Conservatives, what are you conserving?

maybe Justin Amash

 

I had to google him. He went Libertarian. So are you saying true conservatism is Libertarianism?

 

no.

 

You forgot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . O U R . H E R I T A G E ! ! !

 

I have to say you are leaving money on the table by allowing Trump to live rent free in your head.

It is amusing how you and others on seem almost obsessed by someone you openly detest and you allow to almost dominate your lives. Heck, Harris will win the election and a year from now Trump will still be the number one topic on Too Hot.

 

Today's conservatives: "We've got to conserve the 1950's! Keep women in the kitchen where they belong! And keep the dark skinned-people in their place, if we can't keep 'em out. Amirite? Did I say too much? Was I supposed to use code for that last one? Why you lookin' at me like that, Butthead?"

 

So, the fact that others let Trump live rent free in their heads, lives rent free in your head. You've even taken it a year out. WEIRDO!

 

This is not an official definition but I think it's an accurate description that many people would've agreed with in times past. The framers of the constitution believed in Natural Law i.e "the laws of nature and nature's God." For instance, "You reap what you sow." "Cause and effect" and "Supply and demand". Think about how many current issues in our political debates are attempts to get around those of laws.

 

I feel like this would be a good time for a sing-a-long. Everybody sing together--it will help us understand today's conservatives.


"I wish I was in the land of cotton,
Old times they are not forgotten;
Look away! Look away! Look away! Dixie Land.
In Dixie Land where I was born,
Early on one frosty mornin,
Look away! Look away! Look away! Dixie Land.

Then I wish I was in Dixie, hooray! hooray!
In Dixie Land I’ll take my stand to live and die in Dixie,
Away, away, away down South in Dixie,
Away, away, away down South in Dixie."

 

I’m just trying to gauge what you define as conservative. You have a lot of posts here criticizing posters and politicians for not being conservative, but if practically nobody is conservative, as you define it I’m not sure how useful that it is.

I think we are probably mostly in agreement but I come at it from the opposite angle. I don’t think conservative really means anything. It is an identity. Chances are it tends to correlate to certain politicians (Trump, republicans) and to a much lesser degree actual issues.

I’ve been following this stuff since a teenager - so about 45 years. I grew up reading some conservative material, including the “conservative digest” that would literally rate all congressman on their votes and voting record. At least they had a specific set of criteria they used, not that I agreed with all of it.

The one thing I’ve noticed following politics is for those that identify as conservative, being a “conservative” is THE most important thing to them. That label is highly valued. They may have different views on different issues but still view themselves as conservative. Contrast that to those on left who mostly don’t care if they are labeled as liberal or progressive or what have you.

You had Jack Kemp conservatives and Pat Buchanan conservatives and Barry Goldwater conservatives, each with some different ideals. But most of their views converged. Now with Trump it is all over the map. Trump just put the final fork in conservatism.

So conservatism is nothing more than identifying as conservative. The correlation to issues and principles these days is almost zero.

 

Lickspittles every one.

 

I totally agree with @docspor, there are few remaining conservatives left in America. But at one time in America there were conservatives, so the definition definitely has meaning. And one day true conservatives may come back, which also gives meaning to the definition.

MAGA is not conservative in any way, shape, or form. No matter how loud they shout it. The Republican party has lost its way.

 

I love the strawman essays... Conservatives are conserving something? Lol...

The Democrats are NOT about Democracy. Not even close...

However... the Republicans are all about our Constitutiopnal Rebublic.


.

 

The opposite of conservatives is progressives, not Democrats.

As often as you throw about labels, you should know that. It's weird.

 

I suppose i missed a few. That one should go here:

In God we trust.
Marriage (actual).
Nuclear family as cornerstone of society.
Private property rights.

*LAW AND ORDER*

Fiscal responsibility.
National borders.
Our history.
Our national identity.
Work ethic.
Meritocracy.
Individual freedom.
...

 

White supremacy?

 

You can always cherry pick some policies and values that at one point in 250 years have been associated with conservatism and claim conservatism. I would just as easily throw some policies / values out that Democrats now espouse that have been associated with conservatism. That doesn’t mean they’re conservative….or maybe it does since the phrase has no meaning anymore.

So either the conclusion is nobody is practically conservative as Docspor asserts, or everybody is conservative, because everybody has at least a couple of historically conservative values they believe in, and these days that’s all it takes to claim the label.

 

What they are really trying to conserve is social power..

 

Which brings us back to my original question. Personally, I think that conservatism is more than just a set of policy positions. I think that there is a unifying world view. I believe, the reason that this point is so often missed in our current discourse is because we're no longer talking about "conservative" or "not conservative." Nowadays the question is "more conservative" or "less conservative."