That’s because there’s not one single definition, especially on Lemmy.
To most people in the US, it’s anyone politically left of center. Primarily Democrats.
To leftists, a liberal is anyone who espouses capitalism. Republicans are liberals because they fucking love capitalism. Democrats are liberals because they believe that, despite its faults, capitalism is the best system and that it can be improved with reform and regulation. Since Lemmy abounds in leftists, you will see this usage a lot.
Finally, to conservatives, liberal is a slur. It’s the OG woke. It means anyone we don’t like. Conservative politicians even call each other liberals, especially during primary season.
I would argue that both liberalism and leftism are spectrums and parts of them overlap, so it’s not like one ≠ other. After all, any participation in democratic process means going reforms and regulations way, even if the endpoint is abolishing capitalism, which would be a logical goal for democratic socialism, for example.
That’s because there’s not one single definition, especially on Lemmy.
To most people in the US, it’s anyone politically left of center. Primarily Democrats.
To leftists, a liberal is anyone who espouses capitalism. Republicans are liberals because they fucking love capitalism. Democrats are liberals because they believe that, despite its faults, capitalism is the best system and that it can be improved with reform and regulation. Since Lemmy abounds in leftists, you will see this usage a lot.
Finally, to conservatives, liberal is a slur. It’s the OG woke. It means anyone we don’t like. Conservative politicians even call each other liberals, especially during primary season.
This is accurate.
I would argue that both liberalism and leftism are spectrums and parts of them overlap, so it’s not like one ≠ other. After all, any participation in democratic process means going reforms and regulations way, even if the endpoint is abolishing capitalism, which would be a logical goal for democratic socialism, for example.