i remember my high school textbooks giving this brief explanation...
liberals- those who advocate change
conservative- those who desire to keep old norms (in a historical sense)
those aren't my words, but they do kind of give you a picture of where the roots of the terms lie. naturally, both liberals and conservatives want change... but conservatives often point to past strengths while liberals are often striving to break newer ground (notice i didn't say better ground).
a simplistic definition, but i think an effective one for what it is.
Strange Famous: thanks for pointing out the distinction between the term's meanings in the UK and the US. I know that confuses a lot of people on this side of the pond when the news channels flash the party/stances below their names.
__________________
If you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly, you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a precarious chance for survival. There may even be a worse case. You may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves.
~ Winston Churchill
|