Which side of the political spectrum deserves the meritorious designation of Liberal?

Consider the words of a true Liberal on the effect of ever-expanding government on the cause of Liberty:

“The natural progress of things is for liberty to yeild, and government to gain ground.” Letter From Thomas Jefferson to Edward Carrington, 27 May 1788

Then consider this ‘progressive’ synopsis of the issue:

• Liberal precepts are essentially Individual rights and freedoms, It is self-evident that these are diminished as government grows.
• Socialist-Left Precepts are of expansive government in conflict with the Liberal precepts based in Liberty.
• Therefore, one cannot be an advocate of expansive government and be a true Liberal.

Despite this straightforward logic, the ever deceptive Socialist-Left would like to have it both ways. They incessantly demand the ever-expanding government to the detriment of Liberty, and yet they have the insolence to assume the pretense of being Liberal. This term is deeply rooted in the concepts of freedom, it really belongs to the Pro-Liberty, Conservative side of the political spectrum. The point of this discussion is to set the record straight on this issue, despite Leftist lies on the subject.

Those of the Socialist-Left belong on the authoritarian side of the political spectrum.

Those who favor Individual rights and freedoms belong on the Pro-liberty, right side of the political spectrum.

While It is conceivable that Leftists may try to rationalize that Liberty can thrive with an overarching government, common sense clearly indicates this is an impossibility. Perhaps they know deep down that this is a severe deception on their part. Or it could be that they haven’t given the contradiction too much thought, lest it disturbs their superficial worldview that is bereft of logical underpinnings. After all, everyone would like to have a positive view of themselves. Who wouldn’t want to think of themselves as “Liberators” or protectors of freedom?

The problem for the Socialist-Left is that they are neither protectors of freedom or liberators, they are quite the opposite. The blunt fact is that their base ideology of collectivism has been the cause of horrid oppression, as well as, mass murder in the past century – and is still going strong.  That they severely contradict themselves each and every time they use the Liberal label for their freedom destroying agenda should be obvious to everyone, but many (even on the Pro-Liberty Right) still unwittingly praise them when they use that label.

The unchanging meaning of the words Liberty and Liberal.

If it seems that words such as Liberty, Liberation, Libertarian, Liberalis as well as Liberal all convey similar conceptions it is because they all stem from the same root word Liber. This word that signifies the idea of freedom that traces it’s roots to the word in Greek eleutheros meaning: free, i.e. not a slave or not under restraint free.  That they all have a common and unchanging meaning should be obvious.

Proving the case that true Liberals belong on the political right with two recent examples.

Consider a recent article from Reason magazine  on the revelation that the ACLU is wavering on Free-Speech

It seems fairly clear to me what’s happening here. Leadership would probably like the ACLU to remain a pro-First Amendment organization, but they would also like to remain in good standing with their progressive allies. Unfortunately, young progressives are increasingly hostile to free speech, which they view as synonymous with racist hate speech. Speech that impugns marginalized persons is not speech at all, in their view, but violence. This is why a student Black Lives Matter group shut down an ACLU event at the College of William & Mary last year, chanting “liberalism is white supremacy” and “the revolution will not uphold the Constitution.” Campus activism is illiberal, and liberal free speech norms conflict with the broad protection of emotional comfort that the young, modern left demands.

The ACLU’s capitulation to the anti-speech left should serve as a wake-up call for true liberals.

[Our emphasis] This revelation is pretty extraordinary considering that Liberty is part of the organization’s very name. That is but one data point in the revelation of the Left turning against Liberty and the proper place for true Liberals being on the political right.

Then there is the example of the Dartmouth study that showed that who self-identify as Republican were more likely to be tolerant of others:

Democrats were consistently more likely to indicate conflicting politics negatively affect potential relationships. While 82 percent of respondents who identified Democrats say they would be less likely to date someone with opposing political beliefs, only 47 percent of Independents and 42 percent of Republicans said the same. Similarly, 55 percent of Democratic respondents said opposite political views would make them less likely to befriend another student, compared to 21 percent of Independents and 12 percent of Republicans.

In other words, it was those of the right who displayed a very Liberal attitude towards others.

The Takeaway.

Thus we have demonstrated that advocates of ever-expanding government are adverse to Liberty and the Liberal precepts of Individual rights and freedoms. This means that those two goals are in opposition such that those on the Socialist-Left cannot be Liberal.

We have also shown that despite many protestations to the contrary, the word Liberal, as well as others of the same root structure, have not changed in meaning. Thus those who are true Liberals belong on the right side of the political spectrum that supports these important concepts. Finally, we furthered the case with two recent examples of how the Socialist-Left has turned it’s back on Liberty [and being Liberal] and is now very intolerant of other points of view.

Thus we have made the case that True Liberals belong on the Pro-liberty, Conservative-Right side of the political spectrum.