The ideal of liberalism is a society with freedom of action for everyone, free exchange of politically sensitive information, limiting the power of church and state and freedom of private enterprise. Liberalism rejected many of the provisions that were the basis of previous theories of the state, such as the divine right of kings to rule and the role of religion as the sole source of knowledge. Fundamental principles of liberalism include the right to liberty and property, as well as other civil rights; equality before the law; government's responsibility and transparency of government.
While liberals typically believe that government is necessary to protect individuals from being harmed by others; they also recognize that government itself can pose a threat to liberty. The function of the government is reduced to ensure these protections. …show more content…
Some modern trends of liberalism are more tolerant of government regulation of free markets for the sake of equal opportunity to succeed, universal education and reducing the difference in incomes. Followers of liberalism believe that the political system should contain elements of the welfare state, including unemployment benefits and free health care. According to the views of liberals, government exists for the benefit of the people subservient to it, and the country's political leadership should be based on the consent of the majority of the