Difference between revisions of "Conservative"

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{{See also|movement conservative}}
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Conservapedia is an extremely douchey wiki that contains biased Conservative views. It was created with the sole purpose of turning people into apes. Of course it’s a huge plan to brainwash mankind and make them think the earth is flat, it could only be thought as an ill-conceived ultra-orthodox Angry Christian site started by a couple of old church ladies in apparent response to an imagined liberal bias on the part of wikipedia (The truth is that, to far-right conservatives, it is reality that has a left wing bias - not Wikipedia, which is actually Conservative or Libertarian biased.).
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{{See also|Greatest Conservative Sports Stars}}
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A '''conservative''' promotes [[moral]] and [[economic]] values beneficial to all. A desire to help others voluntarily, without compulsion, is a goal: "political conservatives are significantly more [[charity|charitable]] than [[liberals]]."<ref>https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0049089X21000752</ref> A conservative is often willing to learn and advocate the insights of the [[Bible]], and favors conserving value by not giving wasteful handouts to those who do not need them.  Conservatives are innovative, such as [[Romanticism]] and [[supply-side economics]]. '''''Conservative reasoning and values help overcome personal [[addiction]]s - for yourself, your family, your friends, and your neighbors'''''.
  
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A conservative typically adheres to principles of personal [[responsibility]], moral values, and [[limited government]], agreeing with [[George Washington]]'s [[Farewell Address]] that "[[religion]] and [[morality]] are indispensable supports" to political prosperity.<ref>[http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/democrac/49.htm United States Department of State] George Washington, farewell address, 1796</ref><ref>[[Merriam-Webster]]'s Online Dictionary has the following definition of conservative: "tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions: TRADITIONAL"[http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/conservative]  Therefore, a conservative Christian would tend to adhere to the morally sound doctrines of the early Christianity and [[Judeo-Christian]] values.</ref>  '''''Conservatives adopt principles that help themselves and others in healthy ways, including self-improvement'''''.
  
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[[Conservative populism]] and [[Religious conservatism and politics|religious conservatism]] promote [[social conservatism]].  '''''Conservatives reject [[political correctness]], [[liberal logic]], and [[liberal denial]]'''''.
  
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Conservapedia asserts misinformed opinion as fact. They equate homosexuality with polygamy and liberals with terrorists.
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[[Viktor Orban]], [[Hungary]]'s prime minister, put it this way: "The main division line is not according to ideologies, it’s deeper. It’s has an anthropological character. So on one side, in [[Europe]] and probably in [the [[U.S.]]] but in Europe definitely, there are groups of people who think that the most important thing in the world is their ego, themselves, me. … The other part of the society think that that’s not true. Because there are certain things that are more important in society than me, than my ego: family, nation, [[God]]."<ref>https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1696643892253466712</ref>
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[[Phil Crane]], the leading conservative congressman in the [[House]] from 1969 to 2005, urged people to make the world a better place than where they found it, and quoted frequently from the [[Bible]] in pursuit of that goal.<ref>http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-phil-crane-obituary-20141109-story.html</ref>
  
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A logical response to Conservapedia would sound something like this: "All hail the hypno-toad. Al Gore will lead the liberal nation to glorious empire upon the moon."
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Former President [[Ronald Reagan]] said, "The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom."<ref>http://www.reason.com/news/show/29318.html</ref>
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[[File:460px-Calvin Coolidge photo portrait head and shoulders.jpg|200px|thumb|[[Calvin Coolidge]], the 30th President of the United States, was a conservative who said, "Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong."]]
  
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It is a fundamentalist Christian wiki encyclopedia project which promotes Biblical creation science and rejects evolution. Liberals (and any people with common sense) criticize it heavily. It is the subject of ridicule from those who are used to getting information without a heavy dose of fundamentalist hilarity. Its most heavily-viewed pages are about such topics as homosexuality, Wikipedia, and Adolf Hitler. While Liberapedia is obviously very much against the ethnocentric bias displayed in Conservapedia, we would like to make it clear that we respect their right to a free opinion, even if we do not necessarily agree with it, at least we would respect them if they respected the rights of editors who disagree with Andrew Schlafly.
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==Goals and principles==
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{{main|Modern conservatism}}
  
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The very latest silliness at Conservapedia is recorded at Digging the Dirt on the Lunacy that is Conservapedia.
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Specifically, conservatives seek or support:
  
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History
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* Support for [[Natural Law]], [[unalienable rights]], [[republicanism]], and [[Americanism]]
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Conservapedia was started in early 2006. At first it was mainly written by home-schooled creationist children, making it little better than ... well. Those sad little home-schooled children will suffer all their lives because of their poor education.
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* [[Limited government]]
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The site became more famous than it ever deserved to be when progressives discovered it and trolled it. Progressives began vandalizing it and linking to it from blogs urging people to vandalize or debate with them. This almost certainly accounted for better than two thirds of the hits Conservapedia got at that point.
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* [[Capitalism]] and [[free market]]s
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* [[Classroom prayer]]
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* Respect for human life and prohibition of [[abortion]]
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* [[Abstinence]] education
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* Traditional [[marriage]], not [[same-sex "marriage"]]
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* The concept of retribution for crimes, including the [[death penalty]] for heinous murders proven beyond reasonable doubt
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* [[Family values]], including traditional relationships and division of labor within the household
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* Respect for differences between men and women, boys and girls
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* Laws against [[pornography]]
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* [[First Amendment]] rights to [[free speech]] and [[religious freedom]]
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* The [[Second Amendment]] right to keep and bear arms
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* Economic allocative efficiency (as opposed to popular equity)
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* Parental control of education ([[parental rights]])
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* Private medical care and retirement plans
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* Canceling failed social support programs
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* Opposition to [[globalism]], [[one-world government]], and the [[War on Sovereignty]]
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* [[Economic nationalism]] over globalist [[free trade|"free" trade]]
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* Valuing [[patriotism]], [[self-governance]], and [[sovereignty]]
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* [[Border wall|Border security]] and enforcement of strong [[immigration]] laws, opposition to mass migration and [[open borders]]
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* Respect for our military, both past and present
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* Rejection of [[fake science]] such as [[evolution]] and [[global warming]]
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* Minimal taxation
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* [[Federalism]] (Separation of powers among the National, State and Local governments)
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* Favoring [[states' rights]] over federal power, while accepting the Constitutional role of the federal government, and favoring [[subsidiarity]]
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* Opposition to [[big government]] and the [[Nanny State]]
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* A strong national defense
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* An [[Originalism|Originalist]] and [[Textualism|Textualist]] interpretation of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]], and strong opposition to [[judicial activism]]
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* A dedication to the truth, and an ability to seek it
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* Ending [[entitlement]] programs
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* Voluntary charity to those in genuine need
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__TOC__ <!--Do not remove this. We want to keep the insights on the first screen of viewing-->
  
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Later some scientifically minded people began to try to inject evolutionary dogma into the site - but soon ran afoul of Conservapedia's blocking policy (insert leftist bull=a block). Evolution became a battle-ground and later doughnuts. But the scientists could not hold the line. The scientists had the rational arguments but Andrew Schlafly had the computer keys. Schlafly exiled them in what became known as the "Night of the Blunt Knives". Some entered on the long trek to where they first plotted to troll Conservapedia. But later they forgot their proletariat roots and became another bourgeois wiki concerned about its own hit count.
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==List of prominent conservatives==
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===Movement===
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[[Movement conservatives]] are those who accept the logic of conservatism across-the-board, and stand up for its powerful principles despite [[liberal]] ridicule. Movement conservative activists in the U.S. include:
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*[[Phyllis Schlafly]], defeated the [[ERA]]
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*[[Larry McDonald]], Congressman, on board [[KAL 007]] when shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]].
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*[[Jesse Helms]], Senator, specialist in foreign policy
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*[[Alan Keyes]], ambassador and commentator
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*[[Jim Jordan]], [[Thomas Massie]], [[Steve King]], [[Tom Tancredo]], and [[Dave Brat]], Congressmen
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*[[Pat Buchanan]], commentator and presidential candidate
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*[[Thomas Sowell]], economist and commentator
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*[[Jerry Falwell]], religion
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*[[Tucker Carlson]], commentator
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*[[Ann Coulter]], commentator
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*[[Michelle Malkin]], blogger and columnist
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*[[Roy Moore]], judge
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*[[Rand Paul]], Senator
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*[[Josh Hawley]], Senator
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*[[Kris Kobach]], state official
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*[[Michele Bachmann]], Congresswoman
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*[[Ron DeSantis]], Governor of Florida
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*[[George S. Patton]], Four-Star WWII General
  
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Others founded the Almighty Liberapedia wiki you are reading now, and which is one of the sources of truth and fact on the internet.
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===Presidents===
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Periodically, a conservative has been elected [[President of the United States of America|President of the United States]]. The most prominent conservative presidents include:
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*[[George Washington]] (1789–1797)
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*[[James Monroe]] (1817–1825)
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*[[Grover Cleveland]] (1885–1889, 1893–1897)
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*[[Warren G. Harding]] (1921–1923)
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*[[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923–1929)
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*[[Dwight D Eisenhower]] (1953-1961)
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*[[Ronald Reagan]] (1981–1989)
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*[[Donald Trump]] (2017–2021, 2025-)
  
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Meanwhile, CP continues on its own path of biblical literalism and republicanism, making it a source of "truth." and hilarity.
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The most prominent conservative Congresses have been:
  
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The only people who go on conservapedia are people with NO LIFE.
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*The 80th Congress (elected in 1946)
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*The 104th Congress (elected in 1994)
  
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Educational value of Conservapedia
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===Key leaders===
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*[[Robert Taft]] — U.S. Senator, leader of the [[Conservative Coalition]], and unsuccessful 1948 presidential candidate
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*[[Barry Goldwater]] — 1964 Republican candidate, lost to liberal Democrat [[Lyndon Johnson]] but revived the conservative movement inside the GOP
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*[[Russell Kirk]] — Theorist & intellectual
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*[[Robert Bork]] — legal scholar, government official, and unsuccessful Supreme Court nominee
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*[[Margaret Thatcher]] — British prime minister between 1979 and 1990, held views similar to Reagan's
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*[[Milton Friedman]] — Chicago-school [[libertarian]] [[economist]], influential during Reagan administration; leader of the [[Chicago School of Economics]]
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*[[Clarence Thomas]] — Supreme Court justice
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*[[James C. Ho]] — Federal judge, thought leader for judicial originalism
  
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Conservapedia, like any encyclopedia (especially those using the open-editing wiki format), is prone to errors. There is reason to believe that Conservapedia is actually far inferior to Wikipedia and that its articles are not to be trusted. Conservapedia's math and history articles have been criticized for a plethora of errors, while a numerical comparison of Conservapedia articles with articles in Wikipedia have shown Conservapedia's articles to be lagging in quality.
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===Hall of Fame===
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Conservative scholar Clinton Rossiter<ref>Rossiter, "The Giants of American Conservatism," ''American Heritage'' 1955 6(6): 56-59, 94-96, online in [[EBSCO]]</ref> names [[Alexander Hamilton]], [[John Adams]], [[John Marshall]], [[Daniel Webster]], [[John C. Calhoun]], [[Elihu Root]], and [[Theodore Roosevelt]] to the "Conservative's Hall of Fame," with John Adams as the greatest of American conservatives—a dubious choice since President Adams was an ardent opponent of [[free speech]] to criticize government.
  
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Conservapedia folks imagine they could actually surpass the folks at Wikipedia in terms of accuracy, coverage and comprehensiveness - after all, founder Andrew Schlafly did intend it to be a home schooling tool - something which universities and schools do not view Wikipedia as being worthy of. However, it appears (from the wonderfully compact size of blurbs they steal from Conservapedia for extension on ) Conservapedia is too retardated to work for education. They mainly censor people who present evidence that is in against their views, and Schlafly fails utterly at spelling.
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==U.S. voters==
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In America, most conservatives support the [[Republican Party]], but not exclusively so. In the 2008 election, 35% of the voters identified themselves as conservatives. Of them, 78% voted for [[John McCain]] and 20% for [[Barack Hussein Obama]], with the 20% accounting for Obama's margin of victory. Only 22% of the voters were liberal; they favored Obama 89%-10%. In the middle were 44% who called themselves moderates. They split for Obama by 60%-39%. (Minor candidates won 2% of the vote.)<ref>See [https://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/results/polls/#USP00p1 Presidential 2008 Exit Poll]</ref>
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[[File:Russell Kirk.jpg|thumbnail|300px|[[Russell Kirk]] was an American political theorist, conservative intellectual, historian of ideas, social critic, and man of letters, who is best known for his role in the American conservative movement. ]]
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Conservatives generally understand liberals better than liberals understand conservatives.<ref>[https://theindependentwhig.com/haidt-passages/haidt/conservatives-understand-liberals-better-than-liberals-understand-conservatives/ Haidt: Conservatives Understand Liberals Better Than Liberals Understand Conservatives]. ''The Independent Whig''. Retrieved November 13, 2019.</ref>
  
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Blocking Policy
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===Religious differences between political conservatives and political liberals===
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On Conservapedia, you can be blocked for...
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The Barna poll conducted in November 2008 shows significant differences between the 32% of Americans who called themselves “mostly conservative” on social and political matters and the 17% who called themselves “mostly liberal” on social and political matters. The others—50%—were moderates with positions somewhere in between.<ref>See [http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/13-culture/258-survey-shows-how-liberals-and-conservatives-differ-on-matters-of-faith on line results]</ref>
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...using the wrong sort of English (ie using words that you learned after preschool)
 
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...questioning the opinions of the admins. Some of them are so stupid they can't answer questions
 
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...making a username which an admin disagrees with. (That used to mean anything that doesn't praise Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, God or Jesus) Now that means anything except a Christian name and the first letter of a second name.
 
