Re: definition of conservatism

Date view Thread view Subject view Author view

From: Roy T. Fielding (fielding@ebuilt.com)
Date: Tue Dec 05 2000 - 16:37:15 PST


> > Great scholarship, and I'm sure that's what conservatism was. However, I'm
> > not convinced that's what conservatism means today.
>
> Agreed --- further, I'm convinced that's NOT what conservativism means today.
> You've got to define conservativism relative to some particular personal
> point-of-view, relative to some particular set of issues. I wonder what
> self-identified conservatives would say conservativism means, and how much
> agreement there would be about it even among those polled... does thinking
> that way make me a "liberal?"

Heh... that is the same argument commonly used against the notion
of "objective truth". I guess you are a liberal and, by inference,
a commie as well. ;-)

People usually get upset when I tell them I'm a fiscal conservative
who believes in government activism. That's supply-side economics
(a flag of conservatives) with resource cost modifications (taxes)
placed on the production of goods according to their long-term social
cost rather than some blanket percentage of sales revenue. Cigarette
and gas taxes are two common examples, but not the way they are
applied in the US. I'm pretty sure I'd be hated by both parties.
Maybe I should run for President? fielding2004.org is still available.

....Roy


Date view Thread view Subject view Author view

This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Dec 05 2000 - 16:40:03 PST