Most dictionary definitions for conservative read like ?adverse to rapid change? and ?moderate, avoiding extremes.? Although it depressingly appears a lot of people pretty much use this extremely thin dictionary definition to describe modern political conservatism, anyone with a half-decent background in ideological history and contemporary issues knows that conservatism is much more than that.
Look at Bush? he?s got the tax-cut side of the capitalists, the religious side of the moralists, and the interventionist side of the hawks. He is a mixture of conservative ideas, just like most people whether they admit it or not. Yeah, each little branch of conservatism often claims the ?other? conservatives aren?t really conservative but that?s just BS. The fact is, conservatism is a huge tent, and because of that hugeness, there?s a lot of contradictions.
The movement is a far cry from Edmund Burke?s skepticism about progress and elitism. I would crudely reduce it to a few main principles: 1)suspicion about the power of the state, 2)preference for liberty over equality, 3)belief in established institutions and hierarchies, and 4)idealistic patriotism. Each principle is exaggerated by different ?often competing- groups. The creed cannot be ideologically pigeonholed, especially modern American conservatism.
There are thousands of activists, hundreds of think tanks (compare Heritage with Enterprise with Cato), and a small army of conservative intellectuals. Yet the broad church means that people worship different gods? wherever you go, you?ll discover contradictions. That?s what many on the Right don?t acknowledge. On the other hand, many on the Left also don?t want to acknowledge the vigorous populism (and optimism) that permeates the Right. The Right is all about changing things from a grass-roots level, a very far cry from maintaining the status-quo.
It?s the Conservative Paradox, and whether it?s the homeschoolers in Colorado, the gun activists in Florida, the planned communities in Arizona or the free marketers in Virginia, they all have a basic bond that ties them together: Enemy #1 is the far-left liberal machine... because they are seen as not believing in ANY of the 4 conservative principles I listed above. A common "enemy"... it?s that simple.
Look at Bush? he?s got the tax-cut side of the capitalists, the religious side of the moralists, and the interventionist side of the hawks. He is a mixture of conservative ideas, just like most people whether they admit it or not. Yeah, each little branch of conservatism often claims the ?other? conservatives aren?t really conservative but that?s just BS. The fact is, conservatism is a huge tent, and because of that hugeness, there?s a lot of contradictions.
The movement is a far cry from Edmund Burke?s skepticism about progress and elitism. I would crudely reduce it to a few main principles: 1)suspicion about the power of the state, 2)preference for liberty over equality, 3)belief in established institutions and hierarchies, and 4)idealistic patriotism. Each principle is exaggerated by different ?often competing- groups. The creed cannot be ideologically pigeonholed, especially modern American conservatism.
There are thousands of activists, hundreds of think tanks (compare Heritage with Enterprise with Cato), and a small army of conservative intellectuals. Yet the broad church means that people worship different gods? wherever you go, you?ll discover contradictions. That?s what many on the Right don?t acknowledge. On the other hand, many on the Left also don?t want to acknowledge the vigorous populism (and optimism) that permeates the Right. The Right is all about changing things from a grass-roots level, a very far cry from maintaining the status-quo.
It?s the Conservative Paradox, and whether it?s the homeschoolers in Colorado, the gun activists in Florida, the planned communities in Arizona or the free marketers in Virginia, they all have a basic bond that ties them together: Enemy #1 is the far-left liberal machine... because they are seen as not believing in ANY of the 4 conservative principles I listed above. A common "enemy"... it?s that simple.