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...trying to discuss things to improve Conservapedia
 
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...being a God hater
 
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...having a friend who is not Christian
 
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...admitting to using birth control or condoms
 
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...admitting that Fox News isn't Fair and Balanced
 
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...understanding that the American government was wrong about Iraq though Conservapedia pretends that's a "lie"
 
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...knowing that the French are not complete idiots, they are far less silly than Conservatives
 
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...saying that the UK was a strong nation during WWII, and that America wasn't the best of them all
 
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...realizing that Christianity, a religion that says you should not kill, has caused millions of people to die over the last thousand years (crusades, inquisitions, lynchings, holocausts, etc.)
 
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...making a typo in your edit
 
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...Mention FBI in anywhere (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehQD_-m40Tg&feature=related)
 
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Note: If you question Andy, then he will brand you as a liberal. While perfectly sane people know that isn't bad at all, as a matter of fact it's a very good thing, Andy will block you for it.
 
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Note: On Conservapedia it is even possible to reach a state of limbo, where you are not blocked but are not allowed to edit any pages. This will occur if you have a Conservapedia account where you don't speak your mind (which would lead to the usual block) and which you use to correct the frequent grammar/spelling errors that tend to crop up when Conservapedians spew feces from their mouths/minds/keyboards all over their beloved site and call it "trustworthy." It is possible that this will only occur if you are logged in from said valid account from an IP that has previously been banned and many important Internet Service Providers are range blocked.
 
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What to do if they block you
 
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Join Liberapedia
 
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Join
 
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Write about what's wrong with Constipedia Controlfreakapedia Conservapedia at either of the two above Wikis. They can't block you for what you write away from the Conservapedia banhammer. They can't revert it either, that's cool.
 
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After you have joined the two aforementioned wikis, do the following. The steps below will work provided your Internet Service Provider gives you a dynamic IP Adress:
 
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. Log out of Conservapedia.
 
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. Unplug modem from the wall and go to sleep. Alternatively switch off the modem. Wait a minute or so. Switch it back on. That changes a dynamic IP Address. Some Internet Service Providers change your IP every few hours. Others change the IP every time you switch off.
 
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. Wake up in morning, walk downstairs in your jammies, and drink a steamy cup of hot cocoa (include marshmallows).
 
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. Replug modem to the wall and look at your new IP address. Alternatively look at your new IP Adress a minute after you switched the modem back on.
 
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. Go back to Confarceapedia with a sockpuppet and let MAndy, Ed Poop, Bungler, and JPratt know what you think of them.
 
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. Wait for blocking.
 
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. Repeat as needed.
 
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. ????
 
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. PROFIT!!!!
 
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Note Conservapedia has restarted using range blocks. The above may not work as well as it used to.
 
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If you have a static IP Adress or if you are range blocked, or if you don't want to be range blocked, look for proxies. However, most proxies have been blocked, so the absolute best tool is Tor. Tor is a dynamic IP that no block, range, IP, or username can stop.
 
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Conservapedia says:
 
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All of these need citations!
 
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All kangaroos are descended from a single pair who were on Noah's Ark.
 
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Gravity is an unproven theory.
 
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Einstein's General Relativity "has nothing to do with physics".
 
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Only followers of Christianity are capable of religious faith.
 
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Atheists are incapable of being moral.
 
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Jews are "touchy" about the Holocaust.
 
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Some of the most violent homicides seen by pathologists are among male homosexuals.
 
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The Beach Boys are an example of heavy metal.
 
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There were dinosaurs on Noah's Ark.
 
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The Earth is the center of the universe
 
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Rock music causes riots.[1]
 
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McCarthyism was good.
 
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Ann Coulter is hot and spicy.
 
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Belief in the Theory of Relativity leads to a belief in moral relativity (a bad thing).
 
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Dinosaurs are "generally believed" to be extinct.
 
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"God exercises eternal and righteous judgment of the wicked in hell."
 
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Homosexuality can cause bad smoking habits.
 
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Barack Hussein Obama is both a Communist, an Atheist and a Muslim. [2]
 
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HUSSEIN Obama has not provided a birth certificate.
 
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Osama Bin Laden is an Iraqi
 
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No one who believes in the Christian God has ever killed anyone.
 
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Hitler was "an evolutionary racist" [3]
 
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In the commandments, it explicitly forbids using BCE and CE, it wants to use BC and AD.
 
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It is impossible for Conservative Christians be bigoted. [4]
 
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JFK was a conservative.
 
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"Vandalism"
 
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Inserting irrefutable facts as facts is considered vandalism at Conservapedia, most of Conservapedia's vandalism is actually people removing blatant falsehoods and misrepresented facts.
 
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Censorship
 
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There are numbers of examples of censorship on Conservapedia.
 
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Mention of is strictly forbidden. On this link you can see JPatt (Conservapedia's security guard) deleting JewishConservative's (Conservapedia user) user page content which mentions RW.
 
  
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After that JewishConservative asks JPatt why did he delete the mention of RW on his page and are sysops allowed to do that. JPatt answers him by saying that is a rule (...Mentioning those rats is forbidden here... it is a rule.). JewishConservative asks him to post a link to the rule that forbidds the mention of RW. Then JPatt says that is an unwritten rule.
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Some findings:
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Political liberals are less than half as likely as political conservatives to firmly believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches (27% versus 63%, respectively); to strongly believe that [[Satan]] is real (17% versus 36%); and to firmly contend that they have a personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs with others (23% versus 48%).  
  
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If you don't believe this occured, well... I'm going to supply you with a link.
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[Note: "Liberal" and "conservative" in this survey are based on politics]
  
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TK then (in order to help) tells JC to check out Conservapedia:Administrators Administrators and Bureaucrats are the Administrators of Conservapedia. Their instructions, as to Conservapedia policy and/or the appropriateness or inappropriateness of user actions, are to be followed. However, there is still nothing there that mentions anything about the sysops' right to remove the mentions of RW.
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Liberals are also far less likely than conservatives to strongly believe each of the following:*their religious faith is very important in their life (54% of liberals vs. 82% of conservatives);
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*a person cannot earn their way into [[Heaven]] by doing good deeds or being a good person (23% vs. 37%);
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*their faith is becoming an increasingly important moral guide in their life (38% vs. 70%);
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*the church they currently attend is very important in helping them find direction and fulfillment in life (37% vs. 62%);
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*their primary purpose in life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul (43% vs. 76%);
  
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Suggested Course of Action
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political conservatives were more likely than liberals to:
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Note: When it's bed time in America Conservapedia disallows edits, claiming that "The action you have requested is limited to users in one of the groups: Administrators, edit". You don't count as far as Andrew Schlafly cares if you're outside America and you must wait 'till someone has woken up over there and allowed edits again.
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*read the Bible, other than at church events, during the past week (57% vs. 33%, respectively)
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Don't Go To Conservapedia Any More.
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*attend a religious service during the past week (62% vs. 35%)
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Except for 4 things:
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*[[pray]] to God, other than at a religious service, during the past week (91% vs. 76%)
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Comedic relief. But even then, on any given page there is a 30% chance of headdesk from loss of faith in humanity.
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*share their religious beliefs with others during the past year (56% vs. 39%, among the born again Christians interviewed from each segment)
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To support the Liberal Revolution against Conservapedia! If you want to join in, simply make an account. It should NOT contain the word Liberal or anything that is liberal-y, instead place words that inspire "warm fuzzies" in Conservatives, such as JesusLover4evr or ReaganResurrected. Or choose something simple that won’t attract attention. At the moment Conservapedia insists on a first name with the first letter of a second name in capitals. So just choose a nice sounding Christian first name. It can be your real sex or the other sex. That way, they won't suspect a thing, and they will be stunned when you start to VANDALIZE!! Those old church ladies will never defeat the amazing powers of mass spam, and perhaps break a hip when trying to fix it! They will be resigned when you start to VANDALIZE!! They get more vandalism than other contributions.
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*have ever participated in a short-term missions trip, either within the U.S. or in another country (12% vs. 6%)
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You might be a diabolical reader who knows how to internet-method-act. If so, they make a perfectly innocuous username on CP, make perfectly innocuous mainspace edits, and don't put anything inflamatory on your userpage. Then IMITATE ANDY and use such methods as the Schlafly Reversal and the Schlafly Liberalator and protect the "truth" in key debates. Don't EVER question Andy. Do this for a year or so, adding content and bashing "liberals" using "logic," and perhaps Andy will make you a sysop. When he promotes you, be sure to thank Andy profusely, then send our warm fuzzy notices to the other admins. Wait one to two days doing perfectly normal CP sysop-type things, such as making full use of the Schlafly Rearguard, then--GO INSANE! PROTECT EVERYTHING! BLOCK EVERYONE! SPAM THE ADMINS! It'll be the ultimate vengeance! You'll be welcomed into Liberapedia with fanfare. will celebrate you as a hero. Start right away! But don't do anything malicious, or you might just get "refered to the authorities." DON'T EVER MENTION THE FBI INCIDENT.
 
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Edit some obscure articles and indirectly indicate that the Earth is older than twice the bristle cone pine tree's lifespan. NEVER question God's existence, even though we know there is no God (at least in the way as conservatives see it). You will be forming "islands of safety", places where Conservapedia is true.
 
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Hypocrisy
 
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Conservapedia is riddled with sad hypocrisy. Click here to view the ever growing article.
 
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Racism and sexism
 
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Since Blacks and females are more progressive than conservatives, Conservapedia appears racist. Their article on Barack Obama refers to him as the first "Affirmative Action" President. The article on Condoleezza Rice, however, takes an very positive view of her, with absolutely zero criticism. It appears that Conservapedia focuses more on slandering the Democrats and supporting the Republicans than being racist/sexist, as they never complain about Rice Being black.
 
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On the other hand, they realy can't stand Muslims, claiming that "the overwhelming majority of modern terrorists are Muslims", and include "Osama bin Laden" in the "Notable Muslim" list.
 
  
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Andrew Schlafly went to university with Obama and outsiders can only guess at what resentments have been festering for decades over that. See Barack Obama compared to Andrew Schlafly. Conservapedia was started up just about the time that people were beginning to notice that Obama might run for President.
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*2% of conservatives and 11% of liberals were [[Atheism|atheist]] or [[agnostic]]
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*15% of conservatives and 2% of liberals were [[Evangelical Christians|Christian evangelicals]]
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*conservatives were twice as likely as liberals to be categorized as [[born again]], based on their theological views about salvation (63% vs. 32%)
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*21% of conservatives were associated with the [[Roman Catholic Church]], compared to 30% among the liberals.
  
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Disdain for the letter "U"
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== Conservative organizations ==
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In England, words such as "color" and "humor" are spelt with extra u's; "colour" and "humour." While Liberapedia accepts this, as several editors here are British, "English-English" spellings on Conservapedia are classed as anti-American. As are spellings using the letter s rather than z, i.e. "organisation" rather than "organization." It is believed this stems from the editors' beliefs that the letters "U" and "S" should not be used excessively without the letter "A", thus completing the abbreviation: USA.
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{{See also|Major conservative organizations}}
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Young Earth Creationist View on Conservapedia
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Several organizations exist that promote consistently conservative values.
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Young Earth Creationists believe Conservapedia is run by a coterie of ultra-liberal conservationists determined to drive conservatives away from religion with an editorial policy that insures every article on the site makes out that all Christians are irrational airheads. The YEC community also believes that the liberal deceit in every article on the site is designed to persuade conservatives that homeschooling inevitably produces illiterate fanatics. Prominent spokespeople for the YEC and Homeschooling movement have pointed to passages in Revelations that predict an evil twin will be created as a mirror image of The One True Wikipedia for the purpose of leading the faithful astray and into the clutches of the Evil One.
 
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Notable Subtleties
 
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Sometimes NeoconPedia isn't so obvious with it's rants. The Article on Jew has a section called "Life Cycle", as if they are talking about a species of animal. Going around calling Jews animals may be biologically true, but it still sounds racist. (But does conservapedia believe all Humans are Animals?).
 
