As far as I know it is a core liberal idea that (free and autonomous) individuals are basically self-centered and pursue their own interests, example: Adam Smith and the tradition of the homo oeconomicus.

@Thibaud70
Taken to extremes that means privatize everything and ignore social mores.

@Thibaud70 People generally pursue their self interests according to their light. Personal autonomy is at odds with those who like to be told what to do by government. People crave freedom and when they get it they can hardly wait for some form of enslavement to lift the burden of freedom from their shoulders. It would seem that personal autonomy is not for everyone.

@ASTRALMAX According to the "three needs theory" of David McClelland, people are motivated by power, affiliation, and achievement. A craving for freedom is not among those basic needs.. A free and autonomius individual without affiliation must be very lonely and unhappy

@Thibaud70 Nobody is completely independent because we rely on a variety of people for the provision of many services in modern societies. However, those who may be regarded as autonomous spend time with like minded people who share their values and interests.

How would you prove that Liberalism is governmental overreach by definition?

@LovinLarge I don't believe that liberalism is government overreach. I think conservatism is... they favor laws that restrict women, minorities, transsexuals, and refugees, the aged, the infirm, etc....and legislate to eliminate laws that protect the environment and our individual human rights. And now they are trying to stop us from voting. The conservative party is anything but conservative. I just read your response below. We're on the same page here.

@TheoryNumber3 I wanted to flush out your answer because most people especially conservatives will interpret your answer as I did and I was pretty sure you meant the opposite. So your answer makes a fantastic point in the most effective way, by using terms that would traditionally apply the opposite way in which you've used them which demonstrates how politics doesn't even makes sense anymore. Or as Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, "the choice is no longer between left and right. The choice is between normal and crazy" although it's unfortunate for her that she doesn't know which one of those she is!

@LovinLarge She may not know, but I do

One can be conservative concerning societal issues and a socialist in economic questions...
I'd have the same preferences if Sanders was a woman and AOC a man. I side with the old-school Left (le Parti socialiste en France) , not with the postmodern-progressive-identitarian Left.

@Thibaud70 If one is conservative on social issues and a socialist on economic issues, one doesn't understand the relationship between the two.

Sanders and AOC agree on virtually everything policy related. I don't know anything about French politics but I'm not sure you understand Sanders, either. Can you give an example of a position with which you would agree with Sanders but with which you think AOC would disagree?

@LovinLarge OK, let's forget the part about Sanders and AOC...
I do know that there is a not so trivial difference between the old-style Left and the "progressive", or "woke" Left, and I'm in the former team.

@Thibaud70 Okay so you can't distinguish between the positions of Sanders and AOC, what is the "not so trivial difference" to which you refer? If you can't or don't want to articulate it, that's fine. I thought you might like the opportunity to kick it around.

Whenever anyone tells me they're opposed to socialism, I ask them the following:

Ever been to a post office? A national park? A library? And if they say yes, I tell them they're socialists because they're supporting government monies spent on the common good

@TheoryNumber3 Yes! Even whatever roads, bridges, sidewalks they used to get to wherever you are speaking with them at the time. Conservatives want the benefit of community without having to contribute to it. We will never build a happy, healthy, equitable society like that.

@LovinLarge - - - sorry, but I don't like this aggressive tone. I am not here to quarrel or to bicker.

@Thibaud70 I hate to break this to you but men don't get to dictate women's "tone" any longer so you can leave that antiquity at the door. Your inability to support your own political position does not make me aggressive, it just makes you weak. Is that why you asked strangers how to distinguish between political ideologies for you?

Careful: Freedom for all means also freedom for the predators.