it's funny that you mention liberalism because the common understanding of the meaning of "liberalism" has shifted over time. Classical liberalism is much closer to libertarianism than progressivism.
You shouldn't act like terms exist in a vaccuum. Remember that the Republicans and Democrats were on completely different sides of the political spectrum less than a century ago.
Classical liberalism is a doctrine stressing individual freedom and limited government. This includes the importance of human rationality, individual property rights, natural rights, the protection of civil liberties, individual freedom from restraint, constitutional limitation of government, free markets, and a gold standard to place fiscal constraints on government
In a modern political climate these would sound somewhat conservative (mainly 'free markets' and 'limited government'). I think the best modern-day fit would be Libertarianism, which is considered by many to be far-right.
This is why we as a society should really adopt the two-axis means (political compass) of understanding "ism"s. I really hope the public is smart enough to factor just one more dimension into their political analysis, but mass stupidity is always full of surprises.
Which is why I stated that they are right of center... I agree, classical liberalism is basically right wing / conservative / libertarian. America generally is right wing, going back to it's founding.
Which seems rather accurate. Classical liberalism is liberal on both social and economic issues. The left is liberal on social issues and the right generally on the economic ones.
"Classical liberalism, contrary to liberal branches like social liberalism, looks more negatively on social policies, taxation and the state involvement in the lives of individuals, and it advocates deregulation.[10] Until the Great Depression and the rise of social liberalism, it was used under the name of economic liberalism. As a term, classical liberalism was applied in retronym to distinguish earlier 19th-century liberalism from social liberalism.[11] By modern standards, in the United States, simple liberalism often means social liberalism, but in Europe and Australia, simple liberalism often means classical liberalism.[12][13]
...
In the United States, classical liberalism may be described as "fiscally conservative" and "socially liberal". Despite this context, classical liberalism rejects conservatism's higher tolerance for protectionism and social liberalism's inclination for collective group rights, due to classical liberalism's central principle of individualism.[14] Classical liberalism is also considered closely tied with right-libertarianism in the United States.[15] In Europe, liberalism, whether social (especially radical) or conservative, is classical liberalism in itself, so the term classical liberalism mainly refers to centre-right economic liberalism.[16]
"
"Liberal" in the US -> some social freedoms, but restricted in certain ways + economic restrictions.
"Liberal" outside the US -> social freedoms + economic freedoms.
I learned this as an American abroad when someone called me, who would generally be seen as conservative / libertarian in the US, "very liberal" when discussing gay rights (pro), gun rights / armed self-defense (pro), and abortion rights (pro-choice).
Again, it's just a fine point when discussing in an international context (like on HN). When speaking only with Americans, you'll never need this distinction, it's just good to be aware of it when discussing with non-Americans or when reading about foreign politics (e.g. FDP in Germany is a "liberal party" in the European sense of the word, but their policies are socially liberal and fiscally conservative. If an American reads "liberal party", they would be surprised to learn that they campaign on cutting taxes, pro free market, privatization, etc., yet are also pro gay marriage and are for legalizing marijuana: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Democratic_Party_(Germany...)
Good point. Also Liberal != progressive. progressive policy in the last 20 years has in no way championed ideals of individual rights and free enterprise, and they have curtailed certain civil liberties (speech and self defense).
The hallmark of traditional liberal ideals are now mainstream conservative thought (at least in the US). That is why you see a lot of people saying they are 'classical liberal' when describing their political beliefs.
Note that they aren't directly competing ideas. These philosophies aren't pure abstractions. Classical liberalism was crafted in a different historical context, in the era of monarchies and theoracies.
Classical liberals generally support equality, limited government power, civil liberties, democracy, and free markets. Today they're sometimes described as libertarians, whereas modern liberals have morphed into intolerant authoritarians.
Classical liberalism - complete laissez faire market, no government interference and individual wealth creation. Today's libertarians are closest to classical liberals.
The term classical liberal exists specifically, because conservative liberal creates a massive ambiguity.
And getting back to The Economist - they aren't conservative at all. It's a modern liberal magazine, that routinely promotes wealth redistribution and support for the poor.
"classical liberalism" is close to the opposite of what most people think of liberalism. It arose in the 19th century and then was liberal in that it advocated the rule-of-law for all, low tarrifs and low taxes.
It has been termed "classical liberalism" since the late 19th century to distinguish it from social liberalism, which is what most people think of now whn they refer to "liberal".
reply