Write for us!On Liberty
Returning Fallibilism to the Forefront of Liberalism – The Importance of Maintaining Clear Philosophical Foundations
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Across Western democracies, political debate is becoming more polarised and more fragile at the same time. Many voters feel that ideas cannot be discussed openly, while political parties increasingly struggle to explain what they actually stand for beyond individual policies. When parties lose the ability to articulate their philosophical foundations, politics becomes reactive rather than principled. It’s all very nice and easy to ask voters to vote tactically against people they dislike. That will always be part of politics. Getting voters to vote for your policies, even if for different reasons, can work too. Or parties can make pragmatic compromises.…
John Stuart Mill – Do His Values Still Matter to Liberal Democrats?
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Modern political thought is built on foundations laid down largely in the last 300 years by men like Edmund Burke, Jeremy Bentham, Karl Marx – and for liberals, John Stuart Mill. In 1859 Mill’s seminal work, ‘On Liberty’ was published. It was the culmination of decades of thought and discussion and it is now recognised that the contribution of his wife, Harriet Taylor Mill was crucial to the endeavour. It is likely that she was responsible for sections of the book, though she died before its publication. A political philosophy that centres the individual The core tenet of ‘On Liberty’…
