In MyDD and elsewhere it has been repeatedly suggested that the left is mainly a coalition of various groups reacting against the attacks of the right.  True, religion is not what unifies us, but there is a core, and it is amazing that these ideas at the heart of liberalism are today so muted.  The right won this election with its ideas, and needs to be fought with the great ideas of the left.

This is the core of liberalism:

Freedom.

• Freedom of speech and association.
  
• Freedom to do what you want when alone or with consenting adults.
  
• A man or woman's body is his/her own, whether we're talking 1860 or 2004.
  
• Those who need it deserve freedom from the abuses of the powerful.  Men should not be free to beat women or children; corporations should not be free to offer dangerous drugs or below-sustenance wages; majorities should not be free to abuse minorities with hate speech.

Equality and equal opportunity.

• Everyone should be treated equally in law and elections.
  
• Every child deserves an equal opportunity, equal education, and equal health.  No child deserves poverty, ignorance, or preventable illness.
  
• Every adult deserves a decent opportunity to obtain a job, a home, healthcare, and food.
  
• We have a duty to undo the damage done to those who grew up unfairly denied the basic opportunities, and to help those who have lost these opportunities due to misfortune.
  
• Everyone should contribute equally to these goals, that is, in proportion to their means.

Government restraint.

• Violence must always be the absolute last resort, at home or abroad.
  
• Punishment is for rehabilitation, not vengeance.
  
• Government projects, such as schools and agencies, should not favor any particular religion.
  
• Government and legal decisions should be based on reason and scientific facts whenever available.
  
• Our government should not support other governments that significantly violate these principles.

These are great ideas that the left shares at least as broadly as the right shares its hatred-laced religiosity.  We should proclaim these ideals loudly and sway the country with our ideas just as the right has been doing.  We are not just a reactive coalition.  The left has been developing this core for over two centuries, and we need recognize and proclaim that fact.