socio-politics

I understand that, at the current time, it is perfectly acceptable to deem democrats and liberal and republicans as conservative - that’s how our concept of the political spectrum places the two parties.  However, this concept completely ignores the terms liberal and conservative’s original meanings.

Here are the actual defining characteristics:

Conservatives have a definite set of values that they believe to dictate most aspects of society, including the government’s role in people’s lives, the extent of personal freedom that individuals can exercise, how the economy should be run, etc.  In America, this most likely entails the following beliefs:

-they sternly believe the federal government’s sole responsibility to be national defense, and therefore, any federal money should only be used for this cause

- the government has no right to tax personal income because this is money that the individual made through their hard work.

-the constitution is to be strictly interpreted - what it says is the guideline for how the country should be run

- capitalism rewards those that work hard, and if you are not succeeding, you are not trying hard enough.

-America has a specific culture that defines it, and that culture should not be changed in order to accommodate  others.  Those that immigrated to America up until the early 20th century integrated themselves into our culture, and so should those that come here now.

Conservatives believe these values to provide the greatest amount of personal freedom, and that anything breaking away from these values is ignorant of what made America great to begin with, and America will be as great as it can possibly be if these values are followed.

It is very possible for an American conservative to disagree with all of the aforementioned beliefs - a conservative is simply one that believes there to be a defining set of values that must be followed to have the optimal societal situation.  The beliefs I mentioned are what most American conservatives believe, as they see those values as the will of our founding fathers, and the source of America’s success.

Liberal’s beliefs stand in direct opposition to those of conservatives:

-They believe that no aspect of society should be simply accepted because society is constantly changing and it is more than likely that things can always be better.

-Therefore, discussion is essential because it presents different perspectives and allows for all views to be  acknowledged and discussed.

-personal views are simply that - they must questioned and seen as things that can be adjusted through open conversation and debate because not all people hold the same beliefs, and nobody is to say what beliefs are better than others

-closed-mindedness is the antithesis of liberalism - all views are important and people must feel free to say what is on their mind.

-society is only as good as the sum of its parts, and promoting general welfare is vital for creating the best society.  If there is extreme social inequality, society is failing.

-the government is completely responsible to the people, and it must protect and ensure life, liberty, and property, and can never impede upon these things for any individual.

- part of life, liberty and property is helping those that are in the greatest need because they are not truly free, and if they are not free, they will be underrepresented and therefore will not be able to contribute to society.

This is the first of a series of consecutive posts on the topic.

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