Red, White and Liberal Read online

  One more word to my fellow liberals: Take hope! You're more American than those who would run you out of your country for having the temerity to stand up for what you believe. It's time to paint that "L" word in its true colors: red, white, and blue.

  From: James

  Sent: Friday, February 14,2003 6:59 PM

  To: [email protected]

  Subject: Alan's Aspirations

  Alan, your probably pretty jealous of Sean's success and his book sales, but please do not attempt to write your own book. Really, don't.

  James

  Hammond, IN

  Sorry, James. As evidenced by what you hold in your hands, your warning has come much too late.

  ONE

  Red, White & Liberal

  I'm proud to be a liberal. In my spare time I hug trees. I'd rather hug a tree than embrace a tax cut we can't afford. Ever try to hug a tax rebate check? Bark burn is so much more pleasant than paper cuts. I believe there is a role for government. So do conservatives, in spite of the fact that they love to shout about getting government off our backs. They love government, too. They just use government differently than liberals do. Conservatives want government to tell you what you can't do. In fact, the Republican view of legislation is "Just Say No." I am a liberal because I believe in what government can do as a force for good. I believe that, when used properly, government can create opportunity, equality, and equity. I agree with Ron Brown, the late Commerce secretary and former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who stated, "The common thread of Democratic history, from Thomas Jefferson to Bill Clinton, has been an abiding faith in the judgment of hardworking American families, and a commitment to helping the excluded, the disenfranchised and the poor strengthen our nation by earning themselves a piece of the American Dream. We remember that this great land was sculpted by immigrants and slaves, their children and grandchildren."

  I Am Not a Party Animal

  The more I learned about the Democratic Party and its rich history, the more I felt at home with its ideals. This is not to say I agree with every Democratic politician, policy position, or pronouncement. And I'm often more critical of my own party than of the opposition. When I'm critical of Democrats or liberals on Hannity & Colmes, it drives my fellow liberals crazy because they feel I should be an ideological cheerleader. This is not something I can do while maintaining my intellectual honesty. I'm not a Democrat because I love political organizations (I am a loner, not a joiner), and I don't agree with much of the inside baseball that gets played within and between our American political parties. I'm a Democrat because the progressive ideas in which I fervently believe are closer to what the Democrats stand for than what the Republicans profess, and those two parties are the only viable infrastructures for electing candidates to office.

  That being said, I heartily identify with the roots of the party. "The party of the common man" was founded by Thomas Jefferson in 1792 to fight for the Bill of Rights and stand up to the elitist Federalists. In the next century, William Jennings Bryan, known as the "Great Commoner," was considered the conscience of the nation. As a two-term congressman and three-time presidential nominee, Bryan fought for and won women's suffrage, direct elections of senators, and a progressive income tax. As President Woodrow Wilson's secretary of state and a peace advocate in the early part of the twentieth century, Bryan won the approval of thirty nations to agree to investigations of disputes before going to war. Wilson, that century's first Democratic president, brought us the League of Nations, the Federal Reserve Board, and the first child and welfare laws. President Franklin Roosevelt brought our country out of the Great Depression with his New Deal, Works Progress Administration, and the creation of Social Security. President Harry Truman integrated the armed forces. President John F. Kennedy created the Peace Corps and brought a new optimism to America. President Lyndon Johnson's administration heralded the civil rights movement with the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act. It was Johnson's Great Society that declared war on poverty and created Medicare and Medicaid.

  In short, Democrats don't need to add the word compassionate to further define what they are: the notion is already built in to the philosophy. Liberals are the ones who have fought to move forward while conservatives have done what their name implies: conserve the past. That's why I'm proud of the "L" word and what it represents. And that's why I'm committed to fight for and uphold its ideals.

  Liberal, Literally. Are You One?

