I apologize for the length of this post, but I’m rather torn on this matter myself. To be frank, as fond as I am of this place, sometimes there is a bit too much vitriol here for my tastes. I don’t complain - I keep my mouth shut because I feel that honest people are entitled to honest opinions and often need an outlet. There is a lot of valid frustration going around, and that frustration is compounded by the feeling that honest representatives of conservatism are few and far between.
I think at times we lose sight of the fact that conservatism is not a monolithic view. While we do have clear and definite views on certain issues, we lack the overarching orthodoxies that define the socialist left in this country.
The problem, unfortunately, is that over the course of the last eight or so years, the left has dramatically ramped up its assault on conservatism. They were absolutely furious that Al Gore, their first “anointed one”, lost the election back in 2000. Conservatism has been under vicious assault and, sadly, when a group is under attack it is natural to wonder who exactly are its friends and who exactly are its enemies. The trouble has been compounded by conservative-leaning moderates who consider themselves conservatives.
I’ll draw criticism on this but I frankly believe that such people are conservatives. The problem, unfortunately, is that quite a few of such individuals have shown a tendency to compromise vital conservative values in the face of the leftist onslaught. Conservatism is ultimately about ensuring that government is limited to the scope laid out by its founders. It is about protecting the character of our civilization - our language, our culture, and the Christian heritage that has enabled us to be free in the first place. It is about taking pride in our country and realizing that what has been built here is substantially different from what has been built in other lands; that it is better and that it is worth preserving. Finally, it is about recognizing the value of human life at all stages of development and ensuring that it is preserved and respected as far as possible without extending the role of government. Insofar as one might go wobbly on these principles, their position on that particular matter is not conservative.
Unfortunately, there are times when we lose track of the notion that there are more ways than one to pursue these ends. There is a very human tendency to assume that a difference in means is necessarily the pursuance of a different end. I’ve seen conservatives who support a proactive approach towards world issues and conservatives who support neo-isolationist ideals - while both might adamantly disagree on how it needs to be done, at least both certainly agree that there is value in securing the protection of our nation from outside threats. There is little point in disparaging individuals by denying them the title of “conservative” when, on deeper inspection, their core values are quite the same as your own.
And then there are people who might simply be misguided or flat out wrong on an issue or two. There are individuals who adamantly believe that abortion should not be legal yet mistakenly believe that government solutions to aid single mothers and poorer families might help prevent it. On the flip side, you have people who believe that pro-life legislation involves an expansion of government power that encroaches on individual privacy. Both views are certainly misguided, but I think there is folly in dismissing people who hold such views as “liberals” instead of building around the conservative values they do hold and framing the debate around that.
I believe that most Americans are conservative. The problem is that many Americans do not hold conservative values clear across the board when it comes to their beliefs and, because we’ve been on the defensive in maintaining the essence of conservatism, we’ve basically told them we don’t want them. We’re telling the hardworking guy who supports the troops and knows he’s getting squeezed on his taxes that he’s a liberal because he might happen to argue strongly in support of legalized abortion or gay marriage. For the sake of maintaining purity on one issue we’ve pushed away a potential ally on two others. While those are certainly very important issues that are very clearly defined within conservatism by fundamental principles, the fact remains that we do ourselves harm by pushing people away in such a manner.
I think that an insistence upon orthodoxy is going to kill us. While support is down for Obama, that does not mean that support is magically rising for conservatism. We’ve spent too much time telling people that they’re not conservative enough for that to happen; instead, they’ll simply go on to support the sort of milquetoast Republicans that liberals absolutely adore. While we certainly need to continue to present clear principles, we also need to remind the American people that they really do agree with those principles. There will be disagreements. Those disagreements, however, ought not stand in the way of promoting the majority of principles upon which we do in fact agree.
I believe that telling people with strong conservative positions on a number of important issues that they are liberal because of their views on a few others is a terrible mistake. If someone feels strongly enough about conservative values to identify as a “conservative” then they are a conservative in my book as well, despite the possibility of substantial disagreement on certain issues. We’ll focus on our agreements and go from there. Likewise, I think that our current tendency to focus on certain individuals who are orthodox yet do not resonate with large segments of the public is going to be a terrible mistake as well. I would rather have a candidate that I mostly agree with who highlights that on which we agree than a candidate with whom I agree 100% around whom the highlight becomes how everyone else believes differently. Movements that focus on the latter rarely achieve anything substantial regarding their goals.
I’m with you on most of that. I still recall being labeled a “RINO” during the last election season by a couple of “the faithful” of a particular candidate. I was also told I should leave FR because of that, even though they were NOT the owner of the site.
We still have too much of a circular firing squad. There will NEVER be the perfect conservative that will check off all the right boxes for everyone. It would be better if we could all figure out what the right hills are to defend to lesser limits than death, and what hills are worth dying on. I doubt that will ever happen.
That is a most excellent post. No need to apologize for the length! Your points are well taken.
A refreshing viewpoint in a sewer of noxious fumes.
Thank you for your thoughtful post. :)
Insightful and well said.
Thank You.