What is your definition of liberal?

[Springslips]

16. Two types that are somewhat opposite.

Classic liberalism and classic conservativism do not resemble what those term mean in the modern political sense. In fact, some parts of modern liberalism is classically conservative, and parts of modern conservativism are classically liberal.

The main divide between classic con and classic lib is the idea of the nature of man, and thereby how he should be govern. In Classic Conservativism, man is looked at as being animalistic; his primitive nature is Hobbian; man is wolf to man. Therefor government needs to be strong and controlling, less society collapses to a Hobbian state.

In classic liberalism, man is essentially good, and lives with harmony as a primitive state. Therefor government needs to be weak and not controlling, less it oppresses and snuffs the goodness of man.

This is why modern conservative economic policies are called LIBERAL freemarketism. ( a term that confuses many.) meanwhile, neo-conservatism is so called as it believes in a strong government to create the Hegalian end to history. Both are part of GOP conservativism, but they really don't fit. Neither does Ayn Rand Objectionist ( highly classically liberal) fit with Christian Fundamentalism ( highly classically conservativism.)

Modern liberalism is just as comprised of different classical flavors. Groups formed by identity are often classical conservative, while socialist are highly classically liberal. Pro labor is highly classically conservative, while anti-authoritarians are highly classically liberal. You can see the fault lines of these ideas in almost every inner-party argument here on DU.

When you look at it this way, it is hard to defined the ideologies in a modern sense; it seems like a ready-made jigsaw of different group forced together by FOTA. Yet we also feel more connected. So my answer to what is a liberal is: ???????????