This is a repost of something I’d written a few days ago. I had pulled it when a friend of mine pointed out that the website I used had some rather extreme views towards conservatism; things that I don’t agree with. While I’m still using my original cite, this does not in any way mean that I support the rest of the information on the website. The only reason I’m linking it is because I didn’t write it. So as you read it don’t try to tie anything in except what is written here.
Recently I received an e-mail from one of my nieces regarding the upcoming election. Now my niece is a staunch Democrat who loves to have spirited conversations regarding politics. Since her and my political ideas differ... well lets just say we agree to disagree on many topics. However; in this e-mail she made a statement I found intriguing; she said "McCain really isn't that bad. It certainly wouldn't be the end of the world if he won. It's Gov Palin I have the problem with". It made me think about how many times I had heard this and thing similar regarding our Alaskan Governor, some folks even gone so far to state that they are scared of Gov. Palin becoming the VP; how interesting.
Why someone would be scared of the VP choice but not with the President? Could it be that it's not the individual they're scared of but the ideas they’ve publicly stood for? It's no shock to anyone that Senator McCain isn't the most conservative of Republicans but Sara Palin is a strong conservative. This made me wonder if maybe what people are really expressing fear of is the adoption of conservatism and conservative values. Most likely this is the case since these values go against many of the liberal ideas the Democrat party has adopted even though conservatism isn't limited to any single party. What are these enigmatic values people are scared of? When someone says they are conservative, what are they saying about themselves? The answers to these questions are the reason people are scared of Sara Palin, Rush Limbaugh, and the late Ronald Reagan. Not because enacting these values will cause doom and gloom for the country more that they will end the lifestyle they have so lazily adopted. Let’s take a look at what conservative values are and then I will explain more what I'm talking about.
This is called personal responsibility.
Sometimes the truth hurts, especially when the truth is that your lazy
Hard work is not defined as a handout, welfare, or government entitlement.
Charity begins at home, NOT in Washington
While conservatives don't like handouts we do know that sometimes people need help. What better way to promote conservatism brings to the table than to teach someone to be self sufficient?
On a grand scale; promoting a strong military, on a small scale; supporting the right to bear arms.
This goes back to something I've said many many times. Be an informed voter!
This is pure fiscal conservatism. Can you say "blue dog" democrats!
We're all humans folks, no one is any better than anyone else.
This is a hard pill for liberals to buy into but some people are going to be more well off than others, don't make people pay publicly for their private success.
Work hard for what you have so that you can make yourself better, not to share with someone who isn't working as hard.
Stop the politics of personal destruction and recognize people for who they are.
Don't confuse Wall street with this concept. Free market in regards to promoting competition and ingenuity to promote growth.
This is a tried and true philosophy that Reagan called "trickle-down economics". Taxes burden everyone no matter how you slice them. Fewer taxes promote more growth which ends in higher revenue. Too many times people confuse revenue with taxes, we want maximum revenue with minimal taxes.
Basically this is greed. Too many times people let greed and instant cash guide their decision making and loose they're long term vision. It's a slippery slope that only discipline and clear headiness can forestall.
1 Reader Comments:
Hi thebass,
A lot of the values that you document here I share as well -- a search for the truth, frugality, the importance of hard work. I was raised in the South and have worked since i was 15, so i know the importance of personal responsibility.
What i don't agree with are the principles that helping people is the equivalent of a hand-out, and that trickle-down is a fair way of distributing wealth. I'll tell you why, i doubt it will change your mind but will hopefully give you a different perspective.
I don't live in America now - i moved to Scotland about five years ago after graduating from college. I originally just came over here to do a Master's degree, but ended up staying when I met a great guy. Everyone in my family is still back in the States (TN, to be specific) and i still visit quite a bit, so I have the benefit of seeing two completely different systems working, and can compare and contrast between the two systems from a real-life perspective.
