"i imagine being a liberal is much like having a cat on your lap, in that you have a comforting distraction from misery and can't stand up for anything"
E: before people derail the conversation to offer me the fallen arm from the title - I've tried many different combinations, and they all result in a wrong looking shruggy face. Deal with it lol
I mean, you'd have to ask them, but from an anarchist perspective I would say the comfort in the familiarity of the (hierarchal, capitalist, statist, patriarchal, white supremacist, cis heteronormative, ableist) status quo which they are dedicated to upholding.
Anything material it provides is there to placate the population in to not rising up against those in power who exploit and destroy both planet and population for personal gain, and a really bad deal for at least 95% of the global population.
In most developed nations, "Rising up against those in power" conjures images of revolution that would make things drastically worse for everyone in that nation, for at least a generation. It's not hard to see why that's a tough sell.
E: to clarify: I am not American, nor is anyone other than liberals trying to distance themselves from criticism use its outdated meaning, in the same way "liberaltarians" no longer means "socialists" to anyone.
Ok. So my next question is why are you using a bastardised definition then? There’s plenty of dictionaries, encyclopaedias, forums etc online that will confirm that - for the rest of the world - the US definition is wrong.
BTW: you mention deflection. Are you assuming that I’m a “liberal”?
I can see 2 different versions of it from the same interface, depending on where I look, there's obviously an issue with it, so yeah, it gets a little old when people keep making the same tired joke lol (which tbf, you didn't)
This is conflating "liberals" and Democrat office holders. The cat represents the status quo and corporate donations that control them.
Individual liberals are often actually doing things, like campaigning for ballot measures and such. But the Democrats who hold office do effectively nothing to implement the changes the liberals want and campaign for.
I have nothing against individual liberals, because they are simply optimistic about a system that is rigged against them. It's kinda hard to blame them for that.
The problem is that it takes a long time for those individual liberals to get up the Democratic ladder. It's a shame that campaigning under a new party is suicide.
Individual liberals are often actually doing things, like campaigning for ballot measures and such
So supporting the status quo.
they are simply optimistic about a system that is rigged against them. It’s kinda hard to blame them for that.
No they actively support an oppressive system, and whenever the people being oppressed by said system tell them so they refuse to change anything about their behaviour, making them actively complicit.
No one is saying they are responsible for the system existing, but they categorically can and should be held accountable for their actions in participating in and upholding it, and I absolutely blame them for their part, and those making excuses for them, for theirs.