> 1. a movement toward a goal or to a further or higher stage: the progress of a student toward a degree.
> 2. developmental activity in science, technology, etc., especially with reference to the commercial opportunities created thereby or to the promotion of the material well-being of the public through the goods, techniques, or facilities created.
> 3. advancement in general.
> 4. growth or development; continuous improvement: He shows progress in his muscular coordination.
It's not just change. It's beneficial change. That's the mantle that progressives are claiming by choosing the label "progressive". That's what they're saying they're offering.
> Better for who, or to what aim?
I agree that those are essential questions. Those who claim to be progressive should have to answer them. "Change for the sake of change" isn't good enough; we want change that makes things better, not just variety. And we want change that actually will make things better, not just that some wild-eyed zealot claims will make things better.
Under your definition, those calling for a Christian state, or a pure white state, or a monarchy, are progressives. That's... well, it's not the definition anyone else is using, and it's not a very useful definition.
No. "Regress" is also change, but it's in the opposite direction of "progress". Progress is a change for the better, not just a change.
And "progressives", just by claiming that label, are selling us that they're going to bring "progress", not just change driven by a random number generator.