You say Liberal, I say Libel

I've inadvertently drawn visitors here from Roger Simon's blog via a comment left there. As that was not my intention I feel I must now restore cosmic blogospheric harmonic (the triple "ic") balance and request you click here and read his post regarding political labels. (And here and here and here.)

Actually, I'd have linked that anyway as it echoes some of my own thoughts on the subject (though I may be a bit further down the road from point "a" to point "b" than are some others in the discussion.)

To which I'll add this:

In time the meanings of words changes. For instance, three generations of the same family will each apply different primary meanings to the word "gay". Grandpa: "happy"; Dad "homosexual" Sonny: "stupid" (those of you without teen age kids probably weren't aware of the latest iteration. It's in the common lexicon now and in many cases not meant to be derogatory towards homosexuals. To those homosexuals who have issues with this I respond that many didn't appreciate the usurpation of "happy".)

Likewise the word "liberal" has transformed in the minds of many to mean "someone who thinks exactly like I do about everything". (Interestingly they apply the word "conservative" to those who do not.) It's not surprising (though it is sad) that this is especially true in the minds of some younger people, who never knew differently. They may indeed be "Leftists", but they are far from liberal.

And probably not happy either.

Update: Hugh Hewitt, on his radio program, relates an observation from Fraters Libertas that a significant number of people who claim to have been liberal Democrats pre-911 now identify themselves as Republicans, and asks if there are any examples of travelers in the other direction.

Did any conservative Republicans experience a great epiphany, a lifting of the veil, a falling-away-of-the-scales moment that day that led them to become Democrats?

While many of these crossover folks still call themselves "liberal" they disdain the Republican label. Hugh (chuckling) took the opportunity to mildly chastise those who deny, or to call out those who remain "closet Republicans", urging them to admit and embrace their true identity.

As Republicans, an American liberal party.

More from Michael Totten here.

And in sublime irony I note that Dean had all of them beat by a long shot.

On a similar-but-different note, more from Roger Simon:

...My own experience from blogging (definitely new information technology) is that many times blogs, especially the better ones, tend to push their writers to the center. The instantaneous feedback of this medium often (note I say often, not always) forces people to defend and confront their own more extreme positions, which they end up revising (happened to me).