Conservativism

Good article on Conservatitivism over at Townhall, by Craig Shirley. It follows a familiar route, i.e. explaining why the Republicans, protests aside, aren't really conservatives. But it is a lot more thoughtful than many of those articles, and doesn't waste time accusing them of being liberal. Rather it is about how Conservatives, who are supposed to be in favor of small government, have been seduced by their position.

The conservative movement was successful in that it asked little of the federal government. The social right knew that government was a threat to the family and the community while the economic right wished to operate with minimal government interference and the foreign policy right wanted the U.S. government to only project American power to protect American interests. That was until the current leadership of the GOP, unable or unwilling to make the minimalism government argument cynically and dangerously decided to sign onto the "government is good" agenda which has dominated the Democratic left since the New Deal.

To the economic right would come billions in corporate welfare, and the most transactional Congress in history, rife with corruption yet little commitment to the conscience of conservatism.

While I obviously don't support this form of conservativism (or any form, really), it is nice to see a more rational version that isn't simply "Be Conservative because Liberals are evil."