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The article on ramadan states that many muslims "spend several hours praying and studying the Qur'an". Implying excessive devoutness. Now Christians that go to church several times a week aren't excessively devout are they?
 
  
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The Hitler article slanders the theory of evolution.
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=== Conservative news ===
 +
{{See also|Conservative news websites}}
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Some of the more notable news organizations which tend to be more conservative are [[WorldNetDaily]] and [[NewsMax]]. [[Fox News]], though often called conservative, tends to be more [[neoconservative]] than conservative.
  
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=== Conservative magazines and blogs ===
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{{See also|Conservative media}}
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Well known conservative magazines in the United States include ''[[National Review]]'', ''[[Policy Review]]'', ''[[Revolver News]]'' and others.
  
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Even more faulty Conservative logic, Conservapedia blames the United States' "early" loss in the Round of 16 at the World Cup on "feminism having eliminated soccer at Division I colleges." Rather than trying to scapegoat women, we at Liberapedia know the real answer: America just does Baseball better than soccer. [4]
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Some notable [[Conservative blogs|conservative political blogs]] include the [[Heritage Foundation]]'s Policy Weblog, ''[[Human Events]]'', [[Michelle Malkin]], Newsbusters, Townhall.com and others.
  
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See also
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== Neoconservatives ==
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Christian humility which Conservapedia lacks
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Conservapedia Sysops
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American commentators who ally themselves with the conservative movement but reject its religious or moral underpinnings are generally known as [[neoconservatives]].<ref>Jonah Goldberg, [http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZWMxNWNiNDJkY2JmNTExY2E1MzdkYWU3MWU1MTBiOGU= "What Is a 'Conservative'?"], [[National Review|National Review Online]], 11 May 2005</ref>
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Conservatipedia Parody Web site
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Ku Klux Klan
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In the United States, conservatives are generally characterized by the following beliefs:
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NAMBLA
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Ridiculous quotes from Conservapedia
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# Support of [[limited government]].
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Stealth parody
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# A preference for freedom of opportunity over equality of result.
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Why Conservapedia Sucks
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# [[Patriotism]], [[nationalism]], and support of a strong defense.
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External links
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# Support of the institution of [[marriage]].
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Conservapedia (Hilarious Uncyclopedia article)
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# Emphasis on social values, like [[prayer]] and [[pro-life]] principles.
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References
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In contrast, neoconservatives generally support [[Big government|bigger government]] and [[globalism]], and tend to downplay the significance of social values.
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== Paleoconservatives ==
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[[Paleoconservatives]] are conservatives who are more focused on social issues and American [[sovereignty]] and are suspicious of both big government and big business, along with [[globalism]] and [[multiculturalism]]. They also lean against foreign interventionism. Neoconservatives criticize this with the pejorative term "[[isolationism]]," as they believe in promoting [[democracy]] worldwide, even where different religious or value systems are incompatible with democracy-induced changes in control.
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A notable paleoconservative was Democrat Congressman from Georgia, [[Larry McDonald]]. He was also the second Chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], and President of Western Goals. McDonald was aboard [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] when it was shot down by the [[Soviet Union|Soviets]] near [[Moneron Island]] in 1983. Other paleoconservatives include [[Pat Buchanan]] and [[Tom Tancredo]].
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== Fiscal Conservatism vs. Social Conservatism ==
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''For further details on the two related philosophies, see [[Fiscal conservatism]] and [[Social conservatism]]''
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Recently, a division has been created between fiscal conservatism and social conservatism. Fiscal conservatism centers around a low and [[Balanced budget|balanced]] government [[budget]], and generally is opposed to programs such as [[Social Security]] and [[Medicare]]. Its primary goal is to reduce government spending significantly. Social Conservatism, on the other hand, focuses on the moral issues of conservatism. A social conservative will oppose [[same-sex marriage]], [[abortion]], and the teaching of [[evolution]] in schools. The majority of conservatives (including most of the [[Republican Party]]) fall into both categories; however, some fall into one or the other, but not both. Notably, [[Libertarians]] are strong fiscal conservatives but are not socially conservative. For instance, the [[Libertarian Party]] Platform<ref>[http://www.lp.org/platform]</ref> expresses support for the fiscally conservative principles of ending publicly funded [[welfare]] and [[healthcare]] programs as well as reducing government spending overall significantly. However, it also expresses support for [[same-sex marriage]] (with some libertarians leaning towards the ultimate goal of total [[marriage privatization]]) as well as maintaining the legal status of abortion.
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Some Republicans and [[Democrat Party|Democrats]] also fit one category but not the other. Former [[New Mexico]] governor [[Gary Johnson]], who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, was deemed "the most fiscally conservative governor" while he was in office (and probably earned that honor given all the spending cuts he made) but at the same time, he supports [[marriage privatization]] and [[abortion]] (though he believes ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' should be overturned on Constitutional grounds). Also, several Democrats have expressed opposition to same-sex marriage and/or abortion, but still support liberal fiscal programs such as Social Security. They would be the opposite of Johnson - socially conservative but fiscally liberal.
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=== Expected growth of social conservatism and religious conservatism ===
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Due to the explosive growth of [[global Christianity]] in traditional cultures and their influence on Western Christianity and the higher birth rate of [[Conservative Christianity|conservative Christians]] and religious conservatives, social conservatism is expected to rise.
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The Birkbeck College, University of London professor Eric Kaufman wrote in his 2010 book ''Shall the Righteous Inherit the Earth?'' concerning America:
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{{cquote|High evangelical fertility rates more than compensated for losses to liberal Protestant sects during the twentieth century. In recent decades, white secularism has surged, but Latino and Asian religious immigration has taken up the slack, keeping secularism at bay. Across denominations, the fertility advantage of religious fundamentalists of all colours is significant and growing. After 2020, their demographic weight will begin to tip the balance in the [[Culture War|culture wars]] towards the conservative side, ramping up pressure on hot-button issues such as [[abortion]]. By the end of the century, three-quarters of America may be pro-life. Their activism will leap over the borders of the 'Redeemer Nation' to evangelize the world. Already, the rise of the World Congress of Families has launched a global religious right, its arms stretching across the bloody lines of the War on Terror to embrace the entire Abrahamic family.<ref>[http://questionevolution.blogspot.com/2012/05/why-are-years-2012-and-2020-key-years.html Why are 2012 and 2020 key years for Christian creationists and pro-lifers?]</ref>}}
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== Personal conservatism ==
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Because conservatives often have strong political views, there can be a tendency to see conservatism as a purely political ideology. However, there is also a strong personal side to conservatism - being a conservative is as much about applying conservative values to one's everyday life as it is about campaigning and voting for conservative candidates. In general, conservatives can be characterized by a strong sense of personal [[morality]], a willingness to observe their culture's traditions and customs, and a desire to be respectable and to show due respect to other members of the community.
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One school of thought on both the left and right is that conservatism raises stubbornness and [[ignorance]] to the level of [[virtue]]s; however, modern conservatism is based upon [[New Testament]] teaching that says, "The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."<ref>Hebrews 4:12</ref>
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== History of American conservatism ==
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=== Textbook problems ===
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{{See also|Textbook bias}}
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College-level teaching about conservatism has been distorted by a "liberal state paradigm"—that is, [[textbook]]s usually interpret recent American history in terms of the origins and successes of political liberalism—especially the [[New Deal]], the [[welfare state]], [[labor union]]s, and [[Civil Rights Movement|Civil Rights]] for blacks and [[equality]] for women. Conservative politics is usually defined as a reaction: as a [[free market]] reply to the growth of [[big government]]; as an expression of outrage against declining support for tradition and Christian morality. Where the violent Wobblies ([[Industrial Workers of the World|IWW]]) and illegal sit down strikes of the 1930s are seen as heroic, exposing [[Communist]] subversion by [[Joe McCarthy]] is denounced as the nadir of political morality.<ref>See Leonard Moore, "Approaching Conservatism," ''OAH Magazine of History,'' 17 (January 2003) [http://www.oah.org/pubs/magazine/conservatism/moore.html online edition]</ref>
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=== Loyalists ===
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The [[Loyalists]] of the [[American Revolution]] were mostly political conservatives, some of whom produced political discourse of a high order, including lawyer [[Joseph Galloway]] and governor-historian [[Thomas Hutchinson]]. However, when the crisis came, they stood with the Crown as it tried to destroy American political liberties. After the war, the great majority remained in the U.S. and became citizens, but some leaders emigrated to other places in the British Empire. [[Samuel Seabury]] was a Loyalist who stayed and as the first American bishop played a major role in shaping the [[Episcopal]] religion, a stronghold of conservative social values. While the Loyalist political tradition died out totally in the U.S., it survives in Canadian conservatism.
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=== Founding Fathers ===
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The [[Founding Fathers]] created the single most important set of political ideas in American history, known as [[Republicanism]], which all groups, liberal and conservative alike, have drawn from. Two parties were named "Republican"—the one founded in 1794 by [[Thomas Jefferson]] and [[James Madison]] (it disappeared in the 1820s), and the modern GOP founded in 1854. During the [[First Party System]] (1790s–1820s) the [[Federalist Party]], led by [[Alexander Hamilton]], developed an important variation of republicanism that can be considered conservative. Rejecting [[monarchy]] and [[aristocracy]], they emphasized civic virtue as the core American value. The Federalists spoke for the propertied interests and the upper classes of the cities. They envisioned a modernizing land of banks and factories, with a strong army and navy. [[George Washington]] was their great hero.
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On many issues, American conservatism also derives from the republicanism of [[Thomas Jefferson]] and his followers, especially [[John Randolph of Roanoke]] and his "Old Republicans" or "[[Quids]]." They idealized the [[yeoman]] farmer as the epitome of civic virtue, and warned that banking and industry led to [[corruption]], that is to the illegitimate use of government power for private ends. Jefferson himself was a vehement opponent of what today is called [[judicial activism]].
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<ref>[http://etext.virginia.edu/jefferson/quotations/jeff1030.htm]</ref> The Jeffersonians stressed small government.
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===Ante-Bellum: Calhoun and Webster===
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During the [[Second Party System]] (1830–54), the [[Whig Party]] attracted most conservatives, such as [[Daniel Webster]] of New England. [[Daniel Webster]] and other leaders of the [[Whig Party]] called it the conservative party in the late 1830s.<ref>The word was originally used in the [[French Revolution]]. The British used it after 1839 to describe a major party. The first American usage is by Whigs who called themselves "Conservatives" in the late 1830s. Hans Sperber and Travis Trittschuh, ''American Political Terms: An Historical Dictionary'' (1962) 94-97.</ref> [[John C. Calhoun]], a Democrat, articulated a sophisticated conservatism in his writings. [[Richard Hofstadter]] (1948) called him "The [[Karl Marx|Marx]] of the Master Class." Calhoun argued that a conservative minority should be able to limit the power of a "majority dictatorship" because tradition represents the wisdom of past generations. (This argument echoes one made by [[Edmund Burke]], the founder of British conservatism, in ''Reflections on the Revolution in France'' (1790)). Calhoun is considered the father of the idea of minority rights, a position adopted by liberals in the 1960s in dealing with [[Civil Rights]].
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The conservatism of the antebellum period is contested territory; conservatives of the 21st century disagree over what comprises their heritage. Thus [[William J. Bennett]] (2006), a prominent neoconservative leader, warns conservatives not to honor Calhoun, [[Know nothing party|Know-Nothings]], [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] and 20th-century [[isolationist]]s. Other conservatives disagree with Bennett.
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===Lincoln to Cleveland===
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Since 1865 the [[Republican Party]] has identified itself with President [[Abraham Lincoln]], who was the ideological heir of the [[Whig Party|Whigs]] and of both [[Thomas Jefferson|Jefferson]] and [[Alexander Hamilton|Hamilton]]. As the [[Gettysburg Address]] shows, Lincoln cast himself as a second Jefferson, bringing a second birth of freedom to the nation that had been born 86 years before in Jefferson's [[Declaration of Independence|Declaration]]. The [[Copperheads (politics)|Copperheads]] of the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] reflected a [[reactionary]] opposition to modernity of the sort repudiated by modern conservatives. A few libertarians have adopted a neo-Copperhead position, arguing Lincoln was a dictator who created an all-powerful government.
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In the late 19th century, the [[Bourbon Democrat]]s, led by President [[Grover Cleveland]], preached against corruption, high taxes (protective [[tariff]]s), and [[imperialism]], and supported the [[gold standard]] and business interests. They were overthrown by [[William Jennings Bryan]] in 1896, who moved the mainstream of the Democrat Party permanently to the left.
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The 1896 presidential election was the first with a conservative versus liberal theme in the way in which these terms are now understood. Republican [[William McKinley]] won using the pro-business slogan "[[sound money]] and protection," while Bryan's anti-bank populism had a lasting effect on economic policies of the Democrat Party.
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[[William Graham Sumner]], [[Yale University|Yale]] professor (1872–1910) and polymath, vigorously promoted a libertarian conservative ethic. After dallying with [[Social Darwinism]] under the influence of [[Herbert Spencer]], he rejected [[evolution]] in his later works, and strongly opposed imperialism. He opposed monopoly and [[paternalism]] in theory as a threat to equality, democracy and middle-class values, but was vague on what to do about it.<ref>Curtis, Bruce. "William Graham Sumner 'On the Concentration of Wealth.'" Journal of American History 1969 55(4): 823-832.</ref>
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===Early 20th century===
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In the [[Progressive Era]] (1890s-1932), regulation of industry expanded as conservatives led by Senator [[Nelson Aldrich]] of [[Rhode Island]] were put on the defensive. However, Aldrich's proposal for a strong national banking system was enacted as the [[Federal Reserve System]] in 1913. [[Theodore Roosevelt]], the dominant personality of the era, was both liberal and conservative by turns. As a liberal he took a tough [[Regulation|regulatory]] approach toward businesses and [[trust]]s, and (post-presidency) fought for social insurance for the elderly. As a conservative he led the fight to make the country a major naval power, and demanded entry into [[World War I]] to stop what he saw as the [[German Empire|German]] attacks on civilization. [[William Howard Taft]] promoted a strong federal judiciary that would overrule excessive legislation. Taft defeated Roosevelt on that issue in 1912, forcing Roosevelt out of the GOP and turning it to the right for decades. As president, Taft remade the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] with five appointments; he himself presided as chief justice in 1921–30, the only former president ever to do so.
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[[Image:Gop-plank.JPG|thumb|275px|1936 cartoon shows GOP building its platform from the conservative planks abandoned by the Democrats]]
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Pro-business Republicans returned to dominance in 1920 with the election of President [[Warren G. Harding]]. The presidency of [[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923–29) was a high water mark for conservatism, both politically and intellectually. Classic writing of the period includes ''Democracy and Leadership'' (1924) by Irving Babbitt and [[H.L. Mencken]]'s magazine ''American Mercury'' (1924–33). The [[Efficiency Movement]] attracted many conservatives such as [[Herbert Hoover]] with its pro-business, pro-engineer approach to solving social and economic problems. In the 1920s many American conservatives generally maintained anti-foreign attitudes and, as usual, were disinclined toward changes to the healthy economic climate of the age.
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During the [[Great Depression]], other conservatives participated in the taxpayers' revolt at the local level. From 1930 to 1933, Americans formed as many as 3,000 taxpayers' leagues to protest high [[property tax]]es. These groups endorsed measures to limit and roll back taxes, lowered penalties on tax delinquents, and cut government spending. A few also called for illegal resistance (or tax strikes). The best known of these was led by the Association of Real Estate Taxpayers in [[Chicago]] which, at its height, had 30,000 dues-paying members. 
