| "Nothing more than buzzwords" implies that there are no discernible referents, which is far from the truth, even when there are complexities. No one doubts that Dick Cheney is conservative and Hillary Clinton is liberal, nor do they run from the labels. Anyway, conservatism is pretty easy to identify, in a general sense: conservatives tend to think that something went wrong in the past, and that society as a whole was better before that occurred. For some, it is "the 60s", for others the New Deal, and for others the Civil War, which is why there are many divisions among conservatives. They want to prevent further erosion, and, if possible, repair the damage. Liberalism, as it is used now, refers to those who want to use the power of government to speed social change and bring about greater equality. "Moderates", as it is currently used, are those without a coherent set of principles who sometimes agree with conservatives, sometimes with liberals, and who tend to try to split the difference. "Extremist" refers to those who are outside of the underlying consensus which permits discussion between Left and Right, like a basic allegiance to democratic norms, or market mechanisms........ |
