Yeah, it’s hard to explain in the US and Canada, where there are only two major parties, that they don’t represent two ends of a political spectrum. They’re just two dominant parties that have different ideas; on a lot of things, they even agree and don’t hide it.
I wish we, as kids in society, had learned more about specific right-wing and left-wing policies in history and civics so that this distinction could be made more clear. Or at least that we were taught what liberalism is and what neoliberalism is and how they’re different.
But we didn’t and weren’t, so when people think “liberal” they think “left,” and we’re all worse off for it.
Yes, that’s exactly what I mean. It’s nuts that a word means something totally different in one specific area of the world because it’s politically convenient to ignore what it actually means.
Yeah, it’s hard to explain in the US and Canada, where there are only two major parties, that they don’t represent two ends of a political spectrum. They’re just two dominant parties that have different ideas; on a lot of things, they even agree and don’t hide it.
I wish we, as kids in society, had learned more about specific right-wing and left-wing policies in history and civics so that this distinction could be made more clear. Or at least that we were taught what liberalism is and what neoliberalism is and how they’re different.
But we didn’t and weren’t, so when people think “liberal” they think “left,” and we’re all worse off for it.
Deliberately of course, precisely to maintain ignorance, and keep the Overton window firmly on the right…
Ouch.
I guess both have crazy US-only meanings, because well, “liberal” is the core of the right-wing idea.
Yes, that’s exactly what I mean. It’s nuts that a word means something totally different in one specific area of the world because it’s politically convenient to ignore what it actually means.