  The conservatives' tactic of making the word liberal seem as though it should be one of the seven words you can't say on the broadcast media has been brilliant. The word drips off the tongue, as though if it's said too often, the speaker will have an aneurysm as it parts the lips. (Conservatives also love to use the diminutive "lib" to marginalize the left.) When Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi was running for and then became leader of the House Democrats, the words San Francisco liberal were spit out of conservative mouths as though the pronouncers were trying to dispel toxic bile from their systems. The last time I checked, San Francisco is part of the very same America that conservatives claim to love so much. Or maybe they only love those parts of America that got colored red on the Bush/Gore maps of 2000. Sixties conservatives said, "My country: Love it or leave it." I say: "My country: Love it all or don't love it at all."

  Liberal is a very nice word. Say it a few times. Let it roll off the tongue. Say it loud and there's music playing. Say it soft and it's almost like praying. Wait a minute . . . that's "Maria" from West Side Story. Actually, it wouldn't be such a bad idea if liberals could embrace this word with the same kind of glee with which Maria embraced her beauty:

  "I feel liberal, oh so liberal. I feel liberal and witty and bright And I pity those conservatives who think they're right."

  Honestly, doesn't "liberal" sound nicer than "conservative"? "Liberal" has a lilt to it. "Conservative" has those hard sounds. And more syllables. Given what "conserve" means, does it make sense that conservatives would have more syllables than they really need?

  Liberal is not, as some seem to believe, a word that must always be modified by the far-less-glamorous word scum. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language offers these definitions:

  lib-er-al (liberel, librel) adj.

  1.

  a. Not limited to or by established, traditional, orthodox, or authoritarian attitudes, views, or dogmas; free from bigotry.

  b. Favoring proposals for reform, open to new ideas for progress, and tolerant of the ideas and behavior of others; broad-minded.

  c. Of, relating to, or characteristic of liberalism.

  d. Liberal Of, designating, or characteristic of a political party founded on or associated with principles of social and political liberalism, especially in Great Britain, Canada, and the United States.

  So we're not "traditional." Sometimes we wear earrings, even if we're male. Authoritarian dogmas tend to be fascist in nature, and fascism is on the right side of the political spectrum, not the left. Freedom from bigotry—now there's something worth mocking! This isn't to say that conservatives are bigoted, but we'll get to that definition in a moment. Reform, progress, tolerance. Is there a problem here? The right loves to accuse the left of intolerance of conservative ideas, and if you point out to conservatives that liberals are tolerant, they don't want to hear it. Of course conservative tolerance for gays, the needy, and drug-dependent Americans is legendary, isn't it? Oh, and liberals. They're very tolerant of liberals. As for "broad-minded," okay, hold the Clinton jokes.

  Here's the tolerance level of one Hannity if Colmes viewer who copied me on an e-mail he sent to Sean declaring that he would never be my friend because I am a liberal. He takes great issue with a passage in Sean's book, Let Freedom Ring. (You're welcome for the plug. It's published by ReganBooks, a division of HarperCollins.) This e-mail begins with the offending quote from Sean's book:

  From: bill k

  Sent: Tuesday, October 01,2002 I 1:03 PM

  To: Han
nity; Colmes

  Subject: Let Freedom Ring

  "I certainly don't have any personal beef with my Fox News partner-in-crime, Alan Colmes. he is a great guy and a great American...."

  I can no longer take you seriously and will probably never finish your book___Liberals are to be pitied or despised. This is far too serious to be reduced to a TV show.

  Now, if that isn't worrisome enough, here comes the really scary part, and I don't think this guy is kidding:

  I have no Liberal friends because I do not want to be their friend. I laid my life on the line for twenty years in the USAF defending the rights for Liberals to be stupid or subversive, which ever the case may be. I do not and will not ever consider them to be great Americans, and I will not lend credence to their destructive beliefs by saying they are.

  Before I show you my reply to Mr. K, and his response to that, let me say a word about Sean Hannity. He is passionate in his beliefs, articulate, and persuasive. And I'm sure there are nights when he would rather be home with his beautiful wife and two darling children than on a stage somewhere debating a liberal. But Sean is also a great American who realizes that the great ongoing national debate as epitomized on Hannity & Colmes is integral to democracy. The give-and-take we offer nightly has caught on because people do want to see both sides of an argument, even if they strongly oppose one of them, or both of them.

