CelticBear’s Musings

There are many significant difference between the conservative and the liberal mindset, outlook, approach on life, society, and government. That’s an obvious statement. But I think a way in which the main difference is realized is in exactly how the think of the role of government. The conservative (general Republican) will shout the battle-cry “smaller government!” They believe government is intrusive, nosy, busy-body, controlling. I think any conservative reading this would agree with the description of their outlook. So then, when a conservative is in power, running government, do you think they give up that mindset? Nope, not at all. Now the conservative citizen would expect that the conservative politician, sharing the same outlook on what government is like, what it does, would strive to minimize government and make it smaller—enforce the principles they seem to share which got the politician elected.

But here’s the rub: While the conservative (especially the neo-conservative) politician believes government is controlling and invasive, they’re now in a position to run this controlling and invasive entity they see as being separate and distinct from the citizens. They believe government governs, in that it rules. Just look at the last few conservative administrations we’ve had. Nixon, Reagan, the Bush dynasty…they claimed government was controlling and invasive, and instead of eliminating it, they used it for their own personal and corporate ends. To the (neo-)con, government is the royalty of the feudal society. They don’t like it when it’s not them in power, but when they are, it’s great!

The liberal (by which I mean those that tend to vote Democrat, not the “classically liberal” which is more libertarian), sees government entirely different. They see it as the Constitution declares: “By the people, for the people.” To the liberal, the government is the people, not the rulers of it. When the government runs a program, it’s not (or rather it shouldn’t be) something run by a ruling class foisted upon the serfs. The government serves the people, it is the people. The conservative sees the government as the power, and uses the police as their thugs. It sees taking tax as theft, and so when the neo-cons use tax money, they use it like thieves for their own gain. When the liberal taxes, they see it money to pay for goods and services for the people.

Now, don’t get me wrong, liberal/Democrat politicians are also power-mad and corporatists to a large degree. But the predominate mindset of government as the rulers vs. government as the people still create a striking difference in general legislation and manner of governance. It’s why every Republican including and since Nixon has run up massive budget deficit and have used the government to redirect tax money to corporations, and run their administrations in secrecy and darkness. While Democrat Presidents have balanced budgets and strove for ethical reforms and open government.

The conservative is inherently suspicious and believes people are inherently sinful and bad, and they operate government that way. The liberal believes in the inherent goodness of humanity and believes in positive change.

(Before I continue, let me take a moment to state for the record that I truly believe the best government is not smaller government, but no government at all. No military, no organized police gangs, no tax, no political borders and boundaries. But that form of anarchy will only work when there is no such thing as the abstraction of monetary wealth, and it’s shared by all of the world. In the meantime, I believe in democratic-socialism. Government must be toothless and without its own mechanisms for thug power, and run by the people for the interests of the people. Government must fear the people, not the other way around, someone once said.)

Back to positive outlooks; Rush Limbaugh recently stated at a conservative conference:

Limbaugh used his self-described “first national address,” which ran more than an hour longer than his allotted 20 minutes, to accuse President Obama of inspiring fear in Americans in order to push a liberal agenda of “big government.”

“He wants people in fear, angst and crisis, fearing the worst each and every day, because that clears the decks for President Obama and his pals to come in with the answers, which are abject failures, historically shown and demonstrated.

First and primarily, that’s just a bald-faced lie. Obama did speak truth of the state of the nation: “I know that for many Americans watching right now, the state of our economy is a concern that rises above all others. And rightly so.” But his entire message was optimism and encouragement:

Their resolve must be our inspiration. Their concerns must be our cause. And we must show them and all our people that we are equal to the task before us. (Applause.)

[...]

And if we do — if we come together and lift this nation from the depths of this crisis; if we put our people back to work and restart the engine of our prosperity; if we confront without fear the challenges of our time and summon that enduring spirit of an America that does not quit, then someday years from now our children can tell their children that this was the time when we performed, in the words that are carved into this very chamber, “something worthy to be remembered.”

My goodness that’s a horrific message of fear! Obama was honest, we’re in a pickle. But conservatives, for all their talk about ethics and values, hate honesty–both (especially) the politicians but also the people! Conservatives tend to only want to hear how wonderful things are, how strong of a nation we are, how loved and respected (or at least feared) we are, how everything is roses. Well, sorry to say, but the quagmire of two wars we’re in, the massive recession, the credit/mortgage crisis, are results of “less government” and blowing fine-and-dandy smoke up our collected arses for eight years. Sometimes truth hurts. Sometimes the truth is not pretty. But if something wrong, it’s not going to get fixed by sticking heads under covers. Crises get fixed by honest examination and decisive but thoughtful action, serving the truth. Not delusion and fantasy.