Classical liberalism is not aligned with what we now know as "liberals" or
"conservatives", both of which support government intervention in some areas, but
not in others. For example, liberals tend to support government involvement in
economic affairs, while conservatives often support laws that restrict behavior in
social or moral issues.

Some of the most prominent modem critics of liberalism are communitarians, who
reject the thought that government should only protect rights. Among the important
Communitarian thinkers is Michael Sandel, Professor of Politics at Harvard
University. Sandel distinguishes communitarianism from modem liberals (like
Rawls) by noting that communitarians emphasize the society's common goals.

The communitarian outlook is captured in John Donne's well-known saying "no man
is an island." Even though we live in the Western tradition of political liberalism -
which emphasizes our individuality - we all live among others. We depend on
political and legal institutions to address our problems and disputes with calm,
reasonable and respectful debate. And many have noted that a healthy society
demands at least some understanding of our shared purposes within a diverse
population. As we'll see, all this has important implications for what individual

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