What's wrong with conservatives?

Giving insight into misconceptions in politics

Eric Hydrick / Columnist

It seems that "conservative" is the latest four-letter word with a lot of people. People attack conservatives and conservatism without actually knowing what it is, or realizing that there is little to no actual conservatism in modern politics.

The terms "conservative" and "liberal" aren't synonymous with Republicans and Democrats respectively. Republicans have spent the last several years demonstrating that they don't intend to hold themselves to the standards of conservatism.

It also takes very little research to find a liberal school of thought that doesn't match up with the current Democratic Party platform, like socialism or communism.

Conservatism is the principle of limited government in all aspects of life, and provided the actions of private citizens and businesses don't endanger the safety or property, nor do they infringe upon the rights of others, then there is no justification for any sort of government involvement.

Conservatism provides the private citizenry the greatest possible freedom, what's so bad about that?

Another myth about conservatives is that they're all intolerant. Actual conservatives adopt a live and let live attitude about other people's personal choices regarding their lives. If it doesn't hurt anybody or endanger someone else's rights, and it makes them happy, then let them do it.

The simple fact that someone believes that there's no good reason to forbid actions that you find personally distasteful doesn't make them special. It means they understand that there are some things that government has no business butting in on.

Conservatives also think that when the government gets involved, quality and efficiency go down. A few days before Christmas, a nationally syndicated talk show host pointed out that UPS could still get a package delivered in time for Christmas, and that there was no way the U.S. Postal Service can offer that same kind of service.

If you want another example of government inefficiency and failure, look at education. Public schools are humiliating themselves on standardized tests on a regular basis (and if you're in a N.C. public school, some of those tests are at a lower grade level to help you do better), whereas private schools are being heralded for their superior education every time these results come out.

The sad part about conservatism is that it left the mainstream years ago. The Republican Party abandoned conservative principles years ago.

In fact, right now the only political party that I know of that actually believes in true conservatism is the Libertarian Party, which unfortunately doesn't have the national status that it deserves.
However, as the Republican Party continues to abandon its conservative principles in the name of political power, perhaps we will see the Libertarians come to a greater national prominence.

Conservatism can be summed up as the belief in individual rights, individual freedoms and a strictly limited government. Conservatives believe that unless the government has been given explicit powers to act or regulate an area, then it should stay away.

Conservatives believe that the greatest possible freedom comes when the government isn't trying to regulate what people can and can not do.

If you truly love individual freedoms and believe that private citizens can do better than the government, then conservatism is right for you.

Contact Eric Hydrick at pendulum@elon.edu or 278-7247.