That I will accept, and I will accept that the OP is a form of social manipulation. I just want to clarify that Social Conservatism defines the Conservative Judeo-Christian community, and that they are *not* responsible for every sort of social engineering that comes out of the Republicans.
Christian [(s)...] they’d be perfectly happy just being left alone!
Not to draw too fine a point FRiend, But the Christian Right cannot do it alone, anymore than the Libertarians, or the rest of the Conservative factions can. That is why THE REAGAN COALITION IS SO VERY IMPORTANT. It takes all three pillars to form the Conservative power structure.
Peace.
There is nothing wrong with social conservatism in and of itself. As you pointed out, it defines the conservative Judeo-Christian community, a community with values that largely comprise the foundational bedrock of American society, aside from Enlightenment philosophy that gave rise to the Declaration, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and Adam Smith's free-market capitalism.
However, one must be careful to note the dangers of the "I know what's best for you, better than you do" attitude. Maybe there's a fine shade of difference between authoritarianism, totalitarianism, Big Brother-ism, mercantilism, Marxism, Socialism, Communism, monarchies, dictatorship, oligarchies, etc. but the fact still remains, all of these general means of organizing power stem from the same attitude. And, that's why it's especially important for all to note that the same governmental infrastructure that one faction creates to enforce its own values can be turned against the faction that created it...by another faction, in its time of power, and no faction is guaranteed to be in power at all times.
In other words, expanding Big Government is a dangerous business, since Big Government is the ultimate legally-sanctioned monopoly. You may be able to use it to achieve your own ends now, but that's not to say that your opponents can use it against you later.
Too bad the Republicans were too short-sighted to realize this during the past eight years, though as of late, based on what I've heard from Rush Limbaugh, after some clarification, I strongly believe that he's gotten the picture.