structure for 'Political Theory'    |     alphabetical list of themes    |     expand these ideas

24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 6. Liberalism / g. Liberalism critique

[difficulties for liberal theory]

24 ideas
The human race matters, and individuals have little importance [Hegel]
Liberals want the right to be separate, rather than for people to be united [Marx]
The creation of institutions needs a determination which is necessarily anti-liberal [Nietzsche]
Liberalism's weakness is its powerful rigid bureaucracy [Gramsci]
Rawls's account of justice relies on conventional fairness, avoiding all moral controversy [Gray on Rawls]
My Anarchy, State and Utopia neglected our formal social ties and concerns [Nozick on Nozick]
Liberals debate how conservative or radical to be, but don't question their basics [MacIntyre]
Autonomy favours present opinions over future ones, and says nothing about the interests of potential people [Glover]
If a whole community did not mind death, respect for autonomy suggests that you could kill them all [Glover]
Marxists say liberalism is unjust, because it allows exploitation in the sale of labour [Kymlicka]
Ecologism is often non-liberal, by claiming to know other people's best interests [Dobson]
Can individualist theories justify an obligation to fight in a war? [Avineri/De-Shalit]
Liberal justice ignores desert, which is the essence of justice [Kekes]
Liberal distribution cares more about recipients than donors [Kekes]
Why do liberals not see a much wider range of values as basic? [Kekes]
Liberals ignore contingency, and think people are good and equal, and institutions cause evil [Kekes]
Liberalism may fail because it neglects the shared nature of what we pursue and protect [Haldane]
Liberals mistakenly think individuals choose their values, without reference to the community [Swift]
Liberalism should not make assumptions such as the value of choosing your own life plan [Shorten]
Right-wingers attack liberal faith in reason, left-wingers attack its faith in reform [Gopnik]
Cosmopolitan liberals lack national loyalty, and welcome excessive immigration [Gopnik]
Liberalism's attempt to be neutral and colour-blind erases cultural identities [Gopnik]
Modern left-wingers criticise liberalism's control of culture [Gopnik]
Laissez-faire liberalism failed to give people the protections and freedoms needed for a good life [Dunt]