Over the Fourth of July weekend, I was asked by a friend, who happens to be a flaming liberal, why I did not like Democrats. I explained that it wasn’t Democrats per se, but liberal progressive Democrats like himself. I went on to explain the difference between my constitutional conservatism and his boneheaded progressivism.
The difference…
One of the things that distinguish conservatives and progressives is the direction they look toward when they first seek answers to vexing problems.
With conservatives, conscious of both the present and the future, they look backward at history, mindful that while environmental conditions change, human nature seems to be a somewhat dependable constant. Therefore, they can apply the lessons of history, many earned at an enormous and bloody cost, and consider the actions and reactions of individuals to arrive at a first-order estimated solution.
The system is not perfect, but it does provide a starting point and a rational framework for monitoring and analysis. No analytical scientist would begin research without a review of the literature in the area of their interest.
On the other hand, the progressives believe that they are the determinative factor and that conditions will be better and better in a future that lies within the imagination, unmoored from history and past experiences. The result is often an ideological worldview that cannot be achieved without tyrannical power to force outcomes -- and even then the result is likely to be catastrophic to freedom-loving individuals.
Consider socialist and communism which are theoretical constructs which were designed to create a perfect world, one in which experts in all areas use their expertise to bring about a world where individuals participate based on social justice; loosely described as “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.” Classical Marxism that ignores a constant tension in human nature as the strong dominate the weak, leaders make demands on followers, the consumers look to creators and producers for products and services, and the apathetic beg for crumbs.
Throughout history, consider that a number of empires were created and most empires were destroyed. One need only look at socialist counties like Russia, China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and elsewhere to see tyranny. Yes, they may hold elections and call it a democracy, but the truth is that the candidates are pre-selected by the leadership, and there are severe penalties for dissent. These are not empires, but failing nation-states that may come to a catastrophic end sometime in the future – possibly by a bloody revolution.
Unbelievably, progressives expect conditions will be better and more fabulous in the future than they are now; provided, of course, that we pick the right leader — pure bullpucky. It is up to individuals, not leaders, to change the system, by participating, by voting, and by saying NO to nonsense.
We live in an age where the unelected bureaucrats wield unprecedented power. These unelected bureaucrats are allowed to promulgate administrative rules and regulations, many with fines and the possibility of incarceration.
And, you thought that the only constitutional authority that could create legislation was Congress and that legislation would pass into law when signed by the President of the United States or a Presidential veto was overridden by a two-thirds supermajority by both chambers.
Bureaucrats are creating wrong-headed and damaging laws. And, that’s not all: let us not forget the Executive Order which determines how federal laws might be ignored or interpreted or the United States Supreme Court where activist judges can override law -- finding hidden and mysterious meaning in the Constitution or by creating “bright line” tests which substitute for the actual law. Something is genuinely out of whack when the Constitution can be that easily side-stepped.
Conservatives recognize that everything changes over time, except human nature, which proceeds at an infinitesimally slow pace. Progressives, on the other hand, are willing to apply coercion and force to speed up the process and force an outcome.
I find it exceptionally ironic that the Democrats speak of a planetary emergency and that we have only twelve years before we reach an irreversible tipping point. Yet, they respond to the imminent disaster by considering spending trillions on social welfare programs, paying off college loans, providing healthcare for all -- even though it would destroy our present healthcare system and place everybody at higher risk from adverse medical outcomes.
If wind power and solar power (no nuclear energy, please) were the cost-effective answer, the energy industry would self-decide to make the switch. As it is, most of the green projects are subsidized, or consumers are forced to adopt their overpriced output, but they are not the answer. I am willing to bet that the Sun plays a more significant role in climate change than cow farts, but that would mean we do not have to consider giving up meat to save the planet.
Truth-be-told, progressives do not want cheap or abundant energy because it interferes with their no-growth/population control agenda. They need scarcity to manage to accrete political power. And, they want a weaker and unhealthier population that is prone to disease and epidemics: De-Growth and population control in one package.
The progressives demand more and more money to save “endangered species,” ignoring that Darwinism, evolution by natural selection, acknowledges that species will come and they will go, and those who are better adapted to environmental conditions will survive.
There is no need to spend millions turning the California Condor, an ugly, smelly, scavenger, into an outdoor pet other than to keep institutions, scientists, and graduate students gainfully employed. Even in the face of contrary facts: that there are limited matriarchal bloodlines and inbreeding makes genetic damage a certainty. But then again, the progressives ignored the science and used the Condor Health issue to demand controls on hunting and the bullets that can be used. Or spending multi-billions of dollars on a train to nowhere that will never pay its way before being demolished for being obsolete.
With progressives, any issue is a cause to raise money, assume power, and continue to pursue their transformative agenda.
Everyone speaks of “disruption” as if it is an external force. The truth is that we the voters are the disruptors. We continue to elect and re-elect crooks, charlatans, and crazies over and over -- until they become leaders, if for no other reason than seniority on a committee which allows them to return governmental pork to their respective districts.
Why we continue to vote along the lines of color, race, religion, national origin, or gender when the candidate is severely compromised or unhinged from the American experience is an open question?
And truth be told, there is no more disruptive force in our lives than the Democrats who want to destroy our capitalist system and bring about their politically correct society -- with them in charge, of course.
Welcome to 2020, where your local choices will decide our country’s future.
Bottom line…
In the final analysis, neither side made any headway. The only things we agreed on were that the steaks were a little too well done, the coleslaw had a bit too much mayonnaise, and the kids would rather text their friends than talk to the person standing next to them.
We are so screwed.
-- steve
"The object in life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane." -- Marcus Aurelius
“A people that elect corrupt politicians, imposters, thieves, and traitors are not victims... but accomplices” -- George Orwell