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An important intellectual movement, calling itself [[Southern Agrarians]] and based in Nashville, brought together like-minded novelists, poets and historians who argued that modern values undermined the traditions of American [[Republicanism]] and civic virtue.
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The Depression brought [[liberal]]s to power under President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] (1933). Indeed, the term "liberal" now came to mean a supporter of the [[New Deal]] and Roosevelt's powerful [[New Deal Coalition]]. In 1934 [[Al Smith]] and pro-business Democrats formed the [[American Liberty League]] to fight the new liberalism, but failed to stop Roosevelt's shifting the Democrat Party to the left. In 1936 the Republicans rejected Hoover and tried the more liberal [[Alf Landon]], who carried only [[Maine]] and [[Vermont]]. When Roosevelt tried to pack the Supreme Court in 1937 the conservatives finally cooperated across party lines and defeated it with help from Vice President [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt unsuccessfully tried to purge the conservative Democrats in the 1938 election. The conservatives in Congress then formed a bipartisan informal [[Conservative Coalition]] of Republicans and southern Democrats. It largely controlled Congress from 1937 to 1964. Its most prominent leaders were Senator [[Robert Taft]], a Republican of [[Ohio]], and Senator [[Richard Russell]], Democrat of [[Georgia]].
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In the United States, the [[Old Right]], also called the Old Guard, was a group of [[libertarianism|libertarian]], free-market anti-interventionists, originally associated with Midwestern Republicans and Southern Democrats. The Republicans (but not the Southern Democrats) were [[isolationist]]s in 1939–41 (see [[America First]]), and later opposed [[NATO]] and U.S. military intervention in the [[Korean War]].
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===Later 20th century: Goldwater and Buckley ===
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By 1950, [[American liberalism]] was so dominant in academia and journalism that liberal critic [[Lionel Trilling]] dismissed contemporary conservatism and anti-communism as "irritable mental gestures which seek to resemble ideas."<ref>Lapham 2004</ref> But just as Trilling was writing, a revival was underway. In the 1950s, principles for a conservative political movement were hashed out in books like [[Russell Kirk]]'s ''The Conservative Mind'' (1953) and in the highly influential new magazine ''[[National Review]]'', founded by [[William F. Buckley]] in 1955.
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Whereas Taft's [[Old Right]] had been [[isolationist]] the new conservatism favored American intervention overseas to oppose [[Communism]]. It looked to the [[Founding Fathers]] for historical inspiration as opposed to [[John C. Calhoun|Calhoun]] and the antebellum South. The success of the [[Civil Rights movement]] came in the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the [[bi-partisan]] [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]] and the [[Voting Rights Act]] of 1965. Conservatives supported all, but [[Barry Goldwater]] bucked party leadership to win a few Southern states for the first time since Reconstruction.  Until then Southern whites (both liberal and conservative) had been locked into the Democratic Party. That lock was now broken and some Southern conservatives voted for Goldwater for president in 1964.  In 1968, Southern Democrats ran their own candidate against Richard Nixon. The Southern blacks now began to vote in large numbers, and buoyed by [[Great Society]] [[entitlement]]s became Democrats, moving that party in the South to the left. In 1972, fully one-third of all Democrats joined Richard Nixon's Silent Majority coalition against the far left progressive Democrats. Democrats shifted their strategy to nominating Southerners for president, Jimmy Carter in 1976, Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996, and Al Gore in 2000. As the South became less racist, it became more Republican. By 2000, for the first time, all Southern states had a conservative GOP and a liberal Democratic Party.  The region split in both federal and state contests.  In 2008 the [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]] campaign rebuilt the Clinton coalition in [[Florida]], [[Virginia]] and [[North Carolina]].
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Goldwater, a charismatic figure whose intense opposition to all [[New Deal]] programs angered liberals, was defeated in a landslide in 1964. Goldwater faded and his supporters regrouped under new leadership, especially that of [[Ronald Reagan]] in [[California]], and regained strength nationally in the 1966 elections. Conservatives voted for [[Richard Nixon]] in 1968, who narrowly defeated the New Deal champion [[Hubert Humphrey]], and southern demagogue [[George Wallace]]. Nixon had come to terms with both the Goldwater wing of the party and the still-influential Rockefeller Republicans (Republicans from the [[Northeast]] who supported many New Deal programs).
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===Nixon, Reagan, and Bush===
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The Republican administrations of President [[Richard Nixon]] in the [[1970s]] were characterized more by their emphasis on ''[[realpolitik]]'', [[détente]], and socialist [[economic planning]] policies such as [[wage and price controls]], than by their adherence to conservative rhetoric and more liberal actions.
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In the eight years of [[Ronald Reagan]]'s presidency, 1981-89, the American conservative movement achieved ascendancy. In 1980, the GOP took control of the Senate for the first time since 1954, and [[conservative principles]] dominated Reagan's economic and foreign policies, with [[supply side economics]] as well as a strict opposition to [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Communism]]. The [[free trade]] movement was used as a means to promote [[capitalism]] in the [[Third World]] to counter [[Marxist]] [[national liberation movement]]s. Reagan promised to cut [[welfare]] spending but failed to do so.  He did cut taxes, but raised [[military spending]] and created large [[federal deficit]]s that turned out to work to our advantage, because at that time, deficits didn't matter. It should be known that the Republicans also [[Balanced budget|balanced]] the [[budget]] in the late 1990s.
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An icon of the American conservative movement, Reagan is credited by his supporters with transforming American politics, galvanizing the Republican Party, uniting a coalition of economic conservatives who supported his supply-side economic policies, known as "[[Reaganomics]]," foreign policy conservatives who favored his success in stopping and rolling back Communism, and social conservatives who identified with Reagan's conservative religious and social ideals.
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=== Barack Obama and American Conservatism Backlash ===
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In October 2009, Niles Gardiner reported in the [[Britain|British]] newspaper ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'':
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{{cquote|This week’s striking [[Gallup]] poll on political ideology is further confirmation that the United States is in essence a conservative nation, which has ironically become even more conservative under [[Barack Obama]]. According to Gallup, 40 percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36 percent as moderate and 20 percent as liberal. This is the first time conservatives have outnumbered moderates in America since 2004.<ref>http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100014891/barack-obama-has-failed-to-defeat-conservatism-in-america/</ref>}}
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"Forty percent of Americans now self-identify as conservatives — double the amount of self-professed liberals — largely because independents are beginning to take sides."<ref>http://www.ashbrook.org/publicat/onprin/winter11/spalding.html</ref>
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Conservatives strongly criticized Obama for his far-left and negative policies and the negative impact of those policies.<ref>Scaliger, Charles (February 23, 2017). [https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/politics/item/25433-barack-obama-s-legacy Barack Obama's Legacy]. ''The New American''. Retrieved June 20, 2018.</ref><ref>Adelmann, Bob (January 20, 2017). [https://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/politics/item/25183-is-obama-worst-u-s-president Is Obama Worst U.S. President?] ''The New American''. Retrieved June 20, 2018.</ref><ref>Vargas, Mark (September 16, 2018). [https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/the-legacy-of-barack-obama-and-its-not-a-good-one The legacy of Barack Obama (and it's not a good one)]. ''Washington Examiner''. Retrieved September 16, 2018.</ref> [[Dinesh D'Souza]] wrote, "Obama's legacy is to double the national debt & dramatically reduce US influence in the world."<ref>https://twitter.com/dineshdsouza/status/760447860638789632</ref> During Obama's 8 years in office, Democrats lost over 1,000 seats in the federal and state governments.<ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/27/democrats-lost-over-1000-seats-under-obama.html?refresh=true Democrats lost over 1,000 seats under Obama]. ''Fox News''. December 27, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.</ref>
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Compare [[Progressive liberalism]].
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===Donald Trump===
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{{See also|Donald Trump achievements}}
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Despite heavy opposition from the political [[establishment]], businessman [[Donald Trump]] defeated sixteen other candidates in the Republican primaries and defeated the heavy favorite in the general election, Hillary Clinton. As president, Trump enacted strongly conservative policies in issues such as deregulation, trade, immigration, religious freedom, abortion, and judges.
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=== Fertility rates of conservatives vs. liberals in the United States. The conservative fertility advantage probably will not give conservatives an inevitable long-term political edge ===
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''See also:'' [[Fertility rates of conservatives vs. liberals in the United States]]
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[[File:Donald Trump official presidential photo.jpg|180px|right|thumb|[[Donald Trump]] ]]
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The article ''The Conservative Fertility Advantage'' by the Institute for Family Institute indicates:
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{{Cquote|Data about fertility rates is only available for around 600 of the largest counties, thus many small, rural counties are excluded. But the relationship shown here is clear: President [[Donald Trump|Trump]] did better in counties with higher birth rates, and the difference is fairly large, with the most pro-Biden counties having total fertility rates almost 25% lower than the most pro-Trump counties. If anything, this effect is understated, since the most pro-Trump counties were small, rural counties that usually have even higher birth rates and are excluded from this analysis. Indeed, Yi Fuxian at the University of Wisconsin showed that the relationship between voting and fertility is even more pronounced when we look at fertility rates and state voting trends...
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As can be seen, the [[Republican]] fertility advantage is relatively stable across elections. It even shows up in a panel model, suggesting that as counties become more Republican, their fertility rates tend to rise relative to the national average. The use of state controls (and some robustness tests I ran in large states with many counties) suggests this effect isn’t driven by unique features of states: within [[Red state]]s or [[Blue states]], and controlling for county racial and ethnic characteristics and population densities, Republican counties have higher birth rates.
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This is particularly astonishing given that Democrats perform very well in counties with many Hispanic and black voters, who have higher birth rates than non-Hispanic white Americans (and indeed, the more non-Hispanic whites in a county, the lower its birth rate in my models). The relationship is also unchanged if the sample is restricted to only very-high-density counties, such as those representing the center of major cities. In other words, the Republican “fertility advantage” does not arise from more rural counties with higher birth rates, and it exists despite the fact that much of the Democratic Party’s electoral base is among racial and ethnic groups with higher birth rates in general. The split I identify isn’t about race or urbanization or region of the country: it’s about family. Within racial or ethnic groups, within states or urbanized areas, the more conservative areas tend to have more babies.
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In the 1970s, there was little or no difference in fertility rates between liberal and conservative women. But by the 2000s, completed fertility for liberal women had declined markedly below that of conservative women. In recent years, the gap in childbearing between young conservative and liberal women has really opened, which may portend a bigger gap in the coming years...
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Before the 1990s, fertility differences by ideology were small. Women over age 45 had no difference in completed fertility, and women of all ages (but with controls for year of age) had only a small difference. There was, however, already a difference in ideology: conservative women reported a childbearing ideal about 0.12 kids higher than liberal women, which is a small, but significant, difference.
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For the period after 1995, however, gaps grow. Conservative women over age 45 had about 0.25 more children on average than their liberal peers, an effect which in fact shows up throughout the age distribution once the “over 45” restriction is relaxed. The gap in fertility ideals grew larger as well.
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In other words, the “family gap” between conservatives and liberals is a new phenomenon. It’s only in the last two decades that conservatives began to reap a fertility advantage. But it’s not just a fertility difference: if controls for marital status are removed, the conservative fertility advantage gets even bigger. That is, conservatives are simply more likely to be married than liberals. Thus, there is a conservative-liberal gap on marriage and separately on odds of childbearing conditional upon marital status...
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Finally, this conservative fertility advantage probably will not give conservatives some inevitable long-term political edge. Fertility rates are falling for conservatives just as much as liberals. Given the size of the fertility differential between conservatives and liberals, it doesn’t actually take a large amount of ideology switching to offset this higher birth rate. Thus, while conservatives may wish that their fertility advantage could afford a durable political majority, that hope is probably just as fleeting as the now-silly-sounding claims of progressives a decade ago that immigration would create a durable Democratic majority. That’s because, at least right now, conservative parents have not been sufficiently successful in keeping their kids in the fold.<ref>[https://ifstudies.org/blog/the-conservative-fertility-advantage The Conservative Fertility Advantage] by the Institute for Family Institute</ref>}}
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==Conservatism outside the United States==
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===Conservatives in continental Europe===
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Conservatism in Europe is generally synonymous with [[Euroskepticism]] and [[right-wing populism]] – ideologies that support local control, [[self-governance]], [[patriotism]] and national identity, [[sovereignty]], less immigration, and a more limited government as opposed to an endless EU bureaucracy. While mainstream [[establishment]] parties in Europe are also occasionally labeled "conservative" by the media, they share many of the same policies as globalism and liberalism.
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Conservative parties in Europe include the [[Swiss People's Party]], [[Law and Justice]], [[Fidesz]], [[Lega Nord]], the [[Austrian Freedom Party]], [[Sweden Democrats]], [[Finns Party]], [[Conservative People's Party of Estonia]], [[Vox (Spain)|Vox]], and the [[Alternative for Germany]], among other parties. Prominent continental European conservatives include [[Viktor Orbán]], [[Václav Klaus]], [[Matteo Salvini]], [[Santiago Abascal]], [[Christoph Blocher]], [[Jarosław Kaczyński]], [[Santiago Abascal]], and [[Norbert Hofer]].
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Right-wing populism in Europe has grown since the [[Eurozone Crisis]] and [[European migrant crisis]].
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===Conservatives in Britain===
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Conservatism has a strong tradition in the [[United Kingdom]], with figures such as [[John Locke]] and [[Edmund Burke]] laying its philosophical foundation. Most British conservatives belong to the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] – a [[big tent]] party that includes both consistent conservatives and liberal [[globalists]] – as well as the [[United Kingdom Independence Party]], [[Brexit Party]], and the [[Democratic Unionist Party]]. Some notable British conservatives include [[Winston Churchill]], [[Enoch Powell]], [[Margaret Thatcher]], [[Ian Paisley]], [[Nigel Farage]], [[Raheem Kassam]], and [[Jacob Rees-Mogg]].
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Up until the mid-19th century, the forerunner of the Conservative Party was known as [[Tory|Tories]], and the name has persisted as a common nickname both for the political party and those believed to be in agreement with it.  Since the mid-to-late 1970s, British conservatives have been defined by an advocacy of [[laissez-faire]] economics, privatization, and lower taxation. In recent years the Conservative Party has moved away from the social conservatism which once characterized it, and the current party policy includes, for example, support for [[abortion]] on demand, gay [[civil partnership]], the [[Kyoto Treaty]] and opposition to [[capital punishment]] (although it should be noted that such policies have little support among the party's grassroots membership).<ref>John Charmley, ''A History of Conservative Politics Since 1830'', (2nd ed. 2008)</ref> In common with conservatives in many other countries, British conservatives tend towards a patriotic rather than internationalist outlook, and are traditionally skeptical of the [[European Union]].
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[[Margaret Thatcher]] revitalized the British conservatives much like Reagan revitalized American conservatives. During her tenure as Prime Minister, she cut taxes, trimmed back government waste, and exercised a strong national defense abroad (including the [[Falklands War]] of 1982).
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Levels of prayer and worship are much lower in [[England]] and [[Wales]] than in the U.S., and religious issues thereby play less of a role in public discourse.  However, religious issues remain a significant factor in [[Northern Ireland]], and in 2008, religious issues were significant during a special election in [[Scotland]].
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The broadcast media (dominated by the [[BBC]]) is almost exclusively [[liberal]] in tone. The print media is slightly different, with conservative-leaning newspapers like the ''[[Daily Mail]]'', ''[[Daily Express]]'' and ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' selling more copies than their rivals.<ref>[http://www.mediauk.com/the_knowledge/i.muk/An_introduction_to_newspapers_in_the_UK Media UK; Introduction to newspapers in the UK]</ref> However, even the print media generally leans liberal.
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===Conservatives in Canada===Many Canadian conservatives align with the [[Conservative Party of Canada]], though the party does not strongly adhere to conservative values. The [[Christian Heritage Party]] is an example of a smaller but more consistent conservative Canadian party.
 +
 
