Because many who now call themselves conservatives are what we used to call “Rockefeller Republicans”. They aren’t small government conservatives or personal responsibility conservatives, or personal liberty conservatives, like Goldwater, Buckley, or Reagan.
They are big government conservatives. They are only conservative when compared to people like John Conyers.
Back in 1960 JFK was a liberal. Today he would be considered a right wing extremist by the Republican leadership. It just shows how far we’ve slid into the slime pit of big government socialism.
Okay, but, how do people who choose to be conservative, in terms of their own self understanding, fail to grasp the notion of freedom as an individual versus collective right. Liberals believe the government has a right to intrude because it protects a greater collective right. Conservatives are reluctant to endorse any government intrusion of individual freedom. Data mining does not bother me. Common sense tells me it is a security matter and I can live with the Courts authorizing this intrusion into my affairs. What bothers me is conservatives not recognizing how challenging a test this is for us.