rty is Conservatism’s Most Important Value //
Many young people are reluctant to embrace conservatism for a variety of reasons.
The most obvious is their exposure to only left-wing values from elementary school through graduate school, on television and on social media. Now, they even visit Disneyland.
Not as obvious, but equally important is the fact that they have never been properly exposed conservative values. Most conservative parents have not taught their children these values since at least the World War II era.
Most still don’t. Most conservatives will not be able to define conservative values if they are asked.
This is why I have compiled a list of the most important characteristics of conservatism, which you can find in the columns below.
We will start with liberty, the most important conservative value.
Conservatives believe in individual freedom. (There is no liberty apart from individual liberty.) It has been the main value of the American experiment. Although many countries include the phrase “liberty” in their national anthems and national mottoes, America has emphasized liberty more than any other country.
That’s why:
- The Statue of Liberty was donated to America by the French designers.
- The Liberty Bell is America’s iconic symbol.
- The Liberty Bell’s inscription is one verse from the Book of Leviticus about liberty: “And you shall proclaim freedom throughout the land to all its residents.”
- Americans refer to their country as “the Land of the Free” and “sweet Land of Liberty.”
- Until recently, every American schoolchild knew Patrick Henry’s cry “Give me freedom or give me death!”
- Chinese youth protesting the communist takeover in Hong Kong waved the American flag.
This is why America’s Founding Fathers insisted that the government, or the national government, be as small and as limited as possible. The larger the government, the smaller the liberty. Big government and big liberty can be mutually exclusive.
Liberty is not the only one who is a victim of big government. Human life is also a victim of big government. Big government was responsible for every genocide in the 20th century, also known as the century of genocide. Without big government, 100,000,000 people would not and couldn’t have been killed, and a billion would not or could not be enslaved. One exception was the Hutu genocide in Rwanda of Tutsis, which was tribal in its nature. Like left-wing culture and tribal culture, the emphasis on the group is over the individual.
The Founders delegated the majority of governmental powers to the states in order to limit the size of the national government and its power. The Constitution outlines the powers of the national government and asserts that all other powers should be delegated by the states.
They also increased the power of the States by having presidential elections decided in the states–the Electoral College-rather than the popular vote. Also, by how they arranged the Senate, one of two branches of Congress, they increased their power. They guaranteed equal representation to all states in the Senate, regardless of their population.
The Left’s opposition of the Electoral College, and the Senate makes perfect sense. The Left is driven by the power inherent in big government and not liberty. Every left-wing party or movement has had one thing in common: an ever larger and more powerful government.
Liberty is both a liberal and conservative value. However, it has never been a left-wing valued. Liberty cannot be a left-wing value because the more liberty an individual has, the less power the government holds. The reverse is true: the weaker state, the weaker Left.
This is especially true for the greatest liberty, namely free speech.
Freedom of speech is a fundamental conservative principle, and it has always been a fundamental liberal principle. It has never been a left-wing principle. For that reason, everywhere the Left is dominant–government, media, universities–it stifles dissent.
It is easy to see why: A free exchange of ideas is essential for any left-wing movement. Leftist ideologies are based on emotion and power, not reason or morality. Leftists are unable to allow for honest debate. They don’t argue with their opponents, they suppress them.
Freedom of speech is being seriously threatened for the first time in American history. It has been severely curtailed. The inevitable suppression of free speech is happening with the rise of the Left.
Liberals, who have always valued liberty, freedom, and free speech, now vote for the greatest suppressor of liberty, The Left. This is the tragedy of our times. Liberals have lost sight of what they stand for. They only remember what they believe they are against, namely conservatives.
So, the next time a liberal or left-wing friend or relative asks you what conservatives stand for, say “liberty”–especially free speech. Explain that you are against big government because it is impossible to have both individual liberty and big government.
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