He’s making an argument about tactics. I think that misses the point.
The issue that should concern conservatives is that the Tea Party movement is a populist movement. And populist movements are inherently unconservative.
If a populist movement arises in a society which has a fairly free market, that is true. But if one arises in a society which is dominated by government, such as Poland in the late 1970s or America under Obama, it isn't true.
The issue that should concern conservatives is that the Tea Party movement is a populist movement. And populist movements are inherently unconservative.
Huh? You can’t have a populist movement in support of enumerated Constitutional rights (also known as republican form of government)? I think they chose the name Tea Party because it beckened back to another populist movement called the American Revolution.
“And populist movements are inherently unconservative.”
Unless you are a Southerner. Down here, conservatism is mixed with a good dose of anti-Wall Street, anti-Big Business, and anti-Big Money isms.
This is why George Wallace did so well with blue-collar Democrats. You don’t pick Curtis “Bomb them back to the Stone Age” LeMay for your running mate, and the guy one heartbeat away from the presidency, if you’re a liberal.
parsy, who grew up on SAC bases, and the warm comforting sound of eight huge engines revving up on the flightlines.
Your statement is complete garbage.
Conservatism is very easy to understand. Attempts by progessives to “redefine” it only demonstrate the inherent flimsiness of their own ideology.
Conservatism means traditional American values. I don’t care if it makes you flinch, or squirm, or whine.
Individual libery, less government, fighting for right over wrong, a belief in absolute morals, and of course the free market. Throw in as many names and personalities as you wish, you are incapable of changing the definition of American conservatism.
Beg to disagree.
"Populism" is a particular political philosophy -- at bottom, demanding government protect the little guy from the big guy.
Tea Parties are demanding, instead, that government stay the f*ck away from their lives. It might be a movement of the "little guys", but it's quite distinct from populism.