.
American liberals tend to favor government intervention to help disadvantaged groups. More recently they started favoring certain social and civil issues like police regulation, female autonomy in healthcare and race relations.
Also for some reason, they want everyone to have rights except firearms enthusiasts. Which to me is kind of dumb because historically, left wing groups have been very supportive (in ideology and theory) of the "common man" having access to self defense against government overreach.
In the United States, the term "liberal" has become interchangeable with progressive.
Ironically, these progressive policies can include authoritarian practices such as gun control and hate speech legislation.
>>2146297
Basically a socialist. They trust in the government and think it should provide for everyone while they hate corporations and free market competition because people get left behind. Most have good intentions.
I think the movement started as the hippies wafting freedom from duty and responsibility, but then it spread to a society wanting the same thing which results in free stuff from the government.
I just don't understand how they can't see that corporations can always be trusted to do what is best for profits, yet government doesn't always have a clear motive.
Synonymous with dipshit SJWs who comprise the majority of it now.
Liberal in the United States: Progressive social democrat
Liberal in Europe: Anticlerical libertarian radical
Liberal in Latin America: Socially conservative free-market fundamentalist
>>2146297
Liberal in the classical sense: nationalism, democracy, egalitarian values opposed to monarchy and aristocracy
Liberal in the American sense: social democrat + cuck identity politics
>>2146297
Someone who deems freedom as the highest value
>>2146364
Liberal in Russia - "progressive" in an american way, anticlerical, free market cargo-cultist.
Nobody in America knows what liberal means. Just look at the definitions in this thread, they're all over the fucking place.
It's just a by-word for "not /pol/" by this point desu. :^)