A much-needed defense of liberalism--what it is, why it is under threat, and why we need it more than ever--from one of our most important political thinkers today. More than at any time since World War II, liberalism is under pressure, even siege. On the right, some have given up on liberalism. They hold it responsible for the collapse of the family and traditional values, rampant criminality, disrespect for authority, and widespread immorality. On the left, some are turning their backs on liberalism. They think that it lacks the resources to handle the problems posed by entrenched inequalities, racism, sexism, corporate power, and environmental degradation. But those opposed to liberalism do not depict it accurately; they offer a caricature, and they neglect its history.
In
On Liberalism, former advisor to Presidents Obama and Biden and
New York Times-bestselling author Cass Sunstein offers a timely and clear understanding of liberalism--of its core commitments, of its breadth, of its internal debates, of its evolving character, of its promise--and why we need it more than ever. He also shows how and why liberalism has been, and should be, appealing to both the left and the right.
The book begins with a manifesto on behalf of liberalism, and then goes on to explore the central idea of "experiments of living," to which a liberal constitutional order gives pride of place. From there, it discusses John Stuart Mill and Friedrich Hayek, defining liberal thinkers; the rule of law as liberals understand it; freedom of speech (including the place of lies and falsehoods within that freedom); free markets, economic liberty, and regulation; Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Second Bill of Rights, with its social and economic guarantees; and finally, the concept of opportunity.
Never more urgently needed,
On Liberalism moves the conversation well beyond the reductive and inflammatory political sound bites of our moment and advances a compelling argument on behalf of liberalism as the foundation of freedom and self-government.
對自由主義的迫切辯護——它是什麼、為什麼受到威脅，以及為什麼我們比以往任何時候都更需要它——來自當今最重要的政治思想家之一。
自第二次世界大戰以來，自由主義面臨的壓力比任何時候都要大，甚至可以說是受到圍攻。在右派中，有些人已經放棄了自由主義。他們將其視為家庭和傳統價值崩潰、犯罪猖獗、對權威的不尊重以及普遍不道德的根源。在左派中，有些人則背棄了自由主義。他們認為自由主義缺乏應對根深蒂固的不平等、種族主義、性別歧視、企業權力和環境惡化所帶來的問題的資源。但反對自由主義的人並未準確描繪它；他們提供的是一種漫畫式的刻畫，並忽視了其歷史。
在《自由主義》一書中，曾任奧巴馬和拜登總統顧問的《紐約時報》暢銷書作者卡斯·桑斯坦（Cass Sunstein）提供了對自由主義的及時而清晰的理解——其核心承諾、廣度、內部辯論、演變特徵及其承諾——以及為什麼我們比以往任何時候都更需要它。他還展示了自由主義如何以及為什麼對左派和右派都具有吸引力。
本書以一份支持自由主義的宣言開始，然後探討“生活實驗”的核心理念，這是自由主義憲政秩序所重視的。接著，書中討論了約翰·斯圖亞特·密爾（John Stuart Mill）和弗里德里希·哈耶克（Friedrich Hayek），這些都是定義自由主義思想家的重要人物；自由主義者所理解的法治；言論自由（包括謊言和虛假信息在這種自由中的地位）；自由市場、經濟自由和監管；富蘭克林·德拉諾·羅斯福的第二項權利法案，及其社會和經濟保障；最後是機會的概念。
在當前的時刻，《自由主義》比以往任何時候都更為迫切地需要，將對話推向超越簡化和煽動性的政治口號，並提出了一個有力的論點，主張自由主義是自由和自我治理的基礎。
Cass R. Sunstein is Robert Walmsley University Professor at Harvard University, where he is the cofounder and codirector of the Initiative on Artificial Intelligence and the Law. Former Administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, he is the author of The Cost-Benefit Revolution, How Change Happens, Too Much Information, Sludge, Climate Justice (all published by the MIT Press), Nudge (with Richard H. Thaler), and other books.
