Definitons of Conservatism

I often wonder exactly what people mean when they say conservative; there are some things that are easy - fiscal responsibility; the ability for an individual to live his or her own life in a manner of their own choosing, with as little interference from the government as possible; the freedoms as outlined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution; the desire to keep taxes at a minimum, and to make sure that our country is secure in the world in which we live; the idea that things should be better as generations pass, not worse.

These are things which are easy to agree upon, but along the way in this country they have come to be interpreted quite strangely. The party which is supposed to be the conservative party, for instance, has done in my opinion a disservice to their moral guidepost.

They pay lip service to the above ideals, but the actions of our leaders speak louder than the words for those who are willing to listen. It is easy, in this hectic world, not to listen, and to think that our leaders are people of honor and courage who tell us the truth and who are really looking out for us. They may get slightly off course from time to time, we think, but overall they are doing the best they can.

But that is no longer the case; our system has been hijacked by callousness and big money, and we see our leader's moral system for what it is in the economic numbers which cause President Bush to say our economy is good; it is good, for oil men and wall street brokers - it is good for a certain sector of society, but there are millions and millions, the vast majority by far who do not belong to that sector, and who are getting pinched harder and harder every day. I know, because I am one of them.

The number of people getting pinched is far greater than the number doing well, but the counterbalance is all on the side of the people doing well - they are doing good enough to even out the numbers, and they are repaying the nation by gradually taking away the securities of the less well off, by slowly adhering to the demands of the bottom dollar and the low expectations built into corporate policy and government law.

If you change the rules to where something which takes advantage of people is legal, is it any more moral?

Or is it less so?

I say that to change the rules to suit your own ends is worse than just breaking the law and ripping people off. It is a betrayal on a whole new scale, and yet that is exactly what has been happening behind the closed doors of our government and corporate leaders.

Well, it is time to swing that door open. Educating yourself is the only way to do that; do not ask what you can do and moan that one person cannot make a difference - educate yourself, and action will come naturally as a result of that education, even if that action is doing nothing more than talking to those you know, and helping to educate them.

That may be enough, all by itself.