why I am a libral..which is just a word!

I am starting this post without knowing where it's going to end up. Although, I know I want to talk about liberalism. This might be a trite thing to bring up because I somehow feel most people (not in the world...but most people who might read this blog) have had this conversation about to what it means to be a liberal. I myself have had it multiple times and I don't think I have ever reached any conclusion. Not that I think I will reach a conclusion today but I want to try and figure this out a little more and I really would like your opinions on this if you would please share them with me.

I consider myself a liberal because I think of it as being free to do whatever and making sure that others are free to do whatever as long as you don't impinge on someone else's right to do the same.
According to Wikipedia, that would make me a classical liberal or libertarian. However, I don't think I would consider myself a Libertarian. I think we do need a government to maintain order and protect those that can be easily targeted by the "powerful" and ensure that everyone has the freedom I was talking about. I think we do need to make ammends for a history of certain groups being cheated out of this basic freedom.

I certainly do not believe that people are born according to some divine plan where their placement is related to their deeds in a previous life. I don't think it is fai r that some are made to deal with the most impossible conditions by the random chance of their birth conditions. I understand that there are people who take unfair advantage of the welfare system but who's to say that if you were facing their circumstances you wouldn't have made the same choices. I am not saying that people should be absolved of all personal responsibility. I am saying that society needs to take some responsibility as well to ensure that no one continues in a cycle of oppression and that requires taxation of those who have benifited from the blatant unjust inequalities of the past and the sometimes subtle but often still blatant inqualities present today. I just want the government to make things right! and save the environment :)!

That's what it means for me to be a libral I guess. Some might argue that that's what conservatives believe as well...do they? I don't know...Do you know?