In the 1960s British musical revue, "Beyond the Fringe", there is a skit about a Brit preparing to visit America. One character who is informing the would-be departee of American political ways says, "Well, they have the Republican Party, which is somewhat like our Conservative Party and they have the Democratic Party, which is something like our (pause) Conservative Party." Perhaps this is the problem with American politics; there never has been a real liberal party. By this I mean a political party whose principles are primarily based on promoting a Civil Society and Human Rights. Certainly the Democrats of today can't qualify, if ever.

There have been liberals and conservatives in both parties, especially in the South there has been a tradition of conservative Democrats, who were in a unique and contradictory position until recently. Many of them have now joined the ranks of the Republicans. Yet in the time of Lincoln the Republicans were the liberal party. Now the Republican Party has few, if any, real liberals left. It is becoming ideologically pure. But the Democrats still have no standing ideology, no principles from which to operate and present a clear picture and definition of the state of the union.

For most of our history we Americans have prided ourselves as a liberal and tolerant nation. Why has this suddenly worn thin? Simply, I believe we are scared of losing our place in the world as a nation and, individually, losing our socio-economic class status. Therefore we become conservative and protective. Too, progressivism and retrenchment come in cycles. Ideologies are found wanting, movements grow tired, there is no new thought to refresh them, policies are tried and fail, creating a philosophical and political vacuum, so the opposition may gain ascendancy. With the end of the Cold War and weakening of liberal policies this vacuum has allowed the religious right and other conservatives to redefine the current problems, discredit old liberal policies, repackage and promote their beliefs as solutions. Their policies are not mainstream, but the average citizen will likely believe some of their rhetoric and let them pass restrictive laws, to the detriment of all. But in their authoritarian way lies bigotry, hatred and fear, in short, fascism. There is no organized and strong ideological counter force.

The USA needs a real liberal party. I don't mean liberal as in the New Deal or Keynesian economics nor necessarily with socialist sympathies, as liberal has been too often and incorrectly defined, but a party that puts individual human needs first rather than those of business, the military or the government. After all, our constitution guarantees individual human rights, and supporting those should be the role of government and politics. The political principles on which this countrys laws are based are from classical liberalism and classical conservatism, the later is another political principle that has been twisted and degraded to drive the current devisive politics of hate and fear. Our Founding Fathers were classical liberals and conservatives, but there are few classical liberals or conservatives in politics today. Most people don't know what these terms mean and so liberal has been used as a term of vilification by the New Right. The word liberal must be redeemed.

How could a new liberal party be created? First, people who have strong civil libertarian sentiments and a desire to see them implemented into society must be identified and approached to set founding principles and organize a political party. Then, progressives of all sorts should be sought out to join the ranks. They must undertake marketing and public relations to sell the case that we are slipping into dangerously authoritarian thinking to the people. In the current political climate many old liberals are becoming very disturbed with the right and the Democrats acquiescence to their posturing. Their concern and anger could fuel the need. But the biggest problem they would face is Americans' reluctance to forsake the Democrats and Republicans, even when they are very dissatisfied. The Libertarian Party has suffered from this problem, as well as forsaking their strong principle of individual human rights to promote the free reign of business and lower taxes. They are now considered conservatives. But third parties, even if their candidates have no chance of winning, can influence the national debate and force recognition and change on the major parties.

As right wing thought moves into the mainstream where is there a strong counter argument? Will the mainstream become fed up with the rights inflamatory rhetoric and restrictive social policies and say, enough"? Or has liberalism lost its intellectual and moral focus? Have we become afraid of freedom and tolerance and will we have to learn again by experiencing the horrors of an encroaching fascism?