The Joy of Conservatism

Recently a girl friend of mine was out with friends discussing the topic of dating, when two of her acquittances began articulating how they need to vet out republican men from their dating pools. Now to each their own, if you do not want to date a conservative power to you, that's your prerogative. However, I just have to ask - how many people just do not know what conservatism is?

Rush Limbaugh, who passed away last week, coined the phrase - the joy of conservatism - and I want to explore the essence of that saying. Why did he say conservatism is a joy? At the heart of our philosophy is the concept of personal responsibility. You own your life, and while you may not be able to dictate the hand you're dealt, you do have power over how you adapt that hand and arrive at the final destination you're aiming for.

Many on the left want you to believe you're a victim, which anybody can be classified as for virtually any reason despite your stature. Just take a look at wealthy Hollywood elites. Such a philosophy is a slippery slope, as it then leads to identity politics and further exacerbates a "victimhood mentality." The lefts solution for those who then feel left behind is more government. As a rule of thumb expanding the bureaucracy generally equates to two simple notions at the end of the day - throwing more money at issues and more political grand standing - both again further exacerbate the issues and tend to solve nothing outside of being politically expedient for those in power. Now if spending more money actually solved problems I would be 100% for it, but historically that tends to not be the case. Just take an issue like education for example - I've read all kinds of articles about how we need to just keep spending more money, which we've done, yet inner city schools just continue to deteriorate, and politicians just keep running around saying, "we will deliver better education!" So the solution becomes higher taxes to pay for increased spending, and liberals buy into paying higher taxes because they think they are solving the problem, thus ensuing a vicious cycle.

Conservatives fundamentally believe in the notion Ronald Regan articulated many years ago, "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help." We believe less government is the answer, as Reagan also said, "The conservative, so-called, is the one that says less government, get off my back, get out of my pocket, and let me have more control of my own destiny." Do not misunderstand this argument with meaning government has no role. I believe I speak for most conservatives when I articulate the fundamental purpose of a government designed for the people is to uphold God, family, and country. I understand not everybody believes in God (I will write about my strong faith eventually), so let's use God in this instance to also mean a code of morality and virtue. Family is fairly straightforward, I feel I do not need to explain that in great depth, and country in short represents our neighbors. A government that expands beyond protecting these three pillars slowly begins to overstep in due time and inches further towards its ascension to tyranny.

Note I am not arguing against notions such as less welfare, but I am also not arguing for more. People falter and need help, which is totally understandable - but they should not rely on the government for the entirety of their life. One reason why true conservatives lower taxes when they get into office is because it equates to more money in individuals pockets, and we believe you should make your own decisions as to how to spend it rather than the government taking it and throwing it around in a wasteful manner.

Take this very simple example. Let's say I lower taxes, even slightly, and you begin to receive a larger pay check. You now take home $600 instead of $500 each week, and feel inclined to go out to eat once a week. That money is better apt circulating around the economy, than dying beneath the administrative incompetence government almost always descends itself into. Did you notice how great the economy was after Trump's tax cuts? The same thing happened when Ronald Reagan did it in the 1980's. More money in the open market is a good thing. The cornerstone of capitalism is the free market with the government ensuring a smooth flow against such dilemmas as monopolies, so that you have the most opportunity to succeed as possible. To further perpetuate this notion I want to quote my recent tribute to Rush Limbaugh:

In explaining liberalism to people, Rush would always say how it's easy to be a liberal because it's all about feelings. You walk by a homeless man and think how awful he has it and how bad you feel, but you go home and continue with your life and settle by paying higher taxes so they can give him a welfare check. When a conservative see's that same man, they think how did he end up there? What kind of policies can I institute to better the economy and provide him with more opportunities to get him off the streets? You know many of my peers are liberal. I think most of them are genuinely nice people who want to make the world a better place. I understand where they are coming from most of the time and I feel bad for all the same people they do. We just have a different form of helping them. As the old adage goes, "Give a man a fish and you've fed him for a day, teach a man to fish and you've fed him for life." To me one of the greatest feelings in the world is genuine accomplishment, and I want the struggling individual on the street to experience true success and not rely on food stamps for life. Such a philosophy has been a major piece of Rush's show, and I believe it partially sets the table for why more people have joined the conservative fold.

Now obviously a lot of issues exist we could delve into. The goal of this article is to discuss the fundamentals, because all roads begin with the basics. At the heart of conservatism is the belief in you, the individual. I believe all people, and I want to say it again because it's so important, all people are capable of accomplishing great things. You are the embodiment of a living miracle. You do not need to rely on the government, you need a playing field with a plethora of opportunity.

The media has greatly distorted conservative ideology. They want you to believe we are a bunch of homophobic, bigoted, racists. If you turn on the news or open the paper or social media and that is all you see, I almost cannot blame you for thinking of us in that light. Why is an ideology rooted in the belief of individuals and their ability to persevere so demonized? Could it be because once some taste power it becomes all consuming, and the larger the government the more powerful it becomes and the less freedom the individual has? I saw an interview with Jordan Peterson where the interviewer essential said to him, "most people become more conservative as they age, how do we prevent that?" Could the reason they become more conservative with time be because they agree with the fundamental premise of more personal responsibility and less government? Why is that bad?

The epitome of what I am trying to describe here can be summarized in a call on Rush's program today with guest host Brett Winterable - Mark from North Carolina struggled with a drug and alcohol addiction, he was in prison, but after years of listening to Rush he took ownership of his life and told himself, "You know what, I am not going to get a do over, I have to take control of my life and do things differently." He now owns a small business as a painting contractor and while he said he may not be super wealthy, he is happy and has a great life that he's built for himself. To me that is the American Dream right there in its most raw and true form.

We want to see people succeed. For some the road is more challenging than it is for others, but as the Islamic philosopher Rumi once said, "If all you can do is crawl, start crawling." In the famous story of Alice in Wonderland, the rabbit Hatter says to Alice, "When you can't look on the bright side I will sit with you in the dark." Don't be intimidated by conservatives, we do not bite. The media has ascribed that we are heartless and do not care about others. The exact opposite is true, as we care deeply about the welfare of our neighbors. We want all to succeed, and we will help you as much as we can - we want you to reach your full potential, and not spend a life beneath governmental welfare programs or blaming others for your misfortune.

So I leave you with this, conservatism is a joy because it propels an individual to take ownership of their own life. Think of a moment in your life when you accomplished something extremely difficult. Didn't it feel rewarding? The empowered feeling of success in the face of a difficult obstacle is the basis for happiness. Life isn't supposed to be easy, as the old saying goes, "If it was easy everyone would do it." To us, no matter where you come from or what you have been through, today can be the first day of the rest of your life. Conservatism doesn't sound so bad now does it?