Why do people call liberals "elitist?"?

Question

I always thought of conservatives as big-business oil tycoons and the like, and liberals as inner city middle class or underpriviledged people. (in general of course).

Answer 1

Democrats tend to be either lower income or middle class working people. Liberals tend to be Hollywood or college professors or younger, college educated people who have a tendency to "talk down" to people with differing viewpoints as if anyone who doesn't agree with them must be stupid.

Answer 2

First inner city middle class or underprivileged may vote Democrat but you could hardly call them liberal. By elitist liberal we mean those people who should know better than to think that the policies of the left will benefit the majority of the people. Elites have no faith in the working class to be able to live the lives of their choice. Elites complain about the state of the country from their comfortable digs with no intention of doing anything that would get their hands dirty and make a difference. They are the do as I say not as I do crowd. They want more funding for public schools yet never send their kids to them, they want gun control yet are surrounded by armed guards. They advocate for the advancement of big government yet claimed to be oppressed by it. They are by and large people with a vision for how other people should live. If you think all Conservatives are big business types and oil tycoons you really need to get out more often,

Answer 3

Conservatives like to think of themselves as the underdog battling the big government liberals. This is just in their warped brain. Many conservatives are well-to-do just as liberals are upper middle class. They think by calling them elitist it will make them sound like the tycoons of the Industrial revolution. I don't see liberals as priveled "elitist" and I don't think "elitist" is a bad word.

Answer 4

Some in the top of the left wing often loose touch with the people they should be fighting for or they make such idealistic standards that are not livable or reachable for someone who has to struggle from paycheck to paycheck.Every politician has to keep touch with the real world but leftist leaders are rightfully so held more accountable if they don't.What's the use of fighting for people if you totally don't get anymore how these people live?How it is for them from day to day?If you sit in an office everyday and want to speak for labor people,you better speak to real people or you'll make all kinds of beautiful theories that don't work in reality.That's what that claim is about.
Being good willing but out of touch with the common man or woman.

Answer 5

That's usually reserved for a a subset of the liberal population. Typically people who have no useful skills or knowledge, but try to dictate how everybody else should think and act ( often without following their own advice ). Especially common in Hollywood types.

Answer 6

In many respects conservatives are elitist also.

But I think the lib elitist title comes from the stereotype of college profs and other thinking people. Its the whole, I'm smarter than you are thing. But truth is, there are plenty of con intellectuals as well. (Come on William F Buckley or George Will are not an elitist?)

Its just another labeling tactic cons use in attacking the left.

Answer 7

It is very simple most educated liberals believe that you can discuss and negotiate your way out of any conflict that because of their superior intellect they know what is best for you.If you observed them it usually do as I say not what I do.

That is why our ex-president boast about all the money he is making and he really don't need a tax cut. No one as ever said to these elitist if you don't need a tax cut why don't you donate more tax money to the government,they would gladly accept it, but you see it is not their money they want to donate it is yours.

Answer 8

There are just as many big business oil tycoon liberals as there are conservatives. Your thinking has been molded by the liberal spin machine and CNN!

Answer 9

Well a good example might be Al Gore, the do as I say not as I do kinda people. Telling you to conserve energy while he has his 20 room mansion and running up quite the power and gas bills there.

Answer 10

Because they rule Hollywood, influence Americans with a speech writer, who writes their comments for them in a public arena, with NO responsibility for what they say. Do you think they would let you into one of their parties? Keep dreaming. That is why Liberals are elitist.