One of the things that turned me away from conservatism was the mindless embrace of the word "freedom".
A lot of people love the word but not the principle, and the conservatives around me were very much along those lines.
Freedom.
Okay, so can gay people marry?
Nah, that offends our faith.
Yeah well what if it's integral to somebody's else's faith? What if you're a faithless heathen like me that needs a tangible social harm to justify a restriction on free association?
Yeah, freedom.
What most people want is stability. If the system offers stability and minimizes offense, they'll ignore the excesses that take place mostly out of their sight. If the system doesn't offer that, if people feel the abyss yawning next to them (and most Americans feel that, because we're overworked, overcapitalized, and one medical mishap away from lifelong suffering, unpayable debt, and/or death) then a strong man becomes attractive.
This isn't a 'people suck' screed, it's acknowledging human nature. Most people want stability, respect, security, and freedom from offense to their core values.
One of the things that turned me away from conservatism was the mindless embrace of the word "freedom".
A lot of people love the word but not the principle, and the conservatives around me were very much along those lines.
Freedom.
Okay, so can gay people marry?
Nah, that offends our faith.
Yeah well what if it's integral to somebody's else's faith? What if you're a faithless heathen like me that needs a tangible social harm to justify a restriction on free association?
Yeah, freedom.
What most people want is stability. If the system offers stability and minimizes offense, they'll ignore the excesses that take place mostly out of their sight. If the system doesn't offer that, if people feel the abyss yawning next to them (and most Americans feel that, because we're overworked, overcapitalized, and one medical mishap away from lifelong suffering, unpayable debt, and/or death) then a strong man becomes attractive.
This isn't a 'people suck' screed, it's acknowledging human nature. Most people want stability, respect, security, and freedom from offense to their core values.