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=== Conservatives in Australia ===
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Australia was once more conservative than England, but sweeping [[gun control]] laws pushed the nation leftward toward greater dependency on government in the last decade.  In 2009, opposition to government control based on alleged [[global warming]] galvanized conservatives there, and they led the [[Liberal Party of Australia]] to a repudiation of an emissions trading scheme.<ref>http://www.smh.com.au/national/shock-result-as-abbott-wins-liberal-leadership-by-one-vote--ets-dead-20091201-k1uz.html</ref> Conservatives also support smaller political parties such as the [[Family First Party]].
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=== Conservatives in Latin America ===
 +
In the early 21st century, [[Latin America]] has been shifting to the right,<ref>Multiple references:
 +
* https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/18/world/americas/chile-election-latin-america-politics.html
 +
*Martel, Frances (December 25, 2017). [https://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2017/12/25/5-major-conservative-victories-latin-america-2017/ 5 Major Conservative Victories in Latin America in 2017]. ''Breitbart News''. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
 +
*Pearson, Samantha (April 8, 2018). [https://www.wsj.com/articles/brazil-turns-rightward-heralding-new-chapter-for-latin-america-1523216901 Brazil Turns Rightward, Heralding New Chapter for Latin America]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
 +
*Pearson, Samantha; Magalhaes, Luciana (October 28, 2018). [https://www.wsj.com/articles/brazilians-head-to-polls-in-divisive-presidential-election-1540724400 Conservative’s Win Signals Sharp Rightward Turn in Brazil]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
 +
*Kew, Ben (December 25, 2018). [https://www.breitbart.com/national-security/2018/12/25/crash-of-the-pink-tide-latin-america-continues-shift-rightwards-in-2018/ Crash of the Pink Tide: Latin America Continues Shift Rightwards in 2018]. ''Breitbart News''. Retrieved January 1, 2019.
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*Forero, Juan; Luhnow, David (December 19, 2019). [https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-leftist-pink-tide-in-latin-america-is-receding-11576772757 The Leftist ‘Pink Tide’ in Latin America Is Receding ]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
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See also:
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*Martel, Frances (December 22, 2018). [https://www.breitbart.com/latin-america/2018/12/22/brazils-conservatives-turn-ambitions-towards-global-anti-socialist-alliance/ Brazil’s Conservatives Turn Ambitions Towards Global Anti-Socialist Alliance]. ''Breitbart News''. Retrieved January 1, 2019.</ref> and conservative [[evangelical Christians]] have been growing in political influence.<ref>Puglie, Frederic (February 19, 2018). [https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2018/feb/19/latin-american-voters-turn-evangelicals-social-con/ Evangelicals' newfound political clout in Latin America unnerves politicians, Catholic Church]. ''The Washington Times''. Retrieved October 28, 2018.</ref><ref>Polimédio, Chayenne (January 24, 2018). [https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/01/the-evangelical-takeover-of-brazilian-politics/551423/ The Rise of the Brazilian Evangelicals]. ''The Atlantic''. Retrieved October 28, 2018.</ref>
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Some notable Latin American conservatives include [[Jair Bolsonaro]] (Brazil), [[Eduardo Bolsonaro]] (Brazil), [[Ernesto Araújo]] (Brazil), [[Agustín Laje]] (Argentina), [[Nicolás Márquez]] (Argentina), [[José Antonio Kast]] (Chile), [[Hermógenes Pérez de Arce]] (Chile), [[Jimmy Morales]] (Guatemala), [[Fabricio Alvarado]] (Costa Rica),<ref>Cullinan Hoffman, Matthew (February 5, 2018). [https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/christian-minister-dominates-costa-rican-presidential-election-polls-after Christian minister takes lead in Costa Rican presidential election after vowing to stop gay agenda]. ''LifeSiteNews''. Retrieved October 28, 2018.</ref> [[Alberto Fujimori]] (Peru), [[Keiko Fujimori]] (Peru), [[Alvaro Uribe]] (Colombia) and [[Mario Abdo Benítez]] (Paraguay).
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=== Conservatism and the French Revolution ===
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Conservatism in France and the European continent generally arose after 1790 as a response to the radicalism of the [[French Revolution]].
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== Benefits of Conservatism ==
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Several facets of conservatism function in unison to make it an effective and powerful philosophy.  Conservatism emphasizes personal freedom, independence, and initiative; this allows the [[best of the public]] to rise to their natural level of achievement.  Conservatives recognize that [[big government]] fosters dependency and stifles individual achievement—and thus, weakens society as a whole. 
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At the same time, conservatives also recognize that with individual freedom comes [[individual responsibility]].  In the absence of a hand-holding [[nanny state]], it is imperative that each individual take responsibility for his own actions, and exercise his rights and freedoms wisely and with discretion.  Thus, [[social conservatism]] is also critical to a successful society, as it emphasizes the importance of [[morality]], duty, and responsibility to oneself and fellow men.
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=== American conservatives and happiness ===
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''See also:'' [[American liberalism and 21st century political losses]] and [[Secular leftists and psychogenic illness]]
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''Time'' magazine reported: "In the 'who's happier?' A whole body of research shows conservatives report being happier. [http://www.sciencemag.org/content/347/6227/1243 Four new studies] published in ''Science'' hint at a possible reason why.<ref>[http://time.com/3744433/liberals-conservatives-happiness/ Liberals are More Honest Than Conservatives When They Smile], Time Magazine, 2015</ref>
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{|align=right border=3 cellspacing=0 style="border-width: 5px; border-color: #c0c0c0; background: #e0e0e0; margin: 2em;"
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| style="text-align: center; padding: 10px 40px 10px 40px;" | [[Previous Breaking News/Conservatives|Previous Breaking News:<br>Conservatives]]
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|}
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== See also ==
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*[[Modern conservatism]]
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*[[Conservative resources]]
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*[[Previous Breaking News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
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*[[More News/Conservatives|Articles about '''Conservatives''' from "More News"]]
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*[[Conservative Links]]
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*[[Essay:Fair and balanced is not part of the Conservative platform]]
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*[[Conservative politicians]]
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*[[Liberal]]
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*[[Larry McDonald]]
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== Further reading ==
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*  Critchlow, Donald T. ''The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History'' (2007)
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* Filler, Louis. ''Dictionary of American Conservatism The First Complete Guide to Issues, People, Organizations and Events'' (1987), a useful older encyclopedia
 +
* Frank, Thomas. ''What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America'' (2005), a liberal perspective [https://www.amazon.com/Whats-Matter-Kansas-Conservatives-America/dp/080507774X/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685789&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
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* Frohnen, Bruce et al. eds. ''American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia'' (2006), the most detailed reference
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* Judis, John B. ''William F. Buckley, Jr.: Patron Saint of the Conservatives'' (1988) [https://www.amazon.com/William-F-Buckley-Jr-Conservatives/dp/0743217977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1207759425&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
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* Kirk, Russell. ''The Conservative Mind''. (7th ed. 2001). Highly influential conservative history of ideas [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
 +
* Link, William A. ''Righteous warrior: Jesse Helms and the rise of modern conservatism'' (2008) 643 pages
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* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''The Right Nation,'' (2004) influential survey [https://www.amazon.com/Right-Nation-Conservative-Power-America/dp/B000F71124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1205919226&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
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* Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. ''God Is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith Is Changing the World'' (2009)
 +
* Nash, George. ''The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945'' (2006), excellent scholarly history. [https://www.amazon.com/Conservative-Intellectual-Movement-America-Since/dp/1933859121/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241925238&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
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* Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/exit-with-honor-the-life-and-presidency-of-ronald-reagan-by-william-e-pemberton.jsp online edition]
 +
* Perlstein, Rick. ''Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus'' (2004) on 1964 [https://www.amazon.com/Before-Storm-Goldwater-Unmaking-Consensus/dp/0809028581/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193684721&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
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* Perlstein, Rick. ''Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America'' (2008) [https://www.amazon.com/Nixonland-Rise-President-Fracturing-America/dp/074324303X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241924189&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
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* Schneider, Gregory L. ed. ''Conservatism in America Since 1930: A Reader'' (2003)
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* Schoenwald, Jonathan. ''A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism'' (2002) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104931191 online edition] also [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
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* Schweizer, Peter, and Wynton C. Hall, eds. ''Landmark Speeches of the American Conservative Movement'' (2007) [https://www.amazon.com/Landmark-Speeches-American-Conservative-Movement/dp/1585445983/ref=sr_1_4/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1193685365&sr=1-4 excerpt and text search]
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== References ==
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{{Reflist|colwidth=35em}}
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== External links ==
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*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/conservatives/ What Liberals Say - Category: Conservatives], [[Accuracy In Media]]
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*[https://www.youtube.com/user/rescueKAL007#p/a/FD3DE4F0642C350C/0/1c8v-kgLvhM Pat Buchanan's "Crossfire" interview with [[Larry McDonald]] 3 months before downing of [[KAL 007]], Ron Paul intro]
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*[http://www.conservativedirectory.com Directory of Conservative Websites - Category: Conservatives], [[Politics]]
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*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnYUbkVWglc Coming Out in 2019], Neel Kolhatkar, Jan 22, 2019.
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{{Conservatism}}
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[[Category:Conservative]]
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[[Category:American History]]
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[[Category:Reagan Era]]
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[[Category:1960s]]

