In 2012, the efforts of the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTsIOM) conducted a survey during which Russians were asked to explain who a liberal is. More than half of the participants in this test (more precisely, 56%) found it difficult to disclose this term. It is unlikely that this situation has changed dramatically in a few years, and therefore let's look at what principles liberalism professes and what this socio-political and philosophical movement actually consists of.
Who is a liberal?
In the most general terms, we can say that a person who is an adherent of this trend welcomes and approves the idea of limited intervention of state bodies in public relations. The basis of this system is based on a private enterprise economy, which, in turn, is organized on market principles.
Answering the question of whosuch a liberal, many experts argue that this is someone who considers political, personal and economic freedom the highest priority in the life of the state and society. For supporters of this ideology, freedom and the rights of every person are a kind of legal basis on which, in their opinion, the economic and social order should be built. Now let's look at who a liberal democrat is. This is a person who, while defending freedom, is an opponent of authoritarianism. Liberal democracy, according to Western political scientists, is the ideal that many developed countries are striving for. However, this term can be discussed not only in terms of politics. In its original meaning, this word was used to refer to all freethinkers and freethinkers. Sometimes they included those who were prone to excessive indulgence in society.
Modern liberals
As an independent worldview, the considered ideological movement arose at the end of the 17th century. The basis for its development was the works of such famous authors as C. Montesquieu, J. Locke, A. Smith and J. Mill. At that time, it was believed that the freedom of enterprise and the non-interference of the state in private life would inevitably lead to the prosperity and improvement of the well-being of society. However, as it turned out later, the classical model of liberalism did not justify itself. Free, uncontrolled competition led to the emergence of monopolies that drove up prices. Interested groups of lobbyists appeared in politics. All this made it impossiblelegal equality and significantly narrowed the opportunities for anyone who wanted to do business. In the 80-90s. In the 19th century, the ideas of liberalism began to experience a serious crisis. As a result of long theoretical searches at the beginning of the 20th century, a new concept was developed, called neoliberalism or social liberalism. Its supporters advocate the protection of the individual from negative consequences and abuses in the market system. In classical liberalism, the state was something like a "night watchman." Modern liberals have recognized that this was a mistake and have incorporated into their program such ideas as:
- limited state intervention in social and economic spheres;
- control by the state over the activities of monopolies;
- participation of the masses in politics;
- Guarantees of a number of limited social rights (old age allowance, the right to education, work, etc.);
- consensus of the ruled and the rulers;
- political justice (democratization of decision-making in politics).
Russian liberals
In the political discussions of the modern Russian Federation, this trend causes a lot of controversy. For some, liberals are conformists who play along with the West, while for others they are a panacea that can save the country from the undivided power of the state. This disparity is to a large extent due to the fact that several varieties of this ideology operate simultaneously on the territory of Russia. The most notable of these are liberal fundamentalism (represented byAlexey Venediktov, editor-in-chief of the Ekho Moskva station), neoliberalism (represented by Andrey Illarionov), social liberalism (Yabloko Party) and legal liberalism (Republican Party and PARNAS Party).
