liberal Archives - Michael Ignatieff

The Adults in the Room: Cold War Liberalism Revisited

Michael Ignatieff — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 10:44:27 +0000

A personal journey through North American liberalism, from inherited family values to political evolution, examining liberal identity and challenges in modern democracy.

The post The Adults in the Room: Cold War Liberalism Revisited appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

Isaiah Berlin – The promise of freedom

Michael Ignatieff — Fri, 28 Jul 2023 08:27:25 +0000

Berlin would have warned us against hubris and intolerance, but also against fatalism. In the battle to come, history is on no one’s side. The outcome of this struggle over who owns the meaning of freedom will come down, as it always does, to the eternal question that decides history’s shape: who is prepared to fight hardest for what they believe.

The post Isaiah Berlin – The promise of freedom appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

Liberalism in the Anthropocene

Michael Ignatieff — Sun, 01 Nov 2020 09:00:00 +0000

We must be unafraid to confront the dark side of progress now, but without losing faith in the human campaign to make life better. This is the conviction that we need to save our planet and ourselves.

The post Liberalism in the Anthropocene appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

Science Versus Democracy

Michael Ignatieff — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 09:00:00 +0000

When the authority of science and the authority of democracy conflict and the result is a stand-off, a legitimacy vacuum can ensue, with ordinary citizens distrusting government and scientific advisers in equal measure.

The post Science Versus Democracy appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

Democracy Versus Democracy: The Populist Challenge to Liberal Democracy

Michael Ignatieff — Mon, 20 Jul 2020 09:00:00 +0000

The current populist challenges in western liberal democracies should not be seen as evidence of their decline, but as a constituent part. The history of democracy shows us that such challenges enable democracy’s growth and evolution.

The post Democracy Versus Democracy: The Populist Challenge to Liberal Democracy appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

Rethinking Open Society

Michael Ignatieff — Sun, 10 Jun 2018 09:00:00 +0000

Upholding open society means accepting the “strain of personal responsibility, of carrying the cross of being human.” An open society is very demanding. It asks us to respect the dignity of others, especially of those with whom we may disagree and to make choices for ourselves and our community.

The post Rethinking Open Society appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

Second Thoughts of a Biographer

Michael Ignatieff — Tue, 20 Dec 2016 09:00:00 +0000

I certainly expected to walk away. Yet it soon became obvious that my work was not done, that closure is the last thing one should expect a completed biography to deliver. Once one role is completed, a new role emerges: defender and guardian of the flame. Here loyalty and truth come into conflict once again.

The post Second Thoughts of a Biographer appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

A letter to a young liberal

Michael Ignatieff — Sun, 23 Nov 2014 09:00:00 +0000

Politics is not a vulgar means to a goal, it’s a noble life unto itself, and unless you love it, you can’t do it well. I didn’t get there, but I hope you will.

The post A letter to a young liberal appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.

The Price of Everything

Michael Ignatieff — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:00:00 +0000

As long as money is moralized as speech, and not understood as power, there is little chance that the republic can put money in its proper place. Without a politics—of redistributive taxation, public goods investment for growth, and rules controlling money in politics—any critique of what money has done to American life is just moralizing.

The post The Price of Everything appeared first on Michael Ignatieff.