El pensamiento liberal incomprendido

Abstract

The objective of this work is to carry out a critical analysis of the text by Henry Ramos Allup entitled "reflections on liberalism", in which the essential bases of this current of thought are explained, as well as a series of questions to its principles and fundamental premises are made. From a social democratic vision, Allup tries to mark differences with classical liberalism and also with Soviet Marxism, to claim in this way a third way expressed in social democracy that is still another form of socialism. His thinking reflects the predominant ideas of a good part of the intelligentsia and politicians in Venezuela and Latin America, always contrary to liberalism. The analytical-synthetic method, hermeneutics and heuristics were used for the interpretation of the text. It is concluded that although the book is a systematic work on the fundamental principles of liberalism, the author falls into a series of common places and criticisms that show some misrepresentations about liberal principles based on an interpretation from a socialist position of a social democratic nature.

Keywords: Ramos Allup, Liberalism, social democracy, socialism, collectivism.