Liberalism, conservatism, social democracy and neo-liberalism: DEFINITIONS
Ive been reading a few posts on here lately where people talk about the difference between Liberals and Conservatives. This frustrates me hugely because whilst I was at university studying politics, I studied modern political orientations as well as the key thinkers and key texts behind them. The media tends to categorise people as liberals and conservatives, whilst in fact most people in Western society today tend to be social democrats or neo-liberals. The definitions below are informed by my politics degree (first class honours, in case youre wondering) and backed up by Wikipedia.
Why does it matter? Why not let people call themselves whatever they want? Because media distortion of these terms has warped the whole political discourse. Liberalism and conservatism havent been major forces in politics for nearly 50 years now, and by failing to understand this, we end up misunderstanding our opponents.
So heres an interesting thing to try: read the definitions below and see where you fit.
Liberalism
· Most Americans who think of themselves as Liberals are actually Social Democrats.
· Liberalism is NOT a synonym for left-wing or centre-left beliefs.
· Liberalism is defined as the belief in liberty and equality. Major liberal beliefs include constitutions, democracy, free and fair elections, human rights, capitalism, free trade and the separation of church and state.
· Liberalism emerged at the same time as the Renaissance/Enlightenment. The father of liberal thought is John Locke. Lockes writing focuses on the need for religious tolerance, the right to ownership of property and the idea of a social contract (i.e. people form states to maintain social order).
Conservatism
· Many people who think of themselves as Conservatives are actually neo-liberals.
· Conservatism is NOT a synonym for right-wing or centre-right beliefs.
· Conservatism promotes the maintenance of traditions and opposes rapid change in society. Financial deregulation is actually the kind of rapid change that true conservatives oppose.
· Edmund Burke was one of conservatisms key thinkers. His Reflections on the Revolution in France. He believed in the human desire to be ruled and controlled and the division of property forming the social structure.
Social democracy
· The modern Democratic party is a Social Democratic institution. Similarly, many people in America who call themselves Liberals are actually Social Democrats.
· Social democracy is influenced by socialism, but is actually a centre-left philosophy.
· The chief goal of modern social democracy is to reform capitalism to align it with the ethical ideals of social democracy while maintaining the capitalist mode of production, rather than creating an alternative socialist economic system.
· Social democratic beliefs include a mixed economy, subsidised programmes of eduation, health care, child care and social services, social security, labour rights, environmentalism, legal immigration, progressive taxation, a secular society, fair trade, human rights and civil liberties.
Neo-liberalism
· This cannot be over-emphasised enough: MOST PEOPLE WHO THINK OF THEMSELVES AS CONSERVATIVES ARE NEO-LIBERALS. Ronald Reagan was a neo-liberal. Margaret Thatcher was a neo-liberal. The Republican party are neo-liberals. Glenn Beck is a neo-liberal.
· Neo-liberalism is a relatively new ideology, formed in the 1970s, which combines conservative social values (i.e. tradition, opposition to rapid change) with liberal economic values (i.e. deregulation, lack of state control over the market).
· Neo-conservatism refers to the social beliefs which are held by neo-liberals (i.e. opposition to abortion, opposition to gay marriage, etc).
· Neo-liberal economic policies include: minimal taxation, cutting public spending, privatisation of state assets, deregulisation, the freedom of the market and trade liberalisation. The World Bank and the IMF are governed by neo-liberal economic policies.
Ive been reading a few posts on here lately where people talk about the difference between Liberals and Conservatives. This frustrates me hugely because whilst I was at university studying politics, I studied modern political orientations as well as the key thinkers and key texts behind them. The media tends to categorise people as liberals and conservatives, whilst in fact most people in Western society today tend to be social democrats or neo-liberals. The definitions below are informed by my politics degree (first class honours, in case youre wondering) and backed up by Wikipedia.
Why does it matter? Why not let people call themselves whatever they want? Because media distortion of these terms has warped the whole political discourse. Liberalism and conservatism havent been major forces in politics for nearly 50 years now, and by failing to understand this, we end up misunderstanding our opponents.
So heres an interesting thing to try: read the definitions below and see where you fit.
Liberalism
· Most Americans who think of themselves as Liberals are actually Social Democrats.
· Liberalism is NOT a synonym for left-wing or centre-left beliefs.
· Liberalism is defined as the belief in liberty and equality. Major liberal beliefs include constitutions, democracy, free and fair elections, human rights, capitalism, free trade and the separation of church and state.
· Liberalism emerged at the same time as the Renaissance/Enlightenment. The father of liberal thought is John Locke. Lockes writing focuses on the need for religious tolerance, the right to ownership of property and the idea of a social contract (i.e. people form states to maintain social order).
Conservatism
· Many people who think of themselves as Conservatives are actually neo-liberals.
· Conservatism is NOT a synonym for right-wing or centre-right beliefs.
· Conservatism promotes the maintenance of traditions and opposes rapid change in society. Financial deregulation is actually the kind of rapid change that true conservatives oppose.
· Edmund Burke was one of conservatisms key thinkers. His Reflections on the Revolution in France. He believed in the human desire to be ruled and controlled and the division of property forming the social structure.
Social democracy
· The modern Democratic party is a Social Democratic institution. Similarly, many people in America who call themselves Liberals are actually Social Democrats.
· Social democracy is influenced by socialism, but is actually a centre-left philosophy.
· The chief goal of modern social democracy is to reform capitalism to align it with the ethical ideals of social democracy while maintaining the capitalist mode of production, rather than creating an alternative socialist economic system.
· Social democratic beliefs include a mixed economy, subsidised programmes of eduation, health care, child care and social services, social security, labour rights, environmentalism, legal immigration, progressive taxation, a secular society, fair trade, human rights and civil liberties.
Neo-liberalism
· This cannot be over-emphasised enough: MOST PEOPLE WHO THINK OF THEMSELVES AS CONSERVATIVES ARE NEO-LIBERALS. Ronald Reagan was a neo-liberal. Margaret Thatcher was a neo-liberal. The Republican party are neo-liberals. Glenn Beck is a neo-liberal.
· Neo-liberalism is a relatively new ideology, formed in the 1970s, which combines conservative social values (i.e. tradition, opposition to rapid change) with liberal economic values (i.e. deregulation, lack of state control over the market).
· Neo-conservatism refers to the social beliefs which are held by neo-liberals (i.e. opposition to abortion, opposition to gay marriage, etc).
· Neo-liberal economic policies include: minimal taxation, cutting public spending, privatisation of state assets, deregulisation, the freedom of the market and trade liberalisation. The World Bank and the IMF are governed by neo-liberal economic policies.