  From: Colmes

  Sent: Wednesday, October 02,2002 12:18 PM

  To: 'bill k'

  Subject: RE: Let Freedom Ring

  It's really a pity that you want to shut yourself off from a huge number of fellow Americans just because they don't share your political beliefs. How do you know whether or not your doctor, dentist, dry cleaner, or grocer is liberal? If you needed emergency medical care would you make sure that the person giving you mouth-to-mouth resuscitation was a conservative? Do you want only one political party in America like they had in communist Russia?

  If you want a political litmus test for every person you know and actively shut yourself off from other points of view, you are really shutting out most of the world.

  Alan

  From: bill k

  Sent: Wednesday, October 02,2002 12:42 PM

  To: Colmes

  Subject: RE: Let Freedom Ring

  I usually don't reply to stupid people who make ridiculous statements but for you I will.Yes I would gladly shut myself off from anyone who I know is a Liberal. I would never let a Liberal dentist or doctor treat me if I know they are a Liberal.... They are the enemy of the United States and I don't have time to waste listening to their poppycock bullshit.

  From: Colmes

  Sent: Wednesday, October 02,2002 1:15 PM

  To: 'bill k

  Subject: RE: Let Freedom Ring

  Bill,

  Let me know next time you're in NY and I'll buy you a beer.

  Alan

  Amazingly, Bill never took me up on that offer. And I'd even buy him a domestic brew. I hope that Mr. K realizes that there are many Americans on my side, Americans who want and need a voice to combat what they see as the rising tide of conservatism in America.

  From: beth

  Sent: Wednesday, February 05,2003 6:10 AM

  To: colmes

  Subject: Hang In There

  Hi Alan—I know you have a tough job—but keep fighting for us liberals. We need a voice so badly. I pull for you every night.

  Thanks.

  Beth

  Beth, I'm there for you. And I'm there for Bill, too, whether he knows it or not.

  It amazes me that some Americans can't for the life of them believe that there is such a thing as a liberal in America. It is beyond their imagination that there are a lot of people who think differently than they do. Some of my favorite e-mail is from people who believe that what I do is an act, that I'm a conservative at heart. But, hey, you have to pay the bills, right?

  From: Dan & Ellen S.

  Sent: Tuesday, October 01,2002 9:57 PM

  To: colmes

  Subject: The Show

  Come on Colmes.You have got to be a plant on the show to play the devils advocate. I have to admit that it is working. BUT, you either love to be hated or you a very very dumb. I do not believe that you are that dumb and therefore have concluded that you are a plant to be the opposite and maybe boost the ratings. I am right aren't I?

  Shhh, Mr. or Mrs. S. Please don't tell anyone our little secret. And when you see me raise my left eyebrow, that's a sign that I know I'm a conservative saying liberal things. It will be our little code.

  I'm actually flattered when people are convinced that I'm a conservative just playing a liberal on TV. What they're really saying is, "I really like you, but I can't for the life of me figure out how someone I like could be a liberal; therefore, you must be a conservative. I want you to know I'm on to your amusing game."

  From: jami

  Sent: Wednesday, March 05,2003 5:07 PM

  To: colmes

  Subject: (no subject)

  dear mr colmes,

  your secret is safe with me—you are a conservative at heart.

  jami

  Smyrna, GA

  Conservative, Literally. Are You One?

  So what does conservative mean? Our friends at American Heritage have this to say:

  con-ser-va-tive (kan-su'va-tiv) adj.

  1. Favoring traditional views and values; tending to oppose change.

  2. Traditional or restrained in style: a conservative dark suit.

  3. Moderate; cautious: a conservative estimate.

  4.

  a. Of or relating to the political philosophy of conservatism.

  b. Belonging to a conservative party, group, or movement.

  5. Conservative Of or belonging to the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom or the Progressive Conservative Party in Canada.