Latest revision as of 23:05, October 6, 2026

See also: movement conservative
See also: Greatest Conservative Sports Stars

A conservative promotes moral and economic values beneficial to all. A desire to help others voluntarily, without compulsion, is a goal: "political conservatives are significantly more charitable than liberals."[1] A conservative is often willing to learn and advocate the insights of the Bible, and favors conserving value by not giving wasteful handouts to those who do not need them. Conservatives are innovative, such as Romanticism and supply-side economics. Conservative reasoning and values help overcome personal addictions - for yourself, your family, your friends, and your neighbors.

A conservative typically adheres to principles of personal responsibility, moral values, and limited government, agreeing with George Washington's Farewell Address that "religion and morality are indispensable supports" to political prosperity.[2][3] Conservatives adopt principles that help themselves and others in healthy ways, including self-improvement.

Conservative populism and religious conservatism promote social conservatism. Conservatives reject political correctness, liberal logic, and liberal denial.

Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, put it this way: "The main division line is not according to ideologies, it’s deeper. It’s has an anthropological character. So on one side, in Europe and probably in [the U.S.] but in Europe definitely, there are groups of people who think that the most important thing in the world is their ego, themselves, me. … The other part of the society think that that’s not true. Because there are certain things that are more important in society than me, than my ego: family, nation, God."[4]

Phil Crane, the leading conservative congressman in the House from 1969 to 2005, urged people to make the world a better place than where they found it, and quoted frequently from the Bible in pursuit of that goal.[5]

Former President Ronald Reagan said, "The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom."[6]

Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President of the United States, was a conservative who said, "Don't expect to build up the weak by pulling down the strong."

Goals and principles

For a more detailed treatment, see Modern conservatism.

Specifically, conservatives seek or support:

List of prominent conservatives

Movement

Movement conservatives are those who accept the logic of conservatism across-the-board, and stand up for its powerful principles despite liberal ridicule. Movement conservative activists in the U.S. include:

Presidents

Periodically, a conservative has been elected President of the United States. The most prominent conservative presidents include:

The most prominent conservative Congresses have been:

  • The 80th Congress (elected in 1946)
  • The 104th Congress (elected in 1994)

Key leaders

Hall of Fame

Conservative scholar Clinton Rossiter[7] names Alexander Hamilton, John Adams, John Marshall, Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun, Elihu Root, and Theodore Roosevelt to the "Conservative's Hall of Fame," with John Adams as the greatest of American conservatives—a dubious choice since President Adams was an ardent opponent of free speech to criticize government.

U.S. voters

In America, most conservatives support the Republican Party, but not exclusively so. In the 2008 election, 35% of the voters identified themselves as conservatives. Of them, 78% voted for John McCain and 20% for Barack Hussein Obama, with the 20% accounting for Obama's margin of victory. Only 22% of the voters were liberal; they favored Obama 89%-10%. In the middle were 44% who called themselves moderates. They split for Obama by 60%-39%. (Minor candidates won 2% of the vote.)[8]

Russell Kirk was an American political theorist, conservative intellectual, historian of ideas, social critic, and man of letters, who is best known for his role in the American conservative movement.

Conservatives generally understand liberals better than liberals understand conservatives.[9]

Religious differences between political conservatives and political liberals

The Barna poll conducted in November 2008 shows significant differences between the 32% of Americans who called themselves “mostly conservative” on social and political matters and the 17% who called themselves “mostly liberal” on social and political matters. The others—50%—were moderates with positions somewhere in between.[10]

Some findings: Political liberals are less than half as likely as political conservatives to firmly believe that the Bible is totally accurate in all of the principles it teaches (27% versus 63%, respectively); to strongly believe that Satan is real (17% versus 36%); and to firmly contend that they have a personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs with others (23% versus 48%).

[Note: "Liberal" and "conservative" in this survey are based on politics]

Liberals are also far less likely than conservatives to strongly believe each of the following:*their religious faith is very important in their life (54% of liberals vs. 82% of conservatives);

  • a person cannot earn their way into Heaven by doing good deeds or being a good person (23% vs. 37%);
  • their faith is becoming an increasingly important moral guide in their life (38% vs. 70%);
  • the church they currently attend is very important in helping them find direction and fulfillment in life (37% vs. 62%);
  • their primary purpose in life is to love God with all their heart, mind, strength and soul (43% vs. 76%);

political conservatives were more likely than liberals to:

  • read the Bible, other than at church events, during the past week (57% vs. 33%, respectively)
  • attend a religious service during the past week (62% vs. 35%)
  • pray to God, other than at a religious service, during the past week (91% vs. 76%)
  • share their religious beliefs with others during the past year (56% vs. 39%, among the born again Christians interviewed from each segment)
  • have ever participated in a short-term missions trip, either within the U.S. or in another country (12% vs. 6%)
  • 2% of conservatives and 11% of liberals were atheist or agnostic
  • 15% of conservatives and 2% of liberals were Christian evangelicals
  • conservatives were twice as likely as liberals to be categorized as born again, based on their theological views about salvation (63% vs. 32%)
  • 21% of conservatives were associated with the Roman Catholic Church, compared to 30% among the liberals.

Conservative organizations

See also: Major conservative organizations

Several organizations exist that promote consistently conservative values.

Conservative news

See also: Conservative news websites

Some of the more notable news organizations which tend to be more conservative are WorldNetDaily and NewsMax. Fox News, though often called conservative, tends to be more neoconservative than conservative.

Conservative magazines and blogs

See also: Conservative media

Well known conservative magazines in the United States include National Review, Policy Review, Revolver News and others.

Some notable conservative political blogs include the Heritage Foundation's Policy Weblog, Human Events, Michelle Malkin, Newsbusters, Townhall.com and others.

Neoconservatives

American commentators who ally themselves with the conservative movement but reject its religious or moral underpinnings are generally known as neoconservatives.[11]

In the United States, conservatives are generally characterized by the following beliefs:

  1. Support of limited government.
  2. A preference for freedom of opportunity over equality of result.
  3. Patriotism, nationalism, and support of a strong defense.
  4. Support of the institution of marriage.
  5. Emphasis on social values, like prayer and pro-life principles.

In contrast, neoconservatives generally support bigger government and globalism, and tend to downplay the significance of social values.

Paleoconservatives

Paleoconservatives are conservatives who are more focused on social issues and American sovereignty and are suspicious of both big government and big business, along with globalism and multiculturalism. They also lean against foreign interventionism. Neoconservatives criticize this with the pejorative term "isolationism," as they believe in promoting democracy worldwide, even where different religious or value systems are incompatible with democracy-induced changes in control.

A notable paleoconservative was Democrat Congressman from Georgia, Larry McDonald. He was also the second Chairman of the John Birch Society, and President of Western Goals. McDonald was aboard Korean Airlines Flight 007 when it was shot down by the Soviets near Moneron Island in 1983. Other paleoconservatives include Pat Buchanan and Tom Tancredo.

Fiscal Conservatism vs. Social Conservatism

For further details on the two related philosophies, see Fiscal conservatism and Social conservatism

Recently, a division has been created between fiscal conservatism and social conservatism. Fiscal conservatism centers around a low and balanced government budget, and generally is opposed to programs such as Social Security and Medicare. Its primary goal is to reduce government spending significantly. Social Conservatism, on the other hand, focuses on the moral issues of conservatism. A social conservative will oppose same-sex marriage, abortion, and the teaching of evolution in schools. The majority of conservatives (including most of the Republican Party) fall into both categories; however, some fall into one or the other, but not both. Notably, Libertarians are strong fiscal conservatives but are not socially conservative. For instance, the Libertarian Party Platform[12] expresses support for the fiscally conservative principles of ending publicly funded welfare and healthcare programs as well as reducing government spending overall significantly. However, it also expresses support for same-sex marriage (with some libertarians leaning towards the ultimate goal of total marriage privatization) as well as maintaining the legal status of abortion.

Some Republicans and Democrats also fit one category but not the other. Former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson, who is seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, was deemed "the most fiscally conservative governor" while he was in office (and probably earned that honor given all the spending cuts he made) but at the same time, he supports marriage privatization and abortion (though he believes Roe v. Wade should be overturned on Constitutional grounds). Also, several Democrats have expressed opposition to same-sex marriage and/or abortion, but still support liberal fiscal programs such as Social Security. They would be the opposite of Johnson - socially conservative but fiscally liberal.

Expected growth of social conservatism and religious conservatism

Due to the explosive growth of global Christianity in traditional cultures and their influence on Western Christianity and the higher birth rate of conservative Christians and religious conservatives, social conservatism is expected to rise.

The Birkbeck College, University of London professor Eric Kaufman wrote in his 2010 book Shall the Righteous Inherit the Earth? concerning America:

“ High evangelical fertility rates more than compensated for losses to liberal Protestant sects during the twentieth century. In recent decades, white secularism has surged, but Latino and Asian religious immigration has taken up the slack, keeping secularism at bay. Across denominations, the fertility advantage of religious fundamentalists of all colours is significant and growing. After 2020, their demographic weight will begin to tip the balance in the culture wars towards the conservative side, ramping up pressure on hot-button issues such as abortion. By the end of the century, three-quarters of America may be pro-life. Their activism will leap over the borders of the 'Redeemer Nation' to evangelize the world. Already, the rise of the World Congress of Families has launched a global religious right, its arms stretching across the bloody lines of the War on Terror to embrace the entire Abrahamic family.[13] ”

Personal conservatism

Because conservatives often have strong political views, there can be a tendency to see conservatism as a purely political ideology. However, there is also a strong personal side to conservatism - being a conservative is as much about applying conservative values to one's everyday life as it is about campaigning and voting for conservative candidates. In general, conservatives can be characterized by a strong sense of personal morality, a willingness to observe their culture's traditions and customs, and a desire to be respectable and to show due respect to other members of the community.

One school of thought on both the left and right is that conservatism raises stubbornness and ignorance to the level of virtues; however, modern conservatism is based upon New Testament teaching that says, "The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart."[14]

History of American conservatism

Textbook problems

See also: Textbook bias

College-level teaching about conservatism has been distorted by a "liberal state paradigm"—that is, textbooks usually interpret recent American history in terms of the origins and successes of political liberalism—especially the New Deal, the welfare state, labor unions, and Civil Rights for blacks and equality for women. Conservative politics is usually defined as a reaction: as a free market reply to the growth of big government; as an expression of outrage against declining support for tradition and Christian morality. Where the violent Wobblies (IWW) and illegal sit down strikes of the 1930s are seen as heroic, exposing Communist subversion by Joe McCarthy is denounced as the nadir of political morality.[15]

Loyalists

The Loyalists of the American Revolution were mostly political conservatives, some of whom produced political discourse of a high order, including lawyer Joseph Galloway and governor-historian Thomas Hutchinson. However, when the crisis came, they stood with the Crown as it tried to destroy American political liberties. After the war, the great majority remained in the U.S. and became citizens, but some leaders emigrated to other places in the British Empire. Samuel Seabury was a Loyalist who stayed and as the first American bishop played a major role in shaping the Episcopal religion, a stronghold of conservative social values. While the Loyalist political tradition died out totally in the U.S., it survives in Canadian conservatism.

