If you’re a liberal, don’t you agree that free enterprise moves society forward?

@Zaphod42 True but you have to remember no one in the world thought it was bad or knew what long term exposure would do. Once it was known it was corrected or stopped.

@Zaphod42 exactly. And regulation got us things such as electronic ignition, airbags, and fuel injection in cars.

@trollslayer he’s using the threat to get them to do what he wants at the border . He needs their help to achieve his border goals . Threatening them this way is 1 way of going about it . Probably not the best way .

@SomeMichGuy this. If we were getting “screwed” by everyone else, why are we the biggest economy in the world?

@AthrillatheHunt I was just pointing out where the totalitarianism can be found in 2025. I still consider totalitarianism a pretty bad thing, the democrats don't even close to what the republican party represents as a thread to someones personal freedom. Neither does the democratic party need to scapegoat entire parts of it's civilisation for their own personal gain. I would vote for a potplant, if it keeps the contemporary republican party out of office. If you don't get that, you either love authoritarianism, bigotry and xenophobic behavior or you are delusional.

@Kwek00 Awww, did they ban books? Mind telling us exactly what books they banned that gave you the sads?

@Ferise1 funny that— i was actually a leftist, initially, until my PrEfRoNtAl cOrTeX beCaMe DeVeLoPeD (25ish)

@thrash Not sure what you mean by "unfettered leftism".

What we have now is not conservatism, but extreme, fringe right of white supremacist-brand fascism.

You can tell this is so when Mitt Romney and Liz Cheney are seen as "too liberal" for the region of the political spectrum in which the Republican party now finds itself.

@BohemianBabe Have your mom bring you down more Kool-Aid BooBoo

@ron122 I have your mom doing that. 😉

@BohemianBabe huh

@Kwek00 so what are they against?

@Kwek00 warned that system, done feeding

@Ferise1 Not free enterprise... The only thing you can really hammer on, is their description of freedom.

You practically have 3 big types of liberals, and even in those 3 brackets you have nuances.

Classical liberals, what is/used to be the big center. Which are your Adam Smith, John Locke, Milton Friedman type of people. They ussually are progressive when it comes to individual freedom. But their economic policy is capitalism with a nightwatcher state. Pretty much a small governement that protects individuals negative freedoms. They ussually support the employer over the laborer in economic descisions and keep taxes down. They are not a big fan of redistribution.

Conservative liberals, which is the right wing of liberalism. An example of that, would be Friedrich Hayeck. They are ussually conservative when it comes to social issues, however they do believe that if enough people are ready for progress, progress needs to be allowed. They ussually stop progressive laws, untill they don't have the votes to do it any longer. Then they accept the new paradigm and get over the issue. They aren't reactionairy and are not trying to turn back the clock. For their economic policies, they adopt the same policies as the classical liberal.

Progressive liberals, which are left from the center. These are your John Stewart Mill and John Rawls types. They allign on the progressive social issues with classical liberals. In the economy and in peoples daily life, they believe in positive liberty. This concept is often denied by the other two factions. For a progressive liberal, it's not enough to be free to do a certain thing, you also need to be able to excercise your freedom. It's fine that you are free to take vacation, however, if you can't afford it that negative freedom just ain't enough. These people ussually are in favor of using the state to create regulations and redistribution. Making sure that you can live your old age, and don't have to be in bed due the consequences of your work AND the fact that the market didn't pay you enough so you aren't able to actually do anything when you are on a pension (for example).

All 3 factions believe in free enterprise, but the progressive side believes that you need to be free in the negative and positive sense of the concept.

@Ferise1 Then tell him to stop lying!