# We as Liberals.. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 13, 2007, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622 "2007-07-13T09:44:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![if6was9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e47c2d/32.png) [@if6was9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/if6was9)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/1 "2007-07-13T09:44:17Z")
All of us that call ourselves Liberals, personally, I am _offended_ that the poster named **Liberal** calls himself… “liberal”. I don’t care if it’s **Libertarian** , **Liberal** or just plain **Lib**. He is an _affront_ to those of us tree-huggers who fight the good fight. I say now. Period. That this person change his name NOW, to quit **offending** those of us who revel in the title of “liberal”. Or else I might have to quit these boards\* . That is all. Do it **Lib**! Show the **balls** to come up with a name that really states your position. I would suggest **Skewed One** … YMMV. Nonetheless… you skeevy, leeching POS, come up with a name that really fits you. Instead of _slandering_ the good name of Liberals everywhere. Fuckwit! \*like anyone would care… ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/2 "2007-07-13T10:07:39Z")
For those who need a link: > **[SPLC Pits "mainstream" RW think-tanks -- includuing the AEI](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=428640)** > > Link. Regarding the American Enterprise Institute – a leading neocon group considered a principal architect of Bush Admin policies – the Southern Poverty Law Center says: Not quite calling the AEI a “hate group,” but, whew! (How many posts before... ETA: Post number 3. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/3 "2007-07-13T10:09:05Z")
This Pitting is teh lame. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Kal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9de053/32.png) [@Kal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kal)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/4 "2007-07-13T10:12:26Z")
Don’t say owt else, **Lib**! Let’s see if we can get a massive list of posters who’ll fuck off if you don’t change your name. With the going rate being $500 a pop, you stand to save yersen a fortune. ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/5 "2007-07-13T10:24:38Z")
William Ewart Gladstone would understand, if perhaps not support, **Lib**. 90% of Europe is familiar with that usage of “Liberal,” perhaps more so than the “left-wing” definition of today. ---
**Author:** ![askeptic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@askeptic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/askeptic)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/6 "2007-07-13T10:32:17Z")
I consider myself a “liberal”, I am not offended by his name. I think he is a disingenuous prick for changing his name, but hey, that’s our “Lib”. I’ve considered changing mine to “god” or “Holy One” but then thought “meh, it’s just Lib”… ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/7 "2007-07-13T10:35:37Z")
What happened to his spiffy little font, it is back to normal. ---
**Author:** ![kellner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c2a13f/32.png) [@kellner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kellner)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/8 "2007-07-13T10:50:18Z")
[QUOTE=Polycarp] 90% of Europe is familiar with that usage of “Liberal,” perhaps more so than the “left-wing” definition of today. [/QUOTE] Indeed. I realize that the word has different connotations for most modern Americans and you shouldn’t argue from translations but I can’t help it, the common American usage is still deeply irritating. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/9 "2007-07-13T10:53:24Z")
[QUOTE=pool] What happened to his spiffy little font, it is back to normal. [/QUOTE] I guess he stopped using it. IMO a good thing, it was quite the eyestrain. ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/10 "2007-07-13T11:02:57Z")
Yeah me too I just wondered why he stopped. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/11 "2007-07-13T11:16:54Z")
[QUOTE=kellner] Indeed. I realize that the word has different connotations for most modern Americans and you shouldn’t argue from translations but I can’t help it, the common American usage is still deeply irritating. [/QUOTE] Yup. Counter-intuitive and confusing. Don’t Americans ever react to this? I mean, “liberty” is so close to “liberal” that the connection is obvious, and yet I don’t think I’ve ever heard an American complain that liberals (in the American sense) are, you know, hijacking the concept of liberty or something. You’d expect at least “They call themselves liberals and yet they want to take our guns away, forbid us from putting what we want in our bodies, and tell us what we can do with our money” every now and again. Is the American meaning of the word really that ingrained? ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/12 "2007-07-13T11:57:44Z")
[QUOTE=askeptic] I consider myself a “liberal”, I am not offended by his name. I think he is a disingenuous prick for changing his name, but hey, that’s our “Lib”. I’ve considered changing mine to “god” or “Holy One” but then thought “meh, it’s just Lib”… [/QUOTE] Good idea. Is **Jesus Christ** already taken? ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/13 "2007-07-13T12:06:32Z")
I can’t really take the OP as serious. But, there’s also nothing satirical or humorous about it. I don’t get it at all. I mean. . .he’s not really seriously concerned that someone on the message board is using the name **Liberal** when the poster isn’t, in fact, necessarily associated with what we commonly think of as liberalism? Much less concerned enough to leave the message board over it. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/14 "2007-07-13T12:12:32Z")
> [@kellner](#): > > I can’t help it, the common American usage is still deeply irritating. We’ll quit doing it once youse people stop misusing “football”. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/15 "2007-07-13T12:31:48Z")
[QUOTE=if6was9] That this person change his name NOW, to quit **offending** those of us who revel in the title of “liberal”. Or else I might have to quit these boards\* . That is all. [/QUOTE] The next time someone calls **Lib** a drama queen, I’m linking to this post. ---
**Author:** ![Dunderman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecb155/32.png) [@Dunderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunderman)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/16 "2007-07-13T12:36:14Z")
[QUOTE=Jackmannii] We’ll quit doing it once youse people stop misusing “football”. [/QUOTE] Once you people start using your feet more than your hands in the sport you call “football”, we’ll talk. ---
**Author:** ![Liberal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Liberal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Liberal)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/17 "2007-07-13T12:41:31Z")
[QUOTE=pool] What happened to his spiffy little font, it is back to normal. [/QUOTE] The great thing is, now everybody’s using it! 🙂 [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=8771446](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=8771446) ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/18 "2007-07-13T12:43:02Z")
I kind of like the name. It harkens back to a time when “liberal” tended to mean someone who advocated freedom\*, rather than someone who advocates a large socialist government/nanny state. Of course a lot of the people who self-identify as liberals don’t see those things as conflicting, oddly enough. \*Well, you could say it really referred to people who advocated changing from the status quo. At the time of its original usage, that meant advocating freedom. Ironically, the modern term has reversed - government getting bigger and more overbearing is the status quo, and yet “liberals” are the main proponents behind that. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/19 "2007-07-13T12:44:47Z")
[QUOTE=if6was9] That this person change his name NOW, to quit **offending** those of us who revel in the title of “liberal”. Or else I might have to quit these boards\* . That is all. [/QUOTE] Go right ahead. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2007, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622/20 "2007-07-13T12:48:50Z")
[QUOTE=SenorBeef] I kind of like the name. It harkens back to a time when “liberal” tended to mean someone who advocated freedom\*, rather than someone who advocates a large socialist government/nanny state. Of course a lot of the people who self-identify as liberals don’t see those things as conflicting, oddly enough. \*Well, you could say it really referred to people who advocated changing from the status quo. At the time of its original usage, that meant advocating freedom. Ironically, the modern term has reversed - government getting bigger and more overbearing is the status quo, and yet “liberals” are the main proponents behind that. [/QUOTE] Yeah, and nowadays the people who love large nanny governments are called Republicans. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/we-as-liberals/411622.md?page=2)