Liberalism

I love liberalism. I know that's a vague term, but to me, being a liberal means acknowledging a few social and economic truths. Specifically, socially:

a) If you sleep with someone, you're both adults, everyone consented and no one died, it's none of the government's business.
b) Institutionalized rascism is not a method of national security.
c) Evolution is a theory, rather like gravity. Intelligent design, on the other hand, is just bullshit, and bullshit requires proof before we start teaching it in schools.
d) If we're going to ignore the Geneva Conventions, we could at least have enough balls to not outsource our "enhanced interrogation techniques". On second thought, we could have enough balls to call it what it is--torture.
e) Probably one way we could have fewer illegal immigrants is if we stop staging CIA coups in Latin American countries, overthrowing people we don't like, replacing them with military dictatorships and then send in economic hitmen to convince the countries to borrow large sums of money that go to development which is contracted to US companies and keeps the countries in a perpetual cycle of debt and poverty. You know, because if everyone in their home countries wasn't starving to death, they might not want to leave.
f) Although arguing that the 3rd Amendment protects the right to have an abortion is a bit sketchy, trust me, you don't want to see a country where women are forced to have babies they don't want to.

And economically:

a) Free market capitalism, while wonderful for increasing GDP, isn't always the best way to protect the environment.
b) Trickle down economics doesn't always work either.
c) The cost of taking campaign contributions from large corporations is a loss of political integrity. Campaign finance reform is in order.
d) Sometimes, equity is better than efficiency.
e) Also, I've read the Constitution very carefully, and I can promise you that there is nothing in there saying you have the right to unlimited consumption of fossil fuels. Just FYI.

My breed of liberalism would best be defined as progressive--I believe that your personal life is your business, no matter how odd society finds your choices, as long as they're not harming anyone else. I believe that equity trumps efficiency--I'd rather have a bit smaller economic pie if everyone gets a piece. I believe that the environment is important enough to put some restrictions on our sacred doctrine of capitalism, because as Al Gore so eloquently pointed out, you can't make money if you don't have a planet to live on. And I believe that if I'm pregnant and you try to tell me what to do, I will kick your ass. Actually, I know that for a fact.

That said, I also have a few bones to pick. There are some arguments liberals need to stop making, and there are some issues of hypocracy and public behavior that we would do well to correct. Specifically:

a) Ok, please stop with the "Against Abortion? Then Don't Have One" bumper stickers. People who are against abortion view it as murder, not as a choice. You're telling them that if they're against killing people, they shouldn't do it themselves, but should continue to let you. No. That argument is not going to convince anyone, and it's going to piss people off.
b) Al Gore. Stop flying around the world in a private jet to promote An Inconvinent Truth. Airplanes are the worst contributers to global warming of any form of transportation.
c) Castro and Chavez are not governments we should be idealizing or promoting. Chavez recently abolished all term limitations on the Venezualen presidency and refused to renew the broadcasting license for a station that broadcast anti-Chavez images during the attempted coup in 2002. And when Castro took over, there were teenagers in Cuba injecting themselves with HIV to protest the government. Homosexuals were executed. I'd rather have a corrupt democracy than a repressive socialist state.
d) Michael Moore, please just stop. No one likes you anymore. Also, you own shares in Halliburton, were raised in a rich suburb of Flint, and have hired to date one black person to work on any of your films. Way to be progressive!
e) Biofuels are not a godsend. Ethanol takes so much petroleum to produce and transport that it's worse for the environment than gasoline, and it's also made out of corn. Which is food. In a world where 50% of people are malnourished. Not a good idea, people.
f) The feminist and gay rights movements need to recognize trans people and truly work on issues for all women and gays, rather than trying to get rich white women/gays the same rights that rich white straight men have.

That's all for now. I believe in liberalism, in spite of all its problems. I believe it can work. But it would help a lot if people would check some facts and calm down once in a while.