Saturday, March 16, 2013

Conservatism Is The Clear Choice

      There really is no argument that when Conservative principles are in sync with public policy, there is no better way to assure both liberty and prosperity for the majority of a society. It has been proven by history for thousands of years and formed the thinking of the Constitution and the other founding documents of this country. Unlike Liberal policies, Conservative ones offer more choice and more freedom and require less government restrictions. The very goal of Conservatism is to protect and defend the founding principles of this country, which themselves are based on limited government that provide the people with virtually unlimited liberty.
     One of the core differences between Liberalism and Conservatism is that each has diametrically opposed beliefs of what constitutes the best agent of change in the lives of the governed. Liberals want to empower government to change people's lives and Conservatives aim to empower people to change their own lives. It is this very core difference which is the fundamental struggle between the two sides. The Modern day Liberal ethos sees a fundamental inability for the average person to make their own decisions on a myriad of issues, from what to eat and drink to providing their own health care. And the Liberal solution is more and bigger government, which by its very existence precludes the growth of individual freedom and in most cases leads to fewer choices and less liberty. Radio talk show host and author, Dennis Prager, puts it succinctly when he says, "The bigger the government, the smaller the citizen."
     Another core difference between Liberalism and Conservatism is the role of government in the lives of the governed. Conservatism holds fast to the value of limited government which forms the core of this country's founding documents. The Founding Fathers framed the Constitution specifically to limit the federal government's authority, that is why they enumerated the federal government's powers and by doing so gave the bulk of power to the people and the states. This idea forms the very basis of the tenth amendment, which the Supreme Court recently set ablaze with its ruling on ObamaCare. The founders had a mistrust of government and a faith in the ability of free people to create the most just and prosperous society. The modern day Liberal sees government as a moral authority that can dispense rights and justice in amounts and areas that only it can best determine.
     I recently heard a woman on the radio who is the poster-child for modern day Liberalism. She said, that since there are people who can not make healthy food choices, it is the role of government, through taxes and regulations, to make those choices for them. Her single statement of Constitutional ignorance is illustrative of Liberal thinking. They not only fail to understand that this kind of nannyism in government is antithetical to the founding principles that made this nation great, but once given, that same power can and will be used against them to restrict some freedom that they hold dear. The bottom line is that the difference between Conservatism and Liberalism is the difference between liberty and tyranny respectively.

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