The terms left and right originated around the time of the French Revolution: in the ancien regime, the aristocrats sat on the right; the commoners on the left.
Do these terms still make sense in the America and Europe of 2017?
Does "right" simply mean accepting the authority of the Church, the military, and moneyed interests? That is how the 1906 Dreyfus affair in France was framed, at least when I read about it in The People's Almanac. If so, then how does this distinction apply (or does it?) in places like China and Japan, where the Church has never had a foothold?
Does "left" or "liberal" still mean favoring freedom of speech? How about the right to bear arms? How come those who identify (and are identified by others) as "liberals" are much more likely to favor restrictions on firearms than "conservatives", while the reverse is true of abortion?
Do "liberals" believe human nature is essentially good, while "conservatives" believe it is evil? Most would say Hobbes was conservative; was Locke liberal? Would Locke be considered liberal today?
How come Norman Rockwell is not celebrated by today's left (at least not to any extent I can see?) He was considered a "liberal" in his time.
Does "liberal" mean supporting the rights of minorities? Does "conservative" mean "majoritarian"? If a clear majority favors raising the minimum wage, does that make it a conservative position? As Ayn Rand pointed out, the smallest minority on earth is the individual.
Can one be a left-wing conservative or a right-wing liberal?
Is opposition to trade agreements (NAFTA, TPP) a "conservative" or a "liberal" position?
What if large numbers of people objected to the labels others tried to impose on them?
Great question.
Liberal, libertarian, conservative, neoliberal, neoconservative and other labels have all taken a lot of different connotations through the years and across the political spectrum. They are sort of guideposts only. Some labels people embrace and others people are tabbed with and reject.
Mises specifically used the word liberal in the 18th and 19th century sense even though in the 20th century the word had started to take on another meaning. His book Liberalism was the prescription to the issues he wrote about in his previous book Socialism.
For instance at what point is a Patriotic, Catholic, pro-life, pro-police, pro-military, social conservative who supports unions, universal healthcare, and income redistribution a left winger or a right winger?
Poll
