"Liberals" vs "Progressives"

[doczinn]

liberals in Germany are comparatively pro-free-market.

To the rest of the world, "liberal" still means what is used to mean to us. All the more reason not to use it to refer to socialists.

[longeyes]

I think statist and fascist are the best and most appropriate terms for the real enemy.  A lot of the liberals are just soft travelers and enablers. 

[2swap]

To the rest of the world, "liberal" still means what is used to mean to us. All the more reason not to use it to refer to socialists.

Now you made me interested: What does the equivalent of liberals mean in different countries? Is it only the USA which has 'Liberals 2.0 - now without liberty'? 

[doczinn]

Pretty much. Although the international definition of liberal might not be entirely pro-freedom, that's the connotation.

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

What's wrong with using the term "classical liberal" to differentiate the types of folks who were present at our nation's founding from the socialist, statist enemies of liberty we now call liberals?

[seeker_two]

I think statist and fascist are the best and most appropriate terms for the real enemy.  A lot of the liberals are just soft travelers and enablers. 

Well said....maybe we can differentiate by calling them "liberal fascists" and "liberal collaborators"....

[HankB]

"Liberal" has come to have a lot of unpleasant connotations - for example, a "liberal" is seen as one who claims moral authority to apportion wealth to those he believes are more deserving than those who worked for, earned, or created that wealth; in many quarters, "liberal" is almost synonymous with "thief."

So the leftists are trying - hard - to use the term "progressive," safe in the knowledge that products of publik skool will not know the historic basis of the term "progressive" as applied to various marxist/fascist/totalitarian regiemes.

. . . but as times change so do the meanings of words.  For example, the word "men" clearly means something now it didn't in better times for America.

Ditto for the word "gay."

[longeyes]

Instead of progressive I suggest the Left use the term ingestive.