http://nebraska.statepaper.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2004/10/15/41700acbe6e2e
By EDGAR PEARLSTEIN
October 15, 2004
"Liberal" is now a demonized word, if you listen to radio talk-show
hosts such as Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Michael Medved, and
MichaelmSavage.
This week President Bush also adopted the technique.
The way they use the word reminds me of the 1950's when liberal people
were called "pinko", which meant the next thing to "communist."
Americans tend to forget that many liberal ideas, once regarded as
radical and opposed by conservatives, are now mainstream.
Here are some examples:
* The very beginning of our country, when it was radical both to split
from the monarchical mother country and to have a republic with
individual rights guaranteed by a constitution.
* Abolition of slavery. President Lincoln was a Republican. (Note also
that when he was a young congressman, he actively opposed our war with
Mexico (1846-8), because there was insufficient evidence that we had
been attacked -- an attitude that might nowadays be called liberal and
even traitorous.) "Abolitionist" was the demon-word used by
Huckleberry Finn, in Mark Twain's novel of that name!
* Anti-trust legislation, vigorously enforced by Presidents W. H. Taft
and Theodore Roosevelt, both of whom were Republicans, as was Senator
John Sherman, for whom the first anti-trust legislation, in 1890, was
named.
* The national park system, championed by President Theodore
Roosevelt, a Republican, who also pushed for general conservation of
natural resources.
* Women's right to vote (The 19th Amendment to the Constitution,
1920). In the nineteenth century, women's suffrage was opposed by
violence and ridicule. And one argument against making Wyoming a state
was that, as a territory, it allowed women to vote.
* The Nebraska one-house legislature (1934), pushed hard by Senator
George Norris -- a Republican.
* The National Labor Relations Act (1935) (also called the Wagner
Act), which guaranteed workers the right to organize and bargain
collectively for wages, safety, and other working conditions..
* The Social Security Act (1935), which puts a limit on how destitute
a retired worker can get, and also supports widows, orphans, and
disabled workers.
* The Rural Electrification Act (1936), fathered by Nebraska Senator
Norris--a Republican.
* The Fair Labor Standards Act, also called the Wage-Hour Law (1938),
which established minimum wages and maximum hours.
* Racial integration of the armed forces, ordered in 1948 by President
Truman. At the time this was bitterly opposed by many, maybe most,
military officers.
* Federal safety regulations for workplaces, especially in coal mines.
Previously it was up to unions to bargain for safety.
* The Voting Rights Act (1965), which prevented segregationist states
from using various means to deny the vote to some people.
* Medicare (1966). The general idea was first proposed by President
Truman, but got nowhere at that time because of conservative
opposition.
* Anti-discrimination laws, which guarantee fairness in hiring and
access to public accommodations.
* General awareness of environmental and conservation problems.
All of the above liberal ideas have made America a better country,
despite conservatives' predictions of dire consequences.
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It's foolish to assume that right wing hate talk audiences have minds
of their own.
Harry
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