This might be considered a troll thread by some, but so be it.
I've been thinking about the meaning of conservative vs liberal, and how it applies to the history of our country, and societies around the world. The terms are not absolute in what value systems they represent, but instead describes an ideological position relative to what is considered the ideological middle in a society. For instance a liberal position in the US is allowing women into combat roles, whereas a liberal position in Saudia Arabia is allowing a woman to walk in public unescorted by a male relative.
With that said, is it unfair to say that the march of social progress over the years has always been a battle of conservatives trying to hold the reigns on the status quo vs liberals who are always trying to drag society forward? One might argue that conservatives only accomplishments throughout history is to merely provide a bit of measure and restraint to the march of liberalism, in that liberals often might want to move forward faster than society is willing to accept. Lets just give an example of liberal vs conservative debates over the centuries
The role of the church in government
Women s Rights
Civil Rights
Worker Rights
Social Programs (social security, medicare, unemployment, food assistance, etc)
Gay Rights
All those listed are ideological battles that have been lost or that conservatives have been constantly losing ground with over the years, and that has been the case throughout all of the western world.
Now there also many examples around the world where conservative ideology has successfully held the line against liberal influences, and even reversed liberalization in many instances.
Saudia Arabia
Yemen
Iran
Pakistan
India
Iraq
Obviously not shining beacons of the world. India might be an odd choice in that list, but many of their social constructs are extremely conservative.
So my ultimate point is...what role do conservatives feel they play in society? Is it to constantly temper the liberalization of society, or possibly reverse it? Many battles won by liberal movements in the past would be considered unthinkable to reverse by even the staunchest conservatives today. My theory is that conservative ideology is a refuge for the segment of society that is afraid of bold change, with many of those vested in the status quo. Perhaps they have a financial stake in the status quo, or a large measure of their influence is rooted in maintaining the status quo. A great model of what I believe would be the full realization of liberalization in society would be the fictional Star Trek universe. No money, no hunger, and no rich and poor. A society that transcends material want and basic need and collectively aspires for something higher. I'll end with the question, what would the full realization of conservative ideology look like?
I've been thinking about the meaning of conservative vs liberal, and how it applies to the history of our country, and societies around the world. The terms are not absolute in what value systems they represent, but instead describes an ideological position relative to what is considered the ideological middle in a society. For instance a liberal position in the US is allowing women into combat roles, whereas a liberal position in Saudia Arabia is allowing a woman to walk in public unescorted by a male relative.
With that said, is it unfair to say that the march of social progress over the years has always been a battle of conservatives trying to hold the reigns on the status quo vs liberals who are always trying to drag society forward? One might argue that conservatives only accomplishments throughout history is to merely provide a bit of measure and restraint to the march of liberalism, in that liberals often might want to move forward faster than society is willing to accept. Lets just give an example of liberal vs conservative debates over the centuries
The role of the church in government
Women s Rights
Civil Rights
Worker Rights
Social Programs (social security, medicare, unemployment, food assistance, etc)
Gay Rights
All those listed are ideological battles that have been lost or that conservatives have been constantly losing ground with over the years, and that has been the case throughout all of the western world.
Now there also many examples around the world where conservative ideology has successfully held the line against liberal influences, and even reversed liberalization in many instances.
Saudia Arabia
Yemen
Iran
Pakistan
India
Iraq
Obviously not shining beacons of the world. India might be an odd choice in that list, but many of their social constructs are extremely conservative.
So my ultimate point is...what role do conservatives feel they play in society? Is it to constantly temper the liberalization of society, or possibly reverse it? Many battles won by liberal movements in the past would be considered unthinkable to reverse by even the staunchest conservatives today. My theory is that conservative ideology is a refuge for the segment of society that is afraid of bold change, with many of those vested in the status quo. Perhaps they have a financial stake in the status quo, or a large measure of their influence is rooted in maintaining the status quo. A great model of what I believe would be the full realization of liberalization in society would be the fictional Star Trek universe. No money, no hunger, and no rich and poor. A society that transcends material want and basic need and collectively aspires for something higher. I'll end with the question, what would the full realization of conservative ideology look like?