Liberalism
From Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia written in simple English for easy reading.
Liberalism is a way of thinking about politics and government. Liberals (the people who believe in liberalism) think that freedom means that governments should usually leave people alone. But the word "liberal" has the reverse meaning in the United States, where "liberals" think that the government should have an active role in helping minorities and other oppressed groups. This is a very debatable ideal, because some people say that higher taxes and a large government are needed to help these groups.
[edit] What Liberals Think
- personal freedom - Everyone has the right to make decisions for themselves as long as they do not hurt anyone else or break their things.
- limited government - The main reason that governments exist is to protect personal freedom. This means that governments must protect people and their property.
- free markets - People should be able to buy anything from anyone and sell anything to anyone, as long as they are not hurting people.
- peace - People should not start wars nor undertake violence.
Many liberals believe in natural law. Natural law is a way of thinking that says that everyone has the right to life, freedom, and personal belongings. This means that we should let nobody kill anyone else, we should not stop people from doing what they want as long as they do not hurt anyone, and we should not take away people's things without their agreement. Liberals believe in natural law because they think it is the right way for humans to treat each other.
Some liberals are economists instead. They do not try to find the right way for people to treat each other. Instead, they try to find out how people should treat one another if they want to have a lot of belongings. They say that everyone does better if people do not hurt each other and people do not break each other's personal belongings or property.
When philosophers (or thinkers) talk about Liberalism, they often mention some names. Those names usually are John Stuart Mill and Jeremy Bentham for the 19th century. Isaiah Berlin for the 20th century. When they talk about free market economy, they will probably mention Adam Smith. Adam Smith wrote a lot about free markets - in the 18th century.
Those theories influenced Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, too. They thought that the people would be more productive if they owned a part of the company they worked for. This was called Socialism.
[edit] Differences between Liberalism in Europe and the USA
Liberalism does not mean the same in Europe and the United States. In Europe liberals are right wing. They are more conservative and think economic freedom is more important than personal freedom. In the United States it's the opposite. American liberals are progressive, they think personal freedom is more important than economic freedom. People who are liberals in America would probably be called social democrats in Europe. But sometimes social democracy in Europe limits economic freedom more than most American liberals would support.
Libertarians are often called liberals in Europe and the United States. Libertarians think people should have much personal and much economic freedom.
[edit] How to know who is a Liberal
Liberals can be found in most political parties. In America, there are Republicans and Democrats who are liberals. The Libertarians are all liberals, and many of the members of the Reform and Constitution Parties are, too. In Britain, there are liberals in all three major parties - Labour, Conservative, and Liberal Democrat - and also in the UK Independence Party. Although called Liberals Democrats, the Liberal Democratic Party in Britain is mostly made of people who think government should be big.
Some liberals call themselves anarchists. They do not think that governments should exist because they are too dangerous to personal freedom and free markets. Instead, they think people can buy protection for their life and belongings without a government, just like they buy telephone service. These liberals are called market anarchists or anarcho-capitalists.