Our worst asshole scumbag, when he wants to pitch what he considers to be a really devastating insult, calls people liberal liberal liberal liberal liberal. Worst thing in the world! Anybody he doesn't like--anyone who says anything he disagrees with--OOOOOOO! Liberal liberal liberal liberal liberal! Liberal! LIBERAL!!!!!
Well, let's define what a liberal actually is, shall we? Turns out, it has nothing to do with politics. Taken from several different leading dictionaries, the definition of a liberal is someone who embraces change and considers it an inherent good; conversely, a conservative is someone who dislikes, distrusts, and resists change.
Liberals realize that in a rapidly changing world, we have to be adaptable. The "old way" of doing things isn't going to work. However, change makes some people uncomfortable. Those are usually older folks and those whose fear response is more acute than normal. Those people embrace conservatism because it helps them deal with the confusion and uncertainty of a changing world. They very often cling to dogma--religious or otherwise--like a life raft.
As far as social programs and such are concerned, they tend to be the favorite of liberals and the enemy of conservatives because they involve change. They are also in response to change, which conservatives prefer to downplay or ignore (compare the responses to climate change). Conservatives tend to idealize the past.
So while tiresomely, inevitably, David Miller will have something typically nasty and unconstructive to say in response (despite his recent pompous pledges, he won't be able to restrain himself), I'd like to hear the thoughts of our non-assholes on this topic. Are conservatives and liberals so fundamentally different in their worldview that we can't get along?
I for one can barely understand how anyone can be resistant to change in today's world, but I understand the strength of the fear response. Dozens of studies have shown how it dominates the thinking of many people.