Founding Fathers

The Founding Fathers created the single most important set of political ideas in American history, known as Republicanism, which all groups, liberal and conservative alike, have drawn from. Two parties were named "Republican"—the one founded in 1794 by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison (it disappeared in the 1820s), and the modern GOP founded in 1854. During the First Party System (1790s–1820s) the Federalist Party, led by Alexander Hamilton, developed an important variation of republicanism that can be considered conservative. Rejecting monarchy and aristocracy, they emphasized civic virtue as the core American value. The Federalists spoke for the propertied interests and the upper classes of the cities. They envisioned a modernizing land of banks and factories, with a strong army and navy. George Washington was their great hero.

On many issues, American conservatism also derives from the republicanism of Thomas Jefferson and his followers, especially John Randolph of Roanoke and his "Old Republicans" or "Quids." They idealized the yeoman farmer as the epitome of civic virtue, and warned that banking and industry led to corruption, that is to the illegitimate use of government power for private ends. Jefferson himself was a vehement opponent of what today is called judicial activism. [16] The Jeffersonians stressed small government.

Ante-Bellum: Calhoun and Webster

During the Second Party System (1830–54), the Whig Party attracted most conservatives, such as Daniel Webster of New England. Daniel Webster and other leaders of the Whig Party called it the conservative party in the late 1830s.[17] John C. Calhoun, a Democrat, articulated a sophisticated conservatism in his writings. Richard Hofstadter (1948) called him "The Marx of the Master Class." Calhoun argued that a conservative minority should be able to limit the power of a "majority dictatorship" because tradition represents the wisdom of past generations. (This argument echoes one made by Edmund Burke, the founder of British conservatism, in Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790)). Calhoun is considered the father of the idea of minority rights, a position adopted by liberals in the 1960s in dealing with Civil Rights.

The conservatism of the antebellum period is contested territory; conservatives of the 21st century disagree over what comprises their heritage. Thus William J. Bennett (2006), a prominent neoconservative leader, warns conservatives not to honor Calhoun, Know-Nothings, Copperheads and 20th-century isolationists. Other conservatives disagree with Bennett.

Lincoln to Cleveland

Since 1865 the Republican Party has identified itself with President Abraham Lincoln, who was the ideological heir of the Whigs and of both Jefferson and Hamilton. As the Gettysburg Address shows, Lincoln cast himself as a second Jefferson, bringing a second birth of freedom to the nation that had been born 86 years before in Jefferson's Declaration. The Copperheads of the Civil War reflected a reactionary opposition to modernity of the sort repudiated by modern conservatives. A few libertarians have adopted a neo-Copperhead position, arguing Lincoln was a dictator who created an all-powerful government.

In the late 19th century, the Bourbon Democrats, led by President Grover Cleveland, preached against corruption, high taxes (protective tariffs), and imperialism, and supported the gold standard and business interests. They were overthrown by William Jennings Bryan in 1896, who moved the mainstream of the Democrat Party permanently to the left.

The 1896 presidential election was the first with a conservative versus liberal theme in the way in which these terms are now understood. Republican William McKinley won using the pro-business slogan "sound money and protection," while Bryan's anti-bank populism had a lasting effect on economic policies of the Democrat Party.

William Graham Sumner, Yale professor (1872–1910) and polymath, vigorously promoted a libertarian conservative ethic. After dallying with Social Darwinism under the influence of Herbert Spencer, he rejected evolution in his later works, and strongly opposed imperialism. He opposed monopoly and paternalism in theory as a threat to equality, democracy and middle-class values, but was vague on what to do about it.[18]

Early 20th century

In the Progressive Era (1890s-1932), regulation of industry expanded as conservatives led by Senator Nelson Aldrich of Rhode Island were put on the defensive. However, Aldrich's proposal for a strong national banking system was enacted as the Federal Reserve System in 1913. Theodore Roosevelt, the dominant personality of the era, was both liberal and conservative by turns. As a liberal he took a tough regulatory approach toward businesses and trusts, and (post-presidency) fought for social insurance for the elderly. As a conservative he led the fight to make the country a major naval power, and demanded entry into World War I to stop what he saw as the German attacks on civilization. William Howard Taft promoted a strong federal judiciary that would overrule excessive legislation. Taft defeated Roosevelt on that issue in 1912, forcing Roosevelt out of the GOP and turning it to the right for decades. As president, Taft remade the Supreme Court with five appointments; he himself presided as chief justice in 1921–30, the only former president ever to do so.

1936 cartoon shows GOP building its platform from the conservative planks abandoned by the Democrats

Pro-business Republicans returned to dominance in 1920 with the election of President Warren G. Harding. The presidency of Calvin Coolidge (1923–29) was a high water mark for conservatism, both politically and intellectually. Classic writing of the period includes Democracy and Leadership (1924) by Irving Babbitt and H.L. Mencken's magazine American Mercury (1924–33). The Efficiency Movement attracted many conservatives such as Herbert Hoover with its pro-business, pro-engineer approach to solving social and economic problems. In the 1920s many American conservatives generally maintained anti-foreign attitudes and, as usual, were disinclined toward changes to the healthy economic climate of the age.

During the Great Depression, other conservatives participated in the taxpayers' revolt at the local level. From 1930 to 1933, Americans formed as many as 3,000 taxpayers' leagues to protest high property taxes. These groups endorsed measures to limit and roll back taxes, lowered penalties on tax delinquents, and cut government spending. A few also called for illegal resistance (or tax strikes). The best known of these was led by the Association of Real Estate Taxpayers in Chicago which, at its height, had 30,000 dues-paying members.

An important intellectual movement, calling itself Southern Agrarians and based in Nashville, brought together like-minded novelists, poets and historians who argued that modern values undermined the traditions of American Republicanism and civic virtue.

The Depression brought liberals to power under President Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933). Indeed, the term "liberal" now came to mean a supporter of the New Deal and Roosevelt's powerful New Deal Coalition. In 1934 Al Smith and pro-business Democrats formed the American Liberty League to fight the new liberalism, but failed to stop Roosevelt's shifting the Democrat Party to the left. In 1936 the Republicans rejected Hoover and tried the more liberal Alf Landon, who carried only Maine and Vermont. When Roosevelt tried to pack the Supreme Court in 1937 the conservatives finally cooperated across party lines and defeated it with help from Vice President John Nance Garner. Roosevelt unsuccessfully tried to purge the conservative Democrats in the 1938 election. The conservatives in Congress then formed a bipartisan informal Conservative Coalition of Republicans and southern Democrats. It largely controlled Congress from 1937 to 1964. Its most prominent leaders were Senator Robert Taft, a Republican of Ohio, and Senator Richard Russell, Democrat of Georgia.

In the United States, the Old Right, also called the Old Guard, was a group of libertarian, free-market anti-interventionists, originally associated with Midwestern Republicans and Southern Democrats. The Republicans (but not the Southern Democrats) were isolationists in 1939–41 (see America First), and later opposed NATO and U.S. military intervention in the Korean War.

Later 20th century: Goldwater and Buckley

By 1950, American liberalism was so dominant in academia and journalism that liberal critic Lionel Trilling dismissed contemporary conservatism and anti-communism as "irritable mental gestures which seek to resemble ideas."[19] But just as Trilling was writing, a revival was underway. In the 1950s, principles for a conservative political movement were hashed out in books like Russell Kirk's The Conservative Mind (1953) and in the highly influential new magazine National Review, founded by William F. Buckley in 1955.

Whereas Taft's Old Right had been isolationist the new conservatism favored American intervention overseas to oppose Communism. It looked to the Founding Fathers for historical inspiration as opposed to Calhoun and the antebellum South. The success of the Civil Rights movement came in the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the bi-partisan Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Conservatives supported all, but Barry Goldwater bucked party leadership to win a few Southern states for the first time since Reconstruction. Until then Southern whites (both liberal and conservative) had been locked into the Democratic Party. That lock was now broken and some Southern conservatives voted for Goldwater for president in 1964. In 1968, Southern Democrats ran their own candidate against Richard Nixon. The Southern blacks now began to vote in large numbers, and buoyed by Great Society entitlements became Democrats, moving that party in the South to the left. In 1972, fully one-third of all Democrats joined Richard Nixon's Silent Majority coalition against the far left progressive Democrats. Democrats shifted their strategy to nominating Southerners for president, Jimmy Carter in 1976, Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996, and Al Gore in 2000. As the South became less racist, it became more Republican. By 2000, for the first time, all Southern states had a conservative GOP and a liberal Democratic Party. The region split in both federal and state contests. In 2008 the Obama campaign rebuilt the Clinton coalition in Florida, Virginia and North Carolina.

Goldwater, a charismatic figure whose intense opposition to all New Deal programs angered liberals, was defeated in a landslide in 1964. Goldwater faded and his supporters regrouped under new leadership, especially that of Ronald Reagan in California, and regained strength nationally in the 1966 elections. Conservatives voted for Richard Nixon in 1968, who narrowly defeated the New Deal champion Hubert Humphrey, and southern demagogue George Wallace. Nixon had come to terms with both the Goldwater wing of the party and the still-influential Rockefeller Republicans (Republicans from the Northeast who supported many New Deal programs).

Nixon, Reagan, and Bush

The Republican administrations of President Richard Nixon in the 1970s were characterized more by their emphasis on realpolitik, détente, and socialist economic planning policies such as wage and price controls, than by their adherence to conservative rhetoric and more liberal actions.

In the eight years of Ronald Reagan's presidency, 1981-89, the American conservative movement achieved ascendancy. In 1980, the GOP took control of the Senate for the first time since 1954, and conservative principles dominated Reagan's economic and foreign policies, with supply side economics as well as a strict opposition to Soviet Communism. The free trade movement was used as a means to promote capitalism in the Third World to counter Marxist national liberation movements. Reagan promised to cut welfare spending but failed to do so. He did cut taxes, but raised military spending and created large federal deficits that turned out to work to our advantage, because at that time, deficits didn't matter. It should be known that the Republicans also balanced the budget in the late 1990s.

An icon of the American conservative movement, Reagan is credited by his supporters with transforming American politics, galvanizing the Republican Party, uniting a coalition of economic conservatives who supported his supply-side economic policies, known as "Reaganomics," foreign policy conservatives who favored his success in stopping and rolling back Communism, and social conservatives who identified with Reagan's conservative religious and social ideals.

Barack Obama and American Conservatism Backlash

In October 2009, Niles Gardiner reported in the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph:

“ This week’s striking Gallup poll on political ideology is further confirmation that the United States is in essence a conservative nation, which has ironically become even more conservative under Barack Obama. According to Gallup, 40 percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, 36 percent as moderate and 20 percent as liberal. This is the first time conservatives have outnumbered moderates in America since 2004.[20] ”

"Forty percent of Americans now self-identify as conservatives — double the amount of self-professed liberals — largely because independents are beginning to take sides."[21]

Conservatives strongly criticized Obama for his far-left and negative policies and the negative impact of those policies.[22][23][24] Dinesh D'Souza wrote, "Obama's legacy is to double the national debt & dramatically reduce US influence in the world."[25] During Obama's 8 years in office, Democrats lost over 1,000 seats in the federal and state governments.[26]

Compare Progressive liberalism.

Donald Trump

See also: Donald Trump achievements

Despite heavy opposition from the political establishment, businessman Donald Trump defeated sixteen other candidates in the Republican primaries and defeated the heavy favorite in the general election, Hillary Clinton. As president, Trump enacted strongly conservative policies in issues such as deregulation, trade, immigration, religious freedom, abortion, and judges.

Fertility rates of conservatives vs. liberals in the United States. The conservative fertility advantage probably will not give conservatives an inevitable long-term political edge

See also: Fertility rates of conservatives vs. liberals in the United States

Donald Trump

The article The Conservative Fertility Advantage by the Institute for Family Institute indicates:

“ Data about fertility rates is only available for around 600 of the largest counties, thus many small, rural counties are excluded. But the relationship shown here is clear: President Trump did better in counties with higher birth rates, and the difference is fairly large, with the most pro-Biden counties having total fertility rates almost 25% lower than the most pro-Trump counties. If anything, this effect is understated, since the most pro-Trump counties were small, rural counties that usually have even higher birth rates and are excluded from this analysis. Indeed, Yi Fuxian at the University of Wisconsin showed that the relationship between voting and fertility is even more pronounced when we look at fertility rates and state voting trends...

