Quote of The Day

I found this in rain_luong‘s journal. Like him, I’ve always been proud of my political leanings, and have grown quite annoyed at the tendency for “liberal” to be a dirty word in modern political discourse. While I consider myself to be a moderate pragmatist if I must be pidgeonholed, I’m not ashamed to say that when in doubt, I err towards the liberal side of the center line.

If your workplace is safe; if your children go to school rather than being forced into labor; if you are paid a living wage, including overtime; if you enjoy a forty-hour week and you are allowed to join a union to protect your rights–you can thank liberals. If your food is not poisoned and your water is drinkable–you can thank liberals. If your parents are eligible for Medicare and Social Security, so they can grow old in dignity without bankrupting your family–you can thank liberals. If our rivers are getting cleaner and our air isn’t black with pollution; if our wilderness is protected and our countryside is still green–you can thank liberals. If people of all races can share the same public facilities; if everyone has the right to vote; if couples fall in love and marry regardless of race; if we have finally begun to transcend a segregated society–you can thank liberals. Progressive innovations like those and so many others were achieved by long, difficult struggles against entrenched power. What defined conservatism, and conservatives, was their opposition to every one of those advances. The country we know and love today was built by those victories for liberalism–with the support of the American people.
–Joe Conason

Right on.