  6. Conservative Of or adhering to Conservative Judaism.

  7. Tending to conserve; preservative: the conservative use of natural resources.

  So conservatives like to retain the status quo, are generally opposed to change, and are into preserving things as they are. It's the liberals who have traditionally fought for progress and advancement. Liberals realize that the world changes, that change can be for the good, and that legislation needs to keep pace with those changes. Conservatives wax poetic about "the way things were." Liberals talk about where we are and where we're going, and the way things could be in a better world. Conservatives have been successful in the marketing of bumper-sticker phrases that have sold well to their constituencies, but are really meaningless. You often hear conservatives talk about "taking my country back." Back from whom, the American Indian? Whom do they think "took" their country? The people who fought for equal rights, for gender equality, for decent wages, and for living conditions for the poorest among us? The only ones who can literally and realistically take this country back are ones to whom it originally belonged: the Native Americans. I believe it was the comedian Steve Martin who once said of Ronald Reagan, "He wants to make this country what it once was: a landmass filled with glaciers."

  Conservatives have done a wonderful job appropriating words that have the same root as liberal and making them their own. According to Merriam-Webster, the word liberal has a rich background: "Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin liberalis suitable for a freeman, generous, from liber free; perhaps akin to Old English Uodan to grow, Greek eleutheros free." We're free, we're generous, and we like to grow. That doesn't seem all that controversial. Liberty and liberal are cousins.

  My friend and cohost wrote a book subtitled Winning the War of "Liberty" Over "Liberalism." (You're welcome again for the plug. By the way, did I mention that it's published by ReganBooks, a division of HarperCollins?) But, wait! Since when does one preclude the other? Liberals have fought to give liberty to the poor, the sick, the homeless, and minorities. I contend that it was liberal ideas that liberated many in our society. I further contend that we have
a long way to go. Liberate comes from liberal. Bush 43 wanted to "liberate" Iraq. I say, if you want to use a word that is an offspring of "liberal" to apply for your own nonliberal political ends, find your own words. I wish there were a word adoption agency. Anyone who wanted to use a word for his or her own agenda would have to go to this agency, fill out forms, and prove that the word in question would not be misappropriated. Linguistic social workers would visit homes, schools, and libraries to make sure that there is no misuse going on once a word is formally adopted. The punishment for malfeasance would be that conservatives would not only have to find their own words, but stick to them.

  A Friendly Word to Right-Wing Extremists

  Let me take this moment to disabuse some conservatives of some of the liberal stereotyping that is all too rampant in America today. I write this paragraph not to most conservatives, but to some on the right (and the left) who have no tolerance for the other side. I dedicate these words to those Americans:

  I unabashedly love my country and my family. As for God, my view of Her is none of your business, but I love Him, too. Don't you dare tell me that you are more patriotic than I, a better parent than I, a truer husband, a more loyal son, brother, friend, or any other category you wish to invoke with your smug anti-American comments. Yes, you are being anti-American if you think you are superior because of political party affiliation, because of religious affiliation, or because you think your views trump mine in any way. This is America, the land of the free and the home of the brave. We are one nation, and it is you who want to divide us by attacking anyone who doesn't share your narrow view of America. I have no obligation to worship your God, any more than you have to share my religious views. I am not obliged to blindly agree with a man just because he happens to be the president of the United States and the commander in chief of our armed forces. It is my right to speak as forcefully and as passionately about what I believe as you do. I am especially blessed to have a forum in both the print and broadcast media to do it, and I don't for a second take that for granted. Wars have been fought and Americans have died so I can write this and you can read it, unwor-ried by a knock at the door that would delete these words from my computer as I write them or rip this page from your hands as you read them. The brave men and women who made sacrifices didn't do so to promote a political party or agenda. Some of them actually had Democrat registration cards in their wallets. And I don't need to have served in the military to voice any opinion about war, peace, the government, or any other issue. You are not better than I because you are a conservative; you are not smarter than I because you speak louder; you are not specially placed in God's firmament because you're more pious. If you truly want to live up to the ideals our forefathers had in mind, if you sincerely care to embody the spirit of Jesus, Buddha, or Mohammed, stop hating and start loving. Love even when you don't really feel it, even when you think you're faking it. Soon, you won't be faking it anymore, and you'll be a better parent, a better friend, a better American, a better person.