The UK government takes about 16% of my income for taxes, and another 9% for my national health care. For that, I never have to worry about avoiding the doctor when i'm sick, I never have to decide between paying for drugs or paying for some other household essential, and I never have to worry about losing my job because I get sick and can't work (i'll get mandatory sick payments). Because I can go to the doctor at the first sign of being ill, i can be treated for problems long before they become severe, meaning i'm much less of a drain on the overall system. If i were a smoker, I could get free help from the government to quit, and they would even give me help to pay for a gym membership, further reducing my need for health care. Incidentally, I am a member of the local gym which is government-operated, which means that i pay about 40% less than private gyms (the only way i could afford it) and am in the best shape of my life. I have a free personal trainer who has been helping me train for a 10k.
I also run a small business, and the government helps us get started, too. In fact, here in Scotland you can get free help to write your business plan, be assigned a mentor already in business, and once you finish your plan you can get either a £1,000 grant to get you started or a low-interest £5,000 loan to help you start your business. A friend of mine took advantage of this service three years ago and now runs a very successful floristry shop, thanks to the grant that let her buy her first stock and pay her first month's rent. She works from 8-6 six days a week and is by no means a lazy, hand-out seeking waster.
The UK is by no means a paradise, but I absolutely know that i wouldn't be able to live the same kind of life if i had stayed in the U.S. How am i so sure? For one reason, because i have a pre-existing heart condition from when i was 15 years old that would prevent me from gaining any reasonable insurance in the U.S. without paying a fortune. I left just before my parent's cover expired, so I never had to make the incredibly difficult decision of what jobs to go for based solely on what kind of medical insurance they have to offer. And i'm lucky that my parents were well-enough off to co-sign for over $60k worth of debt so that i could get an education and even HOPE to have a choice between jobs - for many of my American friends and family, they didn't have the same liberty. For my British friends, their higher education was paid for.
And yes, the British medical system isn't 100% perfect - it's wonderful for immediate problems, but if you need non life-threatening surgeries like a knee replacement, you can wait for up to 8 months. Luckily, my employer pays for private health care for myself as well, so i could always go private if necessary. If i wanted, I could buy the private cover myself for about £350-£400 a year.
My overall point is this: I now live in a country that looks after me, that doesn't assume that if i need help that i'm lazy, and that treats me with the respect I deserve. I've always found that if you treat people with respect, many will try to live up to it. There are no doubt abusers of our system as there are abusers of any system, and I don't think we should tar everyone with the same brush. I was born an American with a healthy dose of suspicion for any taxes, but after living in the UK for five years, I have no problem paying for my taxes. I know that my taxes pay for my future mother-in-law's state pension, which helps her live. I know my taxes help pay for my single mother friend, who can't take a full-time job and still be a real mother to her child. I know that my money is looking after people who need it, so i'm happy for that money to be spent.
I'm not voting for McCain/Palin because they seem to think that I don't exist - a hard-working, patriotic American who also believes in Universal health care and help for those who need it. They have narrowly defined patriotism and "pro-American-ness" to people who think like they do. I'm voting for Barack Obama because he doesn't set any restrictions on what kind of patriotism an American should have - he wants to hear from ALL people and work out a solution to benefit ALL americans. He doesn't look down on people who need help, and he doesn't look down on people who don't need help. He wants to put back the Clinton levels of taxation on the upper-class, which IS wealth re-distribution, but was only made necessary because Bush's policies have been re-distributing wealth for eight years by practicing trickle-down. Either way it's re-distributing the wealth, but one way has been gaining precedent for too long.
Finally, I'm voting for Barack Obama because he has intellectual curiosity and knows that he doesn't have all the answers. I'm voting for him because he values an education and a thirst for knowledge. I'm appalled at the "elite" "harvard-educated" classist nonsense that McCain and Palin are pulling out for this election -- since when was it wrong to be intelligent? Since when was it wrong to strive to better yourself and learn about the world around you? Do we really want someone to step into the white house, convinced that they know everything already? I would rather have someone who has weighed and measured every single opinion he has, and isn't afraid to change it if someone proves him wrong. Pride goeth before a fall, and there is only one ticket that see fit to mock the other and assume they already know all the answers.
I don't know if this will make any difference to your vote and I doubt it will, but that's why I'm voting for Barack Obama, and that's why i think you should consider it, too. As you said at the end of your post, these aren't policy reasons, these are fundamental issues of character, and my fundamental desire to help all human beings achieve their maximum potential that have led me to my decision.
-danae
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