Learn English – What are the key differences between a liberal, liberalist, and a libertarian

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There was the following statement in Time magazine’s article (June 14) titled, “The geeks who leak”

“Both Edward J. Snowden and Bradley Manning (who leaked massive volume
of military and diplomatic secrets in 2010) had come of age online, in
chat rooms and virtual communities where this new antiauthority,
free-data ideology was hardening. They identified as libertarians,
with Manning using the word to describe himself and Snowden sending
checks to Ron Paul's presidential campaign.”-

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2145506,00.html#ixzz2W7z2Hqkd:

In trying to find the exact definition of ‘libertarians’ they claim, I came across the following statement in an article titled “Are you liberal, a liberal, or a liberalist?” in uproothealthcare.com” – http://www.uproothealthcare.com/politics/are-you-liberal-a-liberal-or-a-liberalist:

“Some political scholars assert that the terms "libertarian" and
"libertarianism" are synonymous with anarchism, and some express
disapproval of capitalists calling themselves libertarians.
Conversely, other academics as well as proponents of the free market
perspectives argue that free-market libertarianism has been
successfully propagated beyond the U.S. since the 1970s and political
parties and that "libertarianism" is increasingly viewed worldwide as
a free market position.”

It may require thousands words to explain what are a liberal, a liberalist and a libertarian exactly, but would you provide me with the basic definitions of these three words or key differences among them in a brief and clear way so that a layman like me can easily understand the meanings and distinguish basic differences of the words? Are they akin, or totally different and irelevant creatures each other?

Best Answer

In general, when referring to contemporary United States (and to a lesser extent, Canadian) politics, (as well as often, but not always, when foreign politics are discussed by North Americans):

Liberal: refers to left of center politics, largely identified with the Democratic party. You'll often hear the term specifically associated with various issues, such as a 'social liberal', who can be regarded as being in favor of individual freedoms, such as free expression, decriminalization/acceptance of things like drugs, abortion, or homosexuality, and reduction of the influence of religion on the state. Paradoxically, the term 'fiscal liberal' often refers to strong support for the welfare state, high taxes, strong interventionist government regulation of industry and commerce, and robust legal protection of minority classes. With respect to foreign policy, liberals are often divided between pacifist/isolationist views, and strong interventionist views with an aim at the protection and expansion of human rights.

Libertarians: by contrast, are much more clearly defined, as being strongly pro-individual freedom in every aspect of governance. A libertarian would be a 'social liberal' as described above, but generally a 'fiscal conservative,' favoring greatly reduced governmental interference in commerce. Libertarians are generally distinguished from Anarchists by their strong support of a Capitalist philosophy towards economics. Extreme libertarians are often referred to as 'anarcho-capitalists' by their critics for this reason. You may also see the terms neoliberal or objectivist used as rough synonyms, though those two terms imply a stronger ideological relationship to the work of Hayek and Rand respectively.

Liberalist is not a term that is generally used. The article you link specifically defines it as a term it is using for clarity.

Note that the term liberal is also often sometimes used to refer to what many call classical liberalism, which more closely mirrors modern libertarianism. This reflects the shift in the definition of 'liberal' in the 20th century, to include a more Marxist emphasis on equality, often at the expense of classical liberalisms emphasis on freedom. In general, the European definition of liberal more closely reflects the classical definition, though over the past century, it too has shifted to a stronger emphasis on equality than it has had in the past. The definition of Libertarian, by contrast, can generally be considered to be consistent worldwide.

One additional notable construction is Civil Libertarian, which specifically, and exclusively refers to one who is strongly concerned with the protection of civil rights such as free speech and freedom from unreasonable searches, particularly in the political sphere. As a rule, Libertarians are by definition civil libertarians, but not necessarily vice-versa.

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