Where Have the Conservatives Gone

For a long time, conservatism and the GOP have been branching apart. In a generation, scientists won’t be able to tell that they ever shared a family tree.

Hello, my name is Michael, and I am a conservative.

We’ve gone by many names, anti-federalist, strict-constructionist, classical liberal, but we use political labels like a Colt uses .45s, so I rarely care to use them. But where are the others? If I wanted to make a brief introduction to my political ideology, I might want to point to well-known names that share my ideology to easily give you a picture. But I cannot name many contemporary conservative voices to reference.

So, start again, shall we? And I’ll do my best to outline my beliefs against the buffoonish cartoon that comes to mind when using a political label.

Hello, my name is Michael, and I am a conservative.

When you read that sentence, I bet your mind conjured up a caricature of me. It has nothing to do with who I am, but we’ve been trained to reduce politics and those who speak on them as cartoons with exaggerated features. You hear Conservative or Liberal, depending on your personal bias, and think of a person who is nothing like you and has nothing to offer but wrong opinions. Almost non-human.

I have nothing in common with the politics we see in the news. I hope you say the same. Our labels are defined by those who develop and run the show designed to turn the news into a commodity. The one damn thing President Trump is right about. It is lock, stock, and barrel the political WWE. Those putting on the show are in on it, and the politicians are in on it. The talking heads who are paid to appear to “analyze” the news are in on it. Sadly, we are all to blame at some point or another because they are making fucking bank and you are the dumber for it.

My ideology has no relation to daily news or even Republicanism. Call it Trumpism. Tragically, both parties have cut moorings with objective truth completely. They have moved from having some semblance of duty to public service and national pride to total capitulation to the craven desire for power. Those with power know making tough decisions and solving problems make it harder to hold onto said power. So they use wedge issues to divide us and make us angry, making us stupid and easy to manipulate. Hey, I’ve been in those rooms. It happens.

Modern politics runs on a hunger for power. The ends always justify the means — ignoring the Constitution or storming the US capitol — all excusable in pursuing power. Helluva a day’s work, if you can get it, Chief.

And why stop when it’s working? If I were a soulless demon, I wouldn’t.

But…it’s not working, is it? This is not what any sane person would call the system working

Hate to tell you, but it’s on us to reject this — sorry, we have to do it together too. Any American who is willing to call the Emporer naked is my brother. I do not care what side you hail from. We can debate later. You have to speak out. Remember, the news is an entertainment commodity, and you are a consumer. Until they hear you, the show goes on.

So what is conservatism to me? I believe in preserving the philosophy of the Revolution. Conservatism is idealized in the Declaration of Independence. It is made tangible in the Constitution. Our reference manual is the Federalist Papers. When I was coming up, we were called cold intellectual elitists. Heh.

We get criticized for hating change, and it’s a valid criticism. It is easy just to say no, but you have to find a way to say yes sometimes to govern. The pivot point for a conservative is this — Change must be constitutional, not half-cocked and fueled on outrage or loaded with pork, but change is not bad.

I read what the Framers read, what they wrote, and what they studied to form my worldview. I read the State of Nature, discussions on the social contract, and ideas like the consent of the governed. I read french democratic philosophers like Voltaire. Reading Wealth of Nations, I understood the rationale for capitalism and its pitfalls. This was the Age of the Enlightenment people. I thought we might have a second Age with the internet — cough choke.

Finally, I believe the Federalist Papers are a seminal read for all Americans, and there is a reason it is no longer mentioned in school. Its philosophical support for our system is brilliance. Unmatched by any political writing ever.

I believe our nation is unique. Instead of consolidating power and devolving into tyranny, as almost all revolutions do, the Framers divested control quickly and tried to return to calm. There are many reasons for this (another day)They created a system of equilibrium and equality of opportunity. And the true brilliance of our system lies in the design being underpinned by a truthful understanding of human nature.

A note on America’s original sin — slavery. From the moment we became a nation, we saw the hypocrisy between our words and deeds. The slave question was punted at the convention — Jefferson himself having penned its denunciation and abolition in the Constitution. It does no good to those in chains to hear why, but the issue got horse-traded to have a country at all.

The debate (Hell the War) would dominate political life until it was settled in blood, with over 620,000 countrymen dead. That would be 6 million with today’s population. The numbers are impossible to understand. Gettysburg saw 50,000 die in three days. In the middle of nowhere called the Wilderness, a suprise encounter saw Gen Grant lose 7,000 men in under one hour.

No, we do not do a good enough job, by far, of teaching about this topic. Not justr the war and the politics — but the humanity of it all has been washed out The hero slaves who escpaped and then turned and helped others escape. Those free and escsaped who went West to chart their destiny have amazing and still brutal stories. It’s not anti-American to understand what our fellow countrymen endured and still endure. It’s only reasonable to recognize the darkness that exists in all people so that we avoid it. It is a testament to the system that such great strain and change can be endured. We have a lot of work to do there — I’m glad the system encourages it because we really have work to do.

Unlike the bloody foolishness of Marxism, which assumes that all men will one day throw off their yolk and magically fall into the lockstep of utopian bliss somehow. For Marx — the system collapses, and there is no more state. We all decide never to think or act for ourselves again. Everyone can be a Youtuber, and no one has to do the hard work of feeding the world. Yea.

The American system admits that men are not angels and pits our less virtuous instincts against themselves. Your right to get yours is safe as long as you protect my right to get mine. As a defense-in-depth, they also created a divided government with layers of checks and balances. Why? Because of the universal truth that power corrupts (sorry Marx). Federalism, bicameralism, coequal branches, and the Bill of Rights establish tension in the system. That tension created strength, balance, and fairness. If my rights are interdependent on your rights, there’s a mutual interest in the status quo. Add a melting pot culture, and we have a flexible but sturdy system. (Oops, we don't teach melting pot anymore — for a nefarious reason)

We’re a bunch of selfish bastards, but if you mess with one, you get us all. I liked that when we used to believe it.

So what’s cracking the system now? What has changed?

John Adams sums it up:

“Our Constitution was made for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

Adams also said:

“Human passions unbridled by morality and religion…would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net.”

Adams articulates a universal truth — Mankind is not evolved enough to live in a completely free society. Society would crumble with no moral compass or ethical guideline to check our worst instincts. He is not arguing for a state religion. He is admitting a philosophical truth — humankind must be governed. Best be by God than a tyrant. Morality creates limits on behavior. Collectively we develop cultural morays and standards for how we conduct ourselves. The system works…or so it did.

A culture-based ethical code is a lynchpin for freedom and a critical check against the state of nature. Without it, the state must step in as God. No more sin, but everything is illegal and punishable by death. No one wants that.

At the end of the day, conservatism isn’t easy. Without intellect and discipline, it can be dangerous. It requires we hold opposite but not opposing views at the same time. For example, I believe in delayed gratification and acting selflessly, but I am also selfish. I am independent but willing to serve. I resist government control, but I will do my duty to sacrifice if required by my nation.

I believe that a high-performing, limited government, coupled with a strong culture that guides the behavior of the collective, is the best way. This may shock you, but I believe having a robust and evidence-based social safety net is constitutional and fiscally responsible. Letting people fall until they hit rock bottom is a terrible burden on the state, and it's beneath advanced people. We just have to get the politics and corruption out of the system.

I believe we must hold all seeking power in suspicion — officials at every level, cops, judges, and all who wield power. Citizen had a special meaning in Rome that granted significant rights and a strong sense of duty. If we don't find that commonality, we may move to the history book as the greatest nation to once exist.

Man will always be the weak link in any system. When our system fails us, it is we who fail the system.