What is Conservatism to you?

[404.livejournal.com]

I have started on Dr. Alitt's excellent primer on the Conservative Tradition, through The Teaching Company (available @ http://www.teach12.com/ttcx/coursedesclong2.aspx?cid=4812 for those who are interested, it costs money though, but not too much, especially when compared to university level classes), and it got me thinking about what I feel Conservatism as a political philosophy really is. Obviously given from the word that is used: Conservative, which denotes careful planning and rational development, but is that all it is? I am curious in what y'all think it means. Maybe this will spark a conversation that does not break down into name calling, but we shall see.

Comments

[underlankers.livejournal.com]

Theoconservatism to me is really an American analogue to the ideas of Khomeini. Except that Khomeini was actually a man of some frugality and morals in comparison to the philandering boy-diddlers that make up so much of the Sex Is Evil crowd. It's not mindless to any real extent. Khomeini's ideas were rather disliked in the 1970s Middle East as the same mindlessness yet in the end the Iranians beat Iraq like a drum despite both superpowers feverishly arming Iraq.

Theconservatism is a Christian attempt of rule by True Believers. The dark irony is that Khomeini's system requires someone to be learned, and since it arose in Iran it also requires some knowledge of both foreign languages and in a fairly rigorous program that requires people to have knowledge beyond elementary principles like how to tie one's shoes.

Theoconservatism, by contrast, is like most such Christian movements anti-egalitarian and rooted in an extremely powerful leader who'd have to represent the movement and adhere to moral probity that no Dommies have had or will have.

I agree that the progressives also suck, but progressives can be negotiated with in good faith. Theocons......never.