The New Liberal Fundamentalism

The phenomenology of Liberalism has been an engrossing subject for puzzled observers ever since the Movement became fashionable in the 1930s. Each serious student has a favored classification, and many of these have merit. Even the ADA criterion—all hard-core, card-carrying Liberals are members—is not definitive. Many non-Liberals have been smuggled, or strayed into that organization, and many Liberals have remained aloof.

I would propose a different approach to the problem for two reasons: 1) the Vietnam and Dominican issues have led to a heavy falling-out of pro-forma Liberals who were active in the movement because it seemed to be fashionable, or genteel; and 2) the Sino-Soviet dissi-dence, in which the Liberal line— USSR, Si!, Chinese People’s Republic, No!—has been difficult to understand. In either case the pro-forma Liberal has failed to perceive the finer distinctions of the dialectic and he has been unable to persuade himself that he is doing good by being Liberal.

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The phenomenology of Liberalism has been an engrossing subject for puzzled observers ever since the Movement became fashionable in the 1930s. Each serious student has a favored classification, and many of these have merit. Even the ADA criterion—all hard-core, card-carrying Liberals are members—is not definitive. Many non-Liberals have been smuggled, or strayed into that organization, and many Liberals have remained aloof.

I would propose a different approach to the problem for two reasons: 1) the Vietnam and Dominican issues have led to a heavy falling-out of pro-forma Liberals who were active in the movement because it seemed to be fashionable, or genteel; and 2) the Sino-Soviet dissi-dence, in which the Liberal line— USSR, Si!, Chinese People’s Republic, No!—has been difficult to understand. In either case the pro-forma Liberal has failed to perceive the finer distinctions of the dialectic and he has been unable to persuade himself that he is doing good by being Liberal.