I wish I could figure out what liberalism and conservatism are.

I consider myself pretty liberal. To me, that means I'm concerned with the rights of people and I'm open to new ideas. By my definition, I see a lot of republicans as liberal. There are many republicans I admire and some I've voted for.

I actually enjoy a balanced government. I like to see a Congress majority of one party and a President from the other.

Well, anyway. Does anyone have a good definition of liberalism and conservativism that doesn't involve "liberals are crybaby pantywaists" or "conservatives are nazi jackasses"?