Throughout the Nineteenth and Twentieth century the world as we have come to know has changed dramatically. From Tyrannical dictators to Sovereign states, political philosophies have come to know reality hand over fist. Most of these political philosophies have evolved over the years and different variations have started popping up all over the world. One philosophy that we will discuss is Conservatism, first introduced in the early 1800's during the french revolution to support the newly restored Bourbon Monarchy (1). Then throughout the next two hundred years the basis of conservatism would grow by leaps and bounds and establish the very fundamentals of what some
call the Republican Party.
As early as the term conservative was introduced into society the belief of revolution and radical change was soon rejected due to the fact that such change lowered the role of both tradition and authority. (1) Through tradition it is believed that most problems that occur can easily be fixed or repaired due to the fact that it had all ready happened before . Through tradition not theory these problems are easily fixed . (2) The term revolution went against the traditional authority because of the authoritative government that the revolution was rebelling with.
Since tradition is a building block for the philosophy of conservatism, a integral part of that is the definition of family and its moral values . Traditional Families define "the family " as a starting point of a man and a woman or indirectly, marriage. Conservative rule states that " the family unit is the anchor of a free society, no government has done better" Judges making there interpretation and creating civil unions is destroying our society. Let the people decide and keep government out of it. (4)
Religion is another big part of tradition in the eyes of a conservative supporter. It is felt that religion should not be kept out of society where as the government should not step in and support the removal of these icons. No where in the constitution that does it say to eliminate religion in the public eye, all it states is that government can not create a religion of the government (7) Conservative followers believe that we should not lose our religious icons from our local and federal spaces. Losing " In god we trust" and" under god " would result in a constitutional tragedy (7)
The type of government that Conservatives favor is Federalism the stripping of power to the central government and more power back to the states. This started back in the 1920's and 1930's with opposition the "New Deal" (8) Also due to the fact that a principle of conservatism is to take power away from the central government and give it back to the people or in this case the states the definition fits the word perfectly.
Many followers of the Conservative philosophy establish that the role of the government is to be very limited. Some would even go as far as stating that the governments role is to be the "Servant" not the "Master".(1) This can be interpreted that the government should not impose so much on society and rather let society run itself. That political power isn't a license to rebuild society according to some abstract untested scheme.(1) Society should in fact be run on tradition and morals that have been tested, Which both of those values are the primary structure for this particular philosophy.
The make-up of society and the role that society has according the conservative belief is very hands on. The government is to big and society is to complex for a central government to interfere with any social or economic problems. (1) It is also believed that "self-organization rather than central control" would be possible due to the complexity of social life in all communities (2) Society's view of the government is to protect them from violation of there rights and freedoms by others (3) while society governs themselves.
Conservative thinkers believe that in all levels of society poor, middle, Upper class that government should not step in and create programs that on one side multiply the poor, weak, discouraged (2) and on the opposite side government programs that limit big business should not be implemented like those of Roosevelt's new deal in 1933. In recent years studies have shown when society leans on the government for help they become dependent on them
and become " wards of the state"
Capitalism is one of the biggest liberties that the United States Of America has implemented on the basis of many freedoms that are written in the constitution. Conservatives do not support total Laissez-Faire capitalism but they do support certain sanctions on business and ideas. Conservatives do feel that regulation and suppression of business that would hinder the moral order of society should be put in place for the well being of the individual. (2)As
President Reagen said" (The Government) should work with us, not over us ; to stand by our side, not ride on our back" (5)
Taxing through the act of imposing and collecting revenue is one of the many ways that the government can function and make sure that society runs smoothly. Under the conservative theory on taxing and revenue spending all sections of government actions dealing with revenue would change dramatically. Throughout the last Presidency, with George W Bush many conservative ideas played out in the favor of society through the Bush Tax Relief in 2003.This tax relief would place " More money in the hands of those who earn it " which would help small business through tax breaks and capital incentives that would help push the market back into the green (5). By helping these small business' by letting them keep more of there revenue more jobs would be created and less government interaction in the workforce would also help in the budget.
Education or the way that are kids are taught and educated should be one of the biggest priorities that are society should come to face. Some people conclude that the best and easiest way to fix a problem is by spending money to come up with a better way to save money. With a conservative belief that the school system has turned Into one huge bureaucracy the first thing to do would be to reform the way money is spent on public schooling through the collection of taxes. Education is about learning not spending (4) Another Huge area of concern is the Health care industry conservatives believe the government should also play a small role in this sector and that medicare should be privatized. (6) Stating that each person should be responsible for their own support, health care, and retirement.
The belief that everyone on this earth is created equal has many different concepts in the conservative philosophy. The belief of equality in the workforce is unquestionable. Our society will benefit if any and every person be able to thrive off of capitalism. (5) On another level of equality, a society of equal individuals make up that societies traditions. which is a very integral part of the thought process for most conservatives. In which they believe that learning through tradition is much better than " rebuilding a society on some abstract, untested scheme" (1)
Within the study of the individual beliefs of this philosophy sit a certain number of rights that conservatives feel very strongly about. A topic that sits in the minds of millions of people and which is written in the Bill of Right in the U.S Constitution is the right to bear arms. This conservative assembly feels strongly about protecting one self by the right to bear arms. Either on a local level or national level as well. (6) One idea is that gun laws wont stop criminals but a individual bearing arms will. (7) On the federal level most conservative thinkers supported both the Iraq war in 2001 and for a stronger national defense.
One personal right that conservatives don't agree with is the right to have a abortion free from government control. A fetus is a living person, human life begins at conception and nobody has the right to willfully murder with no
recourse. The fight against pro choice should be by the people not by a judge. (4) The abortion industry is a multi billion dollar industry, if the government imposed a federal tax on abortion the revenue from that could support local or
federal foster programs that would have no need for the taxpayer aid.that it all ready incurs
A subtle yet very distinct idea that is popping up all over the place with conservatives is the idea of giving. Letting us know that society has the responsibility help others that are in need of help. (4) It is even said that
because private individuals donate billions of dollars to charities and those charities prosper and help the betterment of mankind it shows the governments inability to govern themselves. (4)
The final belief that i have come across is the belief of foreign relations and war in the eyes of the conservative. As i mentioned earlier many supported the war with Iraq in 2001. There was two main reasons why the conservative supported the war. The first was the idea of spreading democracy to other nations by giving them the means to start there own government (7) which is not based off a tyrannical leader. The second idea was the United States in general does not agree with the United Nations due to there inability to act in the favor to resolve world peace. So the US has taken it upon themselves through representative democracy to stop these atrocities on there own accord. Although the United States cant be everywhere we at least have to start somewhere.
The conservative beliefs outlined in this paper have been worked on for the past 200 years through tradition and evolution, they did not happen overnight, they were not created by a totalitarian dictator or a aristocratic ruler. But by the fundamentals of "by the people, for the people" a total sovereign ideology that i am proud to say that i believe in which i didn't know until writing this paper.
IRREVOCABLERIGHT1776 BY WAY OF THE FIRST 56
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