"Conservatism" by Brandon V

To be free is to not be ruled over and ‘A government that is big enough to give you all you want is big enough to take it all away’’.-Barry Goldwater. When people hear the word Conservative, the pistons immediately  fire and anger begins to  linger from their mouths. Many are apologetic to take and believe in, the entire concept of both Social and Economic Conservatism. Conservatism is defined as  a political philosophy based on tradition and social stability, stressing established institutions, and preferring gradual development to abrupt change; specifically :  such a philosophy calling for lower taxes, limited government regulation of business and investing, a strong national defense, and individual financial responsibility for personal needs (such as retirement income or health-care coverage) and is found from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. This definition I believe sums up the economic forms of conservatism very well in terms of fiscal policy. However the sub section of Conservatism that is not talked about to the same degree is Social Conservatism. Remembering that Conservatism is the belief in tradition and the values that are derived thereof , we can explore Social Conservatism in the same light. The tradition in American Conservatism derive from The Holy Bible and The Torah. The values listed in these Holy books contain the basis for much of the Social Conservatism of today. These values include the belief in a sacred marriage between Man and Woman and only Man and Women, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth especially regarded important in the criminal cases of murders and serial killers, and directly quoted from the King James Version Bible, “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you: do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets’’, and this in common day simplified English means treat your neighbor in a manner in which you would also like to be treated. These are a hand picked few of the views of a Social Conservative in my interpretation. To a great degree, the implication of a sound and faithful belief in God do these viewpoints come about. For a long time The United States has maintained and held composure of these traditional ideas but in the Modern day we see a rapid vanishment of these morals to which many believe society is changing for the worse in their actions of allowing immoral behavior and ideas to be spread and accepted. In a study conducted by The American Psychological Association, they concluded that roughly fifty percent of marriages in The United States result in a divorce. Quite an alarming statistic which would only lead one to question why is this occurring. The assertion that is being made here is that as a result of society disregarding respected and tested tradition, severe consequences are a direct result of that cause. This essay is concluded with a quote by Ian Duncan Smith and reads, “The future of Conservatism lies in our beliefs and values, not by throwing them away. We need to shed associations that bind us to past failures, but hold faith with those things that make us Conservatives”.