is that its opposite would be "regressive!"

That's much easier to embody (for me) than setting myself up in direct opposition to "conservative" ideals. Linguistically, the word conservative still feels to me more prudent and frugal than wacko, despite recent evidence to the contrary.

I know what you mean about feeling "both" of two poles at the same time though. The both I tend to see these days in my own thinking, feels more like trying to integrate liberal and conservative to total a whole different, more resonant "progressive."

You are right that "regressive" is the opposite of Progressive and that has a very different connotation than conservative. In fact "reactionary" is more what Republicans have become rather than conservative.

I am both liberal and progressive. Looking historically, I probably fit liberal better simply because some major progressives in the past were anti-evolution and such. By contrast, I can see almost all major advances in America have been liberal advances. But the overall philosophy of progressivism (and, for that matter, populism which has even different connotations) is something I like.

In the end, of course, they are all labels. In truth I get along with conservatives better than I do EITHER Greens or reactionaries. There are some things I am pretty leftist on but there are some I am conservative on. But sometimes choosing labels is convenient, and I am comfortable being labeled either liberal or progressive.

is partly based on labeling and marketing when it comes to how we respond to foods, so maybe it is in politics too? The Disgust Factor apparently is at the visceral level and very powerful, not only based on the senses like smell and taste but also the way we "feel" about the descriptions and language being used.

I'm thinking this could be electoral gold if we're creative enough to concoct some revolutionary nouvelle cuisine for progressive cafes all over the country.