So an innocent word has been highjacked by the illiberal to mean something
else?
Perhaps we need language police.
John
On Wed, 28 Sep 2005 00:19:33 +0100, Tom Reese <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
John Forbes asked:
The word (liberal) comes from Old French, and originally meant
"pertaining
to a free
man". Its very root means "free".
So why is it that in the land of the free, many people seem to like
freedom for everything except thought, and consider "liberal" to be a
dirty word? This baffles the rest of us, many of whom tend to accept,
more or less, the definition of the Oxford Dictionary (original
edition),
which states:
"Of political opinions: Favourable to constitutional changes and legal
or
administrative reforms tending in the direction of freedom or
democracy."
Surely this is what all Americans want? Isn't it? So what's wrong with
being liberal?
It's almost impossible to answer your question without setting off the
politics powderkeg.
When used as a dirty word, "liberal" is an accusation that means "one who
advocates higher taxes and excessive government." That is what the person
making the accusation wants the electorate to believe. It can go much
deeper.
This touches on issues that people are extremely passionate about and it
could easily turn ugly. Abortion, guns, separation of church and state
and
economic policy are some of the issues.
I tried to keep this opinion free to avoid setting off the arguments.
Tom Reese
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