Liberalism Essay, Research Paper

Liberalism: the word has a number of meanings. According to the dictionary, these include “favorable to progress and reform, as in religious or political affairs”; “favorable to or in accord with concepts of maximum individual freedom possible, esp. as guaranteed by law and secured by governmental protection of civil liberties”; “open-minded or tolerant, esp. free of or not bound by traditional or conventional ideas, values, etc.”; and “characterized by generosity and willingness to give in large amounts”. [Random House Dictionary of the English Language]. The views I hold are left of center, and I consider myself a liberal and I encourage government action to change things to increase personal freedom and tolerance. I believe in social and economic equality and that the importance of freedom and equality rise above the conflict of order. To demonstrate this, I will provide my stance on some major issues that are of importance to me.

I identify myself with the Democratic Party due to its liberal ideology. I believe in helping individuals take more control over their own lives. This requires (a) providing an environment that does not remove choice; (b) making sure that failures of judgment are not disastrous, removing choice; (c) offering information so that choices can be understood and made intelligently; and (d) giving people responsibility and encouraging self-reliance.

I see the role of government as providing a place where individuals can develop their lives and contribute to society. Regulation of private industry is needed to ensure integrity and safety. I strongly feel that equal opportunity should be a goal, which should involve a level of urgency to rid the effects of poverty and discrimination. Health care and education should be easily available to all, since without either, individual choice is limited. I do not want the government to protect people from themselves, except to prevent actions that cause harm.

My liberal approach to controversial issues is to recognize that there are usually conflicting ideals involved, neither of which always dominates. It is necessary to discover the conflict, and then to find the best tradeoff in any given situation. For example, I am in favor of abortion rights. Although a fetus is a pre-human, and should be given as many rights as possible, the quality of life of existing human beings can outweigh the potential life of the baby. It is, however, a difficult question that involves tradeoffs among very important conflicting goals, and it depends on circumstances, as each situation is individually different from the next.

As far as minority, gay, and women s rights, I believe that every human being is entitled both to equality before the law and equal opportunity in society. Discrimination causes unequal opportunity by removing choice. It is true that legislating beliefs cannot work; but legislating that actions cannot discriminate unfairly treats the symptom while a cure is sought. The danger is that the underlying problem is then ignored; this is why education plays such a vital role in my mind.

Another important issue, the conflict of gun control, in my view, involves distrust of government, individual responsibility, and attitudes towards violence within society. I believe that giving everyone a mechanism to hurt other people quickly, easily, and at a distance is dangerous; people are more likely to do it. On the other hand, I believe that people should be trusted, and that large organizations should not. One approach to resolving this conflict, from what I have read, is the Swiss system, in which large numbers of people own guns, but they are registered such that usage can be easily traced; these weapons are kept in a manner that reduces the possibility of irrational use. Many liberals prefer the outright banning of guns intended only to kill people, on the grounds that such weapons are by now ineffective in dealing with abuse of power by government, but the Swiss system, as so much of what I have read, is the best way that government could go about resolving this ongoing conflict between liberals and conservatives. Compromise is key in resolving conflicting values on important issues of concern.

Some other issues that I hold important to American democracy are my beliefs on the arts and censorship. I oppose government-enforced limits on free expression; the First Amendment of the US Constitution is the issue on which the government comes closest to taking an absolutist line. This includes the spreading of ideas; in our mass media age, an opinion or argument that is not conveyed to large numbers of people is effectively censored. Therefore, not only should anti-pornography laws be removed, but also the active promotion of alternative and controversial viewpoints should be encouraged. This can give people a better idea of the arguments both for and against a given position.

One of the most controversial issues today involves the war on drugs. This country went through Prohibition once, and its only long-term result was to corrupt law enforcement and create a vicious criminal class. It’s happening again, and (just like last time) selective enforcement is making the “war on drugs” a war against the poor and black and a pretense for dangerous expansions in police power. In any case, the government, in my liberal opinion, has no right to tell us what we can or cannot put in our bodies. Only the individual can decide to “say no”; the drug problem is not one of supply but of demand. I am confident that total legalization of everything is the only way to break the drug gangs. However, restriction of access to children should be ensured, as with tobacco and alcohol; and taxes should be used to reduce the potential for abuse.

I feel that as the level of “anti-poverty” spending in this country rises, so has poverty, because so much money is being spent on bureaucratic administration. In order to break this cycle, I would be in favor of eliminating marginal tax rates of over 100%, allowing the poor to keep most of what they earn instead of removing it by reducing benefits. I feel the simplest way to administer is universal welfare, combined with a relatively high flat rate income tax. This removes the demoralizing aspect of receiving charity, which encourages dependency, and ensures that the insufficient levels of charity offered are not stretched to the breaking point. It is important to remember that education and training also need to be provided to offer a realistic way to find jobs. As I mentioned earlier, education is key for the understanding and progression of American society.

Another issue of my concern is of the government spending on national defense. This issue is also combined with that of foreign aid; to what extent does it make sense to give money to others so that they won’t be inclined to attack us? The bottom line here seems to be human rights; a country in which human rights are respected is far more stable than one in which they are not. I believe the goal should be to maintain a defense against potential threats, but to spend most of the defense budget on increasing the standard of living and level of democratic participation in other countries.

Now that I have explained my stances on some important political issues, it is only fair to explain how I came to view the government in this way. My strong, liberal opinions stem from my family. These primary people have shaped my political socialization the most, and molded me into what I am today. Both my parents are moderate liberals, and while living at home, I would go to the polls with them during voting periods. They used to talk to me about what was going on, and how they voted on each issue at hand. My parents would agree on most issues, so I was brought up with their outlooks on politics; such has stuck with me through the years, and today I hold their same basic stances on political issues.

To close, I believe in spending one s dollars, thoughts, and actions wisely. I oppose the expansion of corporate power, not to mention state power when it exceeds its limits. I promote “bottom-up” solutions that encourage local solutions to local problems, and that allow individuals to make decisions affecting their lives. I look forward to living in a color-blind society, and feel that discrimination must be strongly countered and to educate society is necessary in ridding our country with this evil. I sense that unless the government takes a more active role to promote social equality, the rich will get richer, and the poor will continuously be pushed down, no matter how hard they try to get up. I believe that the public needs to get off their rear-ends and vote, (possibly mandatory voting). I have always been interested in American politics, and have sustained a high sense of efficacy. I feel, all in all, that the government is doing a good job. However, my liberal ideals want more government action to promote equality and freedom than order.

31c