Please explain to this foreign citizen what the American definition of a liberal is?

Question

It seems to largely to be anti-war and pro-multilateralism.

If this is the case then it seems to me that much of the rest of the democratic world thinks the same way...

Um, Birdsnake, I think I'll dicount your definition: you seem a little cross and illogical at the moment.

Answer 1

Two kinds of liberalism really, economic and social People can be liberal socially and economically, conservative economically and socially, or split down the middle.

Economically speaking, liberals tend lean towards government regulation to prevent market excesses, social welfare programs, protection of labor rights, and progressive taxes (these being those that require wealthier citizens to pay a greater proportion of their income in taxes).

Socially, liberals are progressive. They tend to accept things such as alternative lifestyles, unwed mothers, pro-choice movements, etc. This is contrasted with social conservatives that tend to favor more "traditional" values.

These are traditional definitions, and often have absolutely NOTHING to do with the way the terms are applied in political debates. There the terms liberal and conservative are used rather indiscriminately, simply to point out that your opponent should be disliked. Welcome to two party politics.

Answer 2

When americans say that they usually mean socially progressive. Liberal can mean all kinds of things, its usually hurtful or an insult. And yes the vast majority of the populations of the developed, ie first world, nations would probably be considered liberal.

Answer 3

Liberals are full of hate toward their own country, perhaps because many don't work and live off their fellow taxpayers.
BUT I THINK YOU ARE CORRECT. Much of the world thinks the same way.
But who does the world depend on to support them? The USA,
The world depends on the workers in Capitalist America, just like the liberals do.
FOR THE PEOPLE TO LIVE WELL, THEIR COUNTRY MUST HAVE CAPITALISM.
Socialism always leads to a Third Word Nation Status.
Watch what happens to Europe in the next 20 years...... a group of Banana Republics.

Answer 4

A Liberal is a person who believes:
The government should solve everyone's problems.
There should be government agencies to solve each of those problems..
The government should be larger than it is now.
Rich people should pay higher taxes to support a larger government
Corporations should pay higher taxes to support a larger government

Answer 5

Well Im a liberal and to me it means, thinking before you react weighing all options analyzing every angle, seeing where to assess blame and how to fix what caused the need for blame in the first place. It means supporting someones rights for something even if you dont believe it yourself because that is what our Constitution dictates. Im not anti war, I am anti misguided war.

Answer 6

Liberal used to mean a person who was willing to contemplate and accept change and progress . A person who understood that change is a part of progress . But now it's just a catch phrase for the far right to describe anyone who disagrees with them

Answer 7

A liberal is a person who has ten times the IQ of a conservative. Also liberals bath more often. Conservatives breed with family members

Answer 8

Indeed, many a liberal is a Democrat.

Answer 9

Liberalism is mostly anti-capitolism and anti-unborn baby rights while being pro-socialist. It's safe to say the whole world, minus a very small minority is anti-war.

Answer 10

Ok, I don't like them personally, but take this quiz, and afterwords it will tell you about them, and the conservatives, Libertarians and one other. Least bias I could find

http://www.self-gov.org/quiz.html