The American libertarian movement, led by Murray Rothbard, has moved away from dogmatic anti-statism to ally itself with the populist right. A trajectory that poses a central question for liberals: how far to ally oneself without denying oneself?
Liberalism had the opportunity to govern alone between 1830 and 1835. Its distrust of the state prevented it from continuing the experiment. Since then, to maintain its influence, it has had to form alliances. But with whom?
At the end of the 19th century, the French Third Republic introduced several educational reforms under the impetus of Jules Ferry. Schoolteachers were entrusted with an unprecedented civic and secular mission.
In his column, former Federal Councillor Pascal Couchepin shares a book that has left a lasting impression on him. This month, he explores the origins of the United States through Percival Everett's «James».
The term populist is a modern invention. Yet it says nothing about a dynamic whose mainspring can be found as far back as antiquity: criticism of the imperfections of the political system, with the aim of amending it.
Author of a canonical «History of Switzerland» and of recent guided walks in his series «Au fil de l'histoire suisse», the university professor welcomes Le Regard Libre a few steps from the medieval ramparts of Fribourg.
Liberals have long been reticent about the federalist idea. But the development of their conservative wing prompted them to reconsider their position. Today, federalism is seen by liberals as a pillar of the Swiss entrepreneurial spirit.
Since the French Revolution, democracy has often been contested in its representative form, and has never completely erased the authoritarian aspirations of certain schools of thought. Yet direct democracy has not escaped criticism.
When he died sixty years ago, Winston Churchill was universally celebrated as Britain's saviour. Today, his statue is the target of vandalism. This deterioration in his image can be explained by several historiographical turning points.
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