As can be seen, the Republican fertility advantage is relatively stable across elections. It even shows up in a panel model, suggesting that as counties become more Republican, their fertility rates tend to rise relative to the national average. The use of state controls (and some robustness tests I ran in large states with many counties) suggests this effect isn’t driven by unique features of states: within Red states or Blue states, and controlling for county racial and ethnic characteristics and population densities, Republican counties have higher birth rates.

This is particularly astonishing given that Democrats perform very well in counties with many Hispanic and black voters, who have higher birth rates than non-Hispanic white Americans (and indeed, the more non-Hispanic whites in a county, the lower its birth rate in my models). The relationship is also unchanged if the sample is restricted to only very-high-density counties, such as those representing the center of major cities. In other words, the Republican “fertility advantage” does not arise from more rural counties with higher birth rates, and it exists despite the fact that much of the Democratic Party’s electoral base is among racial and ethnic groups with higher birth rates in general. The split I identify isn’t about race or urbanization or region of the country: it’s about family. Within racial or ethnic groups, within states or urbanized areas, the more conservative areas tend to have more babies.

In the 1970s, there was little or no difference in fertility rates between liberal and conservative women. But by the 2000s, completed fertility for liberal women had declined markedly below that of conservative women. In recent years, the gap in childbearing between young conservative and liberal women has really opened, which may portend a bigger gap in the coming years...

Before the 1990s, fertility differences by ideology were small. Women over age 45 had no difference in completed fertility, and women of all ages (but with controls for year of age) had only a small difference. There was, however, already a difference in ideology: conservative women reported a childbearing ideal about 0.12 kids higher than liberal women, which is a small, but significant, difference.

For the period after 1995, however, gaps grow. Conservative women over age 45 had about 0.25 more children on average than their liberal peers, an effect which in fact shows up throughout the age distribution once the “over 45” restriction is relaxed. The gap in fertility ideals grew larger as well.

In other words, the “family gap” between conservatives and liberals is a new phenomenon. It’s only in the last two decades that conservatives began to reap a fertility advantage. But it’s not just a fertility difference: if controls for marital status are removed, the conservative fertility advantage gets even bigger. That is, conservatives are simply more likely to be married than liberals. Thus, there is a conservative-liberal gap on marriage and separately on odds of childbearing conditional upon marital status...

Finally, this conservative fertility advantage probably will not give conservatives some inevitable long-term political edge. Fertility rates are falling for conservatives just as much as liberals. Given the size of the fertility differential between conservatives and liberals, it doesn’t actually take a large amount of ideology switching to offset this higher birth rate. Thus, while conservatives may wish that their fertility advantage could afford a durable political majority, that hope is probably just as fleeting as the now-silly-sounding claims of progressives a decade ago that immigration would create a durable Democratic majority. That’s because, at least right now, conservative parents have not been sufficiently successful in keeping their kids in the fold.[27]

”

Conservatism outside the United States

Conservatives in continental Europe

Conservatism in Europe is generally synonymous with Euroskepticism and right-wing populism – ideologies that support local control, self-governance, patriotism and national identity, sovereignty, less immigration, and a more limited government as opposed to an endless EU bureaucracy. While mainstream establishment parties in Europe are also occasionally labeled "conservative" by the media, they share many of the same policies as globalism and liberalism.

Conservative parties in Europe include the Swiss People's Party, Law and Justice, Fidesz, Lega Nord, the Austrian Freedom Party, Sweden Democrats, Finns Party, Conservative People's Party of Estonia, Vox, and the Alternative for Germany, among other parties. Prominent continental European conservatives include Viktor Orbán, Václav Klaus, Matteo Salvini, Santiago Abascal, Christoph Blocher, Jarosław Kaczyński, Santiago Abascal, and Norbert Hofer.

Right-wing populism in Europe has grown since the Eurozone Crisis and European migrant crisis.

Conservatives in Britain

Conservatism has a strong tradition in the United Kingdom, with figures such as John Locke and Edmund Burke laying its philosophical foundation. Most British conservatives belong to the Conservative Party – a big tent party that includes both consistent conservatives and liberal globalists – as well as the United Kingdom Independence Party, Brexit Party, and the Democratic Unionist Party. Some notable British conservatives include Winston Churchill, Enoch Powell, Margaret Thatcher, Ian Paisley, Nigel Farage, Raheem Kassam, and Jacob Rees-Mogg.

Up until the mid-19th century, the forerunner of the Conservative Party was known as Tories, and the name has persisted as a common nickname both for the political party and those believed to be in agreement with it. Since the mid-to-late 1970s, British conservatives have been defined by an advocacy of laissez-faire economics, privatization, and lower taxation. In recent years the Conservative Party has moved away from the social conservatism which once characterized it, and the current party policy includes, for example, support for abortion on demand, gay civil partnership, the Kyoto Treaty and opposition to capital punishment (although it should be noted that such policies have little support among the party's grassroots membership).[28] In common with conservatives in many other countries, British conservatives tend towards a patriotic rather than internationalist outlook, and are traditionally skeptical of the European Union.

Margaret Thatcher revitalized the British conservatives much like Reagan revitalized American conservatives. During her tenure as Prime Minister, she cut taxes, trimmed back government waste, and exercised a strong national defense abroad (including the Falklands War of 1982).

Levels of prayer and worship are much lower in England and Wales than in the U.S., and religious issues thereby play less of a role in public discourse. However, religious issues remain a significant factor in Northern Ireland, and in 2008, religious issues were significant during a special election in Scotland.

The broadcast media (dominated by the BBC) is almost exclusively liberal in tone. The print media is slightly different, with conservative-leaning newspapers like the Daily Mail, Daily Express and Daily Telegraph selling more copies than their rivals.[29] However, even the print media generally leans liberal.

===Conservatives in Canada===Many Canadian conservatives align with the Conservative Party of Canada, though the party does not strongly adhere to conservative values. The Christian Heritage Party is an example of a smaller but more consistent conservative Canadian party.

Conservatives in Australia

Australia was once more conservative than England, but sweeping gun control laws pushed the nation leftward toward greater dependency on government in the last decade. In 2009, opposition to government control based on alleged global warming galvanized conservatives there, and they led the Liberal Party of Australia to a repudiation of an emissions trading scheme.[30] Conservatives also support smaller political parties such as the Family First Party.

Conservatives in Latin America

In the early 21st century, Latin America has been shifting to the right,[31] and conservative evangelical Christians have been growing in political influence.[32][33]

Some notable Latin American conservatives include Jair Bolsonaro (Brazil), Eduardo Bolsonaro (Brazil), Ernesto Araújo (Brazil), Agustín Laje (Argentina), Nicolás Márquez (Argentina), José Antonio Kast (Chile), Hermógenes Pérez de Arce (Chile), Jimmy Morales (Guatemala), Fabricio Alvarado (Costa Rica),[34] Alberto Fujimori (Peru), Keiko Fujimori (Peru), Alvaro Uribe (Colombia) and Mario Abdo Benítez (Paraguay).

Conservatism and the French Revolution

Conservatism in France and the European continent generally arose after 1790 as a response to the radicalism of the French Revolution.

Benefits of Conservatism

Several facets of conservatism function in unison to make it an effective and powerful philosophy. Conservatism emphasizes personal freedom, independence, and initiative; this allows the best of the public to rise to their natural level of achievement. Conservatives recognize that big government fosters dependency and stifles individual achievement—and thus, weakens society as a whole.

At the same time, conservatives also recognize that with individual freedom comes individual responsibility. In the absence of a hand-holding nanny state, it is imperative that each individual take responsibility for his own actions, and exercise his rights and freedoms wisely and with discretion. Thus, social conservatism is also critical to a successful society, as it emphasizes the importance of morality, duty, and responsibility to oneself and fellow men.

American conservatives and happiness

See also: American liberalism and 21st century political losses and Secular leftists and psychogenic illness

Time magazine reported: "In the 'who's happier?' A whole body of research shows conservatives report being happier. Four new studies published in Science hint at a possible reason why.[35]

Previous Breaking News:
Conservatives

See also

Further reading

  • Critchlow, Donald T. The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History (2007)
  • Filler, Louis. Dictionary of American Conservatism The First Complete Guide to Issues, People, Organizations and Events (1987), a useful older encyclopedia
  • Frank, Thomas. What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America (2005), a liberal perspective excerpt and text search
  • Frohnen, Bruce et al. eds. American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia (2006), the most detailed reference
  • Judis, John B. William F. Buckley, Jr.: Patron Saint of the Conservatives (1988) excerpt and text search
  • Kirk, Russell. The Conservative Mind. (7th ed. 2001). Highly influential conservative history of ideas online at ACLS e-books
  • Link, William A. Righteous warrior: Jesse Helms and the rise of modern conservatism (2008) 643 pages
  • Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. The Right Nation, (2004) influential survey excerpt and text search
  • Micklethwait, John, and Adrian Wooldridge. God Is Back: How the Global Revival of Faith Is Changing the World (2009)
  • Nash, George. The Conservative Intellectual Movement in America Since 1945 (2006), excellent scholarly history. excerpt and text search
  • Pemberton, William E. Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan (1998) online edition
  • Perlstein, Rick. Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus (2004) on 1964 excerpt and text search
  • Perlstein, Rick. Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America (2008) excerpt and text search
  • Schneider, Gregory L. ed. Conservatism in America Since 1930: A Reader (2003)
  • Schoenwald, Jonathan. A Time for Choosing: The Rise of Modern American Conservatism (2002) online edition also online at ACLS e-books
  • Schweizer, Peter, and Wynton C. Hall, eds. Landmark Speeches of the American Conservative Movement (2007) excerpt and text search

References

  1. ↑ https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0049089X21000752
  2. ↑ United States Department of State George Washington, farewell address, 1796
  3. ↑ Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary has the following definition of conservative: "tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions: TRADITIONAL"[1] Therefore, a conservative Christian would tend to adhere to the morally sound doctrines of the early Christianity and Judeo-Christian values.
  4. ↑ https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1696643892253466712
  5. ↑ http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-phil-crane-obituary-20141109-story.html
  6. ↑ http://www.reason.com/news/show/29318.html
  7. ↑ Rossiter, "The Giants of American Conservatism," American Heritage 1955 6(6): 56-59, 94-96, online in EBSCO
  8. ↑ See Presidential 2008 Exit Poll
  9. ↑ Haidt: Conservatives Understand Liberals Better Than Liberals Understand Conservatives. The Independent Whig. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  10. ↑ See on line results
  11. ↑ Jonah Goldberg, "What Is a 'Conservative'?", National Review Online, 11 May 2005
  12. ↑ [2]
  13. ↑ Why are 2012 and 2020 key years for Christian creationists and pro-lifers?
  14. ↑ Hebrews 4:12
  15. ↑ See Leonard Moore, "Approaching Conservatism," OAH Magazine of History, 17 (January 2003) online edition
  16. ↑ [3]
  17. ↑ The word was originally used in the French Revolution. The British used it after 1839 to describe a major party. The first American usage is by Whigs who called themselves "Conservatives" in the late 1830s. Hans Sperber and Travis Trittschuh, American Political Terms: An Historical Dictionary (1962) 94-97.
  18. ↑ Curtis, Bruce. "William Graham Sumner 'On the Concentration of Wealth.'" Journal of American History 1969 55(4): 823-832.
  19. ↑ Lapham 2004
  20. ↑ http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100014891/barack-obama-has-failed-to-defeat-conservatism-in-america/
  21. ↑ http://www.ashbrook.org/publicat/onprin/winter11/spalding.html
  22. ↑ Scaliger, Charles (February 23, 2017). Barack Obama's Legacy. The New American. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  23. ↑ Adelmann, Bob (January 20, 2017). Is Obama Worst U.S. President? The New American. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  24. ↑ Vargas, Mark (September 16, 2018). The legacy of Barack Obama (and it's not a good one). Washington Examiner. Retrieved September 16, 2018.
  25. ↑ https://twitter.com/dineshdsouza/status/760447860638789632
  26. ↑ Democrats lost over 1,000 seats under Obama. Fox News. December 27, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.
  27. ↑ The Conservative Fertility Advantage by the Institute for Family Institute
  28. ↑ John Charmley, A History of Conservative Politics Since 1830, (2nd ed. 2008)
  29. ↑ Media UK; Introduction to newspapers in the UK
  30. ↑ http://www.smh.com.au/national/shock-result-as-abbott-wins-liberal-leadership-by-one-vote--ets-dead-20091201-k1uz.html
  31. ↑ Multiple references: See also:
  32. ↑ Puglie, Frederic (February 19, 2018). Evangelicals' newfound political clout in Latin America unnerves politicians, Catholic Church. The Washington Times. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  33. ↑ Polimédio, Chayenne (January 24, 2018). The Rise of the Brazilian Evangelicals. The Atlantic. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  34. ↑ Cullinan Hoffman, Matthew (February 5, 2018). Christian minister takes lead in Costa Rican presidential election after vowing to stop gay agenda. LifeSiteNews. Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  35. ↑ Liberals are More Honest Than Conservatives When They Smile, Time Magazine, 2015

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