| Why real liberals? 

We, real liberals, want to reclaim the real meaning of the philosophy of John Locke, Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill – a philosophy that stands for liberty, equality under the law, and openness. We are neither left-wing nor right-wing. We don't like big government, but we don't want an anarcho-libertarian utopia either.  We are liberals (and proud of it).

| Why big-government "liberals" are not liberals 

American audiences may be confused by what we mean by liberalism in this site. That is because, in the United States, the term liberalism has been tarnished by its association with big-government, statist policies which do not represent what liberalism stands for. The American notion of "liberalism" present in the media and punditry is best described as social democracy, as it is known in the rest of the Western world. 

| Why not libertarians? 

While many may ask themselves why not just adopt the term libertarianism and avoid confusion, the truth is that libertarians differ from liberals — whether classical or modern liberals — in fundamental ways. In philosophical terms, liberals believe governments have a fundamental role in guaranteeing the protection of individual rights and freedoms through the establishment of a system based on the rule of law, where all individuals are treated equally under the law. In other words, government — as long as its power is limited and checked — has an essential role to play in the protection of individual rights. On the other hand, libertarians tend to view government not as a necessary evil (as most liberals view it), but as the only threat to individual rights, thus libertarians' ideal society is one in which even the provision of justice and security is arranged through private contracts. In summary, while liberals of all stripes believe political power is of public nature, libertarians believe that political power should be private. 

Moreover, liberals view authoritarianism as the main enemy of liberty, whether it comes from the state or society — the latter eloquently espoused by John Stuart Mill on his masterpiece On Liberty: "Protection against the tyranny of the magistrate is not enough; there needs protection also against the tyranny of the prevailing opinion and feeling, against the tendency of society to impose its own ideas and practices as rules of conduct on those who dissent from them." On the other hand, libertarians see the state as the only enemy of liberty, without much consideration for authoritarianism or oppression that comes from society (thus it is not surprising that libertarians have historically not paid mush attention to discrimination against minorities like LGBT individuals or racial minorities). 

There is also a fundamental difference between these two philosophies in intellectual terms. While liberals have historically tended to pay attention to science and been opened to new ideas, libertarians usually espouse an almost dogmatic view of their philosophy, leaving no room for pragmatic policy-making to address social problems (perhaps one of the best examples is climate change and environmental degradation). While, in some way, this love of openness and diversity have caused liberals to divide in many camps — from classical liberals to modern or "social" liberals, right- to left-liberals, progressive liberals to neoliberals — they all share the basic beliefs in individual rights, freedom of choice, equality under the rule of law, openness to scientific evidence, and pragmatic policy-making. In many ways, this diversity of opinion is what made liberalism the philosophy on which modern developed societies and capitalism have flourished, lifting millions of people out of poverty and advancing human rights as never before in the history of humanity.  

| What is realLibs.com? 

realLibs.com  is a space for liberals across the world -- those who believe in open minds, free markets, individual freedom, open societies, globalization, equality under the law, civil liberties, human rights, social mobility and tolerance -- to find out what's going on around the world in matters of public policy and politics. We provide links to the latest news and developments affecting areas of deep concern for liberals: from free speech to free trade to social tolerance. We also provide links to the most prominent liberal organizations around the world as well as media outlets (not necessarily liberal) and political parties who share at least some of our ideals. We endorse individual candidates and political parties around the globe before elections are held.

| What is liberalism?