Progressive
In the Fifties, Madison Avenue had a phrase they used to extend the life of many products. New and Improved was used for almost everything. Any minor change in the ingredients or packaging earned the right to call it New and Improved. As the consuming public became more aware and more questioning, it started to challenge some of these claims only to find that the label New and Improved was not always deserved.
The same happens in politics. When you see the term Progressive, just think New and Improved. If you look up all of the products and groups that call themselves progressive or label their ideas progressive, it’s usually because they don’t want to be associated with something old or established. The Health Care Bill has had a number of names and the elements, especially the contentious ones, have been renamed a dozen times.
There are almost no Democrats, now. There are lots of Progressives.
The new Progressive Party no longer wants to be known as the Democratic Party. The label progressive is supposed to confer approval upon everything so labeled. Ideas, planks in political platforms and the aims of political parties are called progressive to make you think it is modern, young (and not fuddy-duddy), hip, cool and up-to-date. It is also used to reposition something that has a bad image, needs an image makeover or needs to get some new attention. Just call it progressive and your good to go, again.
Same is probably true for Conservative or Independent. It’s not fashionable to say something is Republican anymore. But, say you’re a Regan Conservative or Independent and you’re OK.
But, only fundaments can tell you whether something is Democratic or Republican – liberal or conservation. I can be labeled Progressive and it’s something new, but keep in mind it may only be the Madison Avenue version of New and Improved. Look at the underlying fundamentals and you will know how to label it correctly.
