1. You mean implies, not infers.
2. No, it does not, in the political context, mean to preserve the status quo. You are regurgitating what leftist academics (including dictionary editors) and propagandists (especially journalists) assert conservative means - ever seeking to control the terms of the debate - not what actual thoughtful conservatives say it means.
3. I have disputed that very notion since I was a teenager! I do not seek to preserve the status quo; I seek to conserve whatever is of value, and to discard whatever is not. That, by the bye, means far more than merely personal, temporal possessions. It includes transcendent truths and values.
4. A patriot is certainly not necessarily a Christian, nor even necessarily a conservative. I am both, as well as a patriot.
5. The word that more correctly applies to this idea is traditionalist.
6. If you want to surrender further debating territory to the left, that is your choice. I absolutely refuse to do so, and will retain conscious use of, and personal claim to, the word, conservative.
1. The term “conservative” has the inference of status quo - “to conserve” - “to keep as is”.
2. George Will ID’s himself as a “conservative.” So did Krauthammer. Both hate/hated Trump. Trump is political spark and divider because he loves America regardless of politics. That to me is a Patriot. There are plenty of “conservatives” who love the things they want to keep - whatever they are, more than the Free Constitutional Republic of America.
3. “Seeking to conserve whatever is of value, and to discard whatever is not...includes transcendent truths and values” is great but very subjective. To win the political/legal battle against the Left, you must adhere to OBJECTIVE values - CODIFIED, TRANSCENDENT values - and that is found in the Constitution, the SUPREME LAW OF THE LAND. I find that most “conservatives” are flummoxed by this and don’t even have that idea on their radar screen..
4. Being a Patriot is not necessarily being a Christian although my guess is most patriots are probably born-again Christians.
5. Yup, I’d say “conservatism”goes right along with “traditionalist” which ties into “establishment”. And there’s the rub. The “Establishment” in basically every field of endeavor is the problem. “Conservatives” generally find security in the traditions of established institutions even if such institutions have become destructive to freedom and a peaceful society. And freedom, not tradition/establishment is what America is all about. Freedom begets change. But freedom will NEVER survive without faith - faith in the God of the Bible. So it’s security and faith in God and a consuming desire to be free of tyranny vs. security and faith in the status quo and (very often) man’s institutions (”tradition”).
6. You’ve missed the boat entirely with your comment here and is often where people on the Right unwittingly become”useful idiots” of the Left. Get on board with restoring America’s Free Constitutional Republic. THAT is what this culture war is all about.