One of the reasons left wing idealsare on the defensive is the right's success in turning the word "liberal" into a dirty word. They use it constantly as a negative, like "the most liberal senator from Massachussetts". The left needs to do the same.
I suggest we all start using the word "regressive" to negatively describe conservatives and conservative ideas. Rush Limbaugh would no longer be the right wing blow hard, he would be the regressive right wing blow hard. Bush's bad judge nominees wouldn't be inappropriate because they are conservative idealists, but would be unacceptable regressive activists.
Regressive. Like when the pope would excommunicate scientists and thinkers for saying heretical things like the earth revolves around the sun. An obsessive worship of the past's failed ideas.
"Four years of the regressive President Bush has returned this country to a cold war mentality."
"President Bush has a regressive concept of modern day terrorism, he believes that terror organizations are strongly tied to state sponsors instead of terrorist networks being multinational underground endeavors."
"That's just a regressive conservative idea, I want to take the country into the future, not the past."
Hammer them with the word "regressive". Progress waits for no man, and when they call you a liberal say, "I like to think of myself as 'progressive'".