Is "Catholic Social Thought" Important

I enjoy finding writers who grapple with the dilemma how much we collectively should impose our will on individuals in the social sphere and how much we should impose collectively on individuals in the economic sphere. I think if you asked every adult in the U.S., "Do you believe is freedom?" nearly everyone individual would say yes. But each of these people would want to add, "But people who are bad or not responsible or not of the right religion will harm freedom so they need to be rung up by the law."

The link divides political philosophies into four camps. One is economic and social conservatives. The second is people who are social liberals but economic conservatives. A third are the economic liberals and social conservatives while the fourth are economic and social liberals. 

The author, seemingly a Catholic, highlights his branch, social conservatives but take-care-of-the-poor economic liberals. If he is a social conservative and this means anti-abortion and anti birth control his social theory is deep into economics. That is, the economic life of women and the role personal economic circumstances play in decisions to have abortions.

While it's entertaining to dabble in the four categories above, as a practical matter what do they mean? For example, it someone does not like abortions but is a realist and knows abortion are going to be unaffected by either laws or preaching and because of this votes for abortion rights, is this person a social liberal or social conservative?

Then there are people who believe wages and most prices should be determined by the marketplace but also support governments money for good schools, highways, and the poor. Are such people economic conservatives or liberals?

The link author thinks centuries of Catholic thought and writing is a good guide for our country. I think a better guide is human and historical experience. Catholic thought was written by male clergy for their own benefit.