Companion post to
“Are You Tired of Divisive Political Messages“
First things first…we need to look at the actual definitions of liberal and conservative.
Our society is so focused on using these terms to define people. We use them to delineate “them” and “us.” But I bet most people don’t even know what the words actually mean.
According to Merriam-Webster:
Conservative
2(a) tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions: traditional
2(b) marked by moderation or caution
2(c) marked by or relating to traditional norms of taste, elegance, style, or mannersLiberal
2(a) marked by generosity: openhanded
3. definition is obsolete per MW
4. not literal or strict: loose
5. Broad-minded: not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or traditional forms
Now tell me, based on the literal definitions, how is either one of these good or bad?
And wouldn’t you even say that it is in our best interest to have a good balance of both?
We can’t always maintain existing views because life changes, society changes, the world changes, and we will not survive if we don’t adjust. Survival of the fittest, right?
We can’t always be unbound by authoritarianism. We also wouldn’t survive if we all ran around doing whatever we want, following no rules or societal structure. We would use up all of our resources.
So why am I proud to be a liberal? Because being a liberal is my gift to the world.
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- It is what led me to create this Organization.
- It is what inspires me to draw a below-average salary in order to give more of our proceeds to organizations who are working to make the world better for all of us.
- It allows me to write “broad-minded” articles like this.
- It allows me to be innovative with my content offerings.
- It allows me to see divisive issues from an unorthodox perspective.
- It gives me the generosity of spirit that makes me want to help others reach their potential.
- It allows me to see the spark of greatness in someone that they cannot see in themselves.
With that being said, I am also proud of my conservative side. Without it I wouldn’t be able to realize my vision.
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- It allows me to remain disciplined enough to work from home/be my own boss.
- It allows me to maintain a structured website with structured content to better serve you.
- It allows me to trudge through the necessities of running a nonprofit organization: accounting, tax, legal, marketing, technology, etc.
- It has allowed me to make a good living and save so I could pursue my passion, this Organization.
- It makes me want to perform research to get my facts straight.
In just the past hour that I’ve been working on this post, I have learned that not only am I proud to be called a liberal, I also feel just as proud of my conservative side. Wow! I didn’t see that one coming! I’m learning right here alongside you guys.
Now that you have the definitions, let me know in the comments whether you consider yourself to be conservative or liberal, and why you’re proud to claim the title.
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