The Conservative Agenda?

[arbygil]

I keep hearing things about the liberal agenda, and what not, so I'm honestly curious: What would the conservative agenda consist of? What do conservatives hope to accomplish? What are the positives and the negatives associated with conservatism in America? Feel free to discuss with an open mind.

 

[Elis]

I think conservatism is one of those words thrown around quite a lot, and will mean very different things to different people. Personally I don't think there are any particular views that are inherently conservative, but rather the idea to preserve what is. I'd love to be corrected on this because I don't think I have a good sense of the word myself.

Either way, as I've come to see it conservatism was governed from the idea to have classes separated and for the upper class to maintain leverage. But as a concept I think the conservative want to preserve what is, with the idea that what is is there for a reason and shouldn't be tempered with just willy-nilly.

So as to answer your question, I'd say a conservative agenda would either be to preserve the discrepancy between classes, or the culture and status quo as a whole.

 

[Eventhorizon]

In short its about freedom. The idea that you can make your own choices in life and benefit from those choices. Its about bringing innovation into the world so that everyone can eventually benefit from it. The government does not owe the people anything other than protection and while some would argue it dips into the idea of socialism, a basic infrastructure like roads to allow all of this to happen. The basic idea is that the people can rule themselves in a far better manner than the government and what government there is should be small and unobtrusive.
Unfortunately many conservatives support things that ultimately take freedom away. Religions, primarily judeo-christian in nature and try to enforce that belief system onto the people through government action.

 

[Eventhorizon]

I think conservatism is one of those words thrown around quite a lot, and will mean very different things to different people. Personally I don't think there are any particular views that are inherently conservative, but rather the idea to preserve what is. I'd love to be corrected on this because I don't think I have a good sense of the word myself.

Either way, as I've come to see it conservatism was governed from the idea to have classes separated and for the upper class to maintain leverage. But as a concept I think the conservative want to preserve what is, with the idea that what is is there for a reason and shouldn't be tempered with just willy-nilly.

So as to answer your question, I'd say a conservative agenda would either be to preserve the discrepancy between classes, or the culture and status quo as a whole.

The word itself means a lot. Conserve what you have. Resources, money etc and spend them only on whats needed and nothing more.

 

[j654dgj7]

i dont think theres a consistent 'conservative agenda'. even suggesting that an overall agenda is taking place sounds like a conspiracy to me.
i just wish the american right would consider bringing back glass-steagall before the worlds economy crashes again. god, i hate that cdo's, subprime mortgages, and bespoke tranche opportunities exist. they will destroy us all.

 

[Stu]

An interesting aspect of the conservative agenda is the refusal to pay for the damage that industry does to the environment.
Any attempt to factor in the costs of pollution into the price of any commodity is scorned upon. So it would seem that a big part of the conservative agenda is destruction of the ecosystem.

 

[acd]

In short its about freedom. The idea that you can make your own choices in life and benefit from those choices. Its about bringing innovation into the world so that everyone can eventually benefit from it. The government does not owe the people anything other than protection and while some would argue it dips into the idea of socialism, a basic infrastructure like roads to allow all of this to happen. The basic idea is that the people can rule themselves in a far better manner than the government and what government there is should be small and unobtrusive.
Unfortunately many conservatives support things that ultimately take freedom away. Religions, primarily judeo-christian in nature and try to enforce that belief system onto the people through government action.

Unless you are a woman... And/or gay... Or transgender.. or not an evangelical Christian. But you acknowledge that. It's not just many conservatives that try to legislate theology. It's the 2016 Republican party platform, now that Trump chose Pence as VP.

 

[Skarekrow]

Unless you are a woman... And/or gay... Or transgender.. or not an evangelical Christian. But you acknowledge that. It's not just many conservatives that try to legislate theology. It's the 2016 Republican party platform, now that Trump chose Pence as VP.

Don’t forget white as well...very important.

 

[brightmoon]

What is up with the "D" list celebs at the RNC convention?

1. Tim Tebow (Brady and Rothsberger said no) Maybe he isn't speaking??
2. Scott Baio (seriously, Chaichi? - The Fonz wasn't available and he a liberal democrat anyway)
3. A couple of soap opera "stars" I've never heard of
4. More reality TV "stars" I've never heard of
5. Phil Robertson, bizarre nut job and Duck Dynasty "star"

Scraping the bottom of the barrel here. Represents a cross section of America?

 

[Eventhorizon]

Y

Unless you are a woman... And/or gay... Or transgender.. or not an evangelical Christian. But you acknowledge that. It's not just many conservatives that try to legislate theology. It's the 2016 Republican party platform, now that Trump chose Pence as VP.

Yes. I am not a conservative but I do hold to fiscal conservative ideals. I dont agree with the issue you take concerning women and conservatives unless you are referring to right to choose etc...

 

[Eventhorizon]

An interesting aspect of the conservative agenda is the refusal to pay for the damage that industry does to the environment.
Any attempt to factor in the costs of pollution into the price of any commodity is scorned upon. So it would seem that a big part of the conservative agenda is destruction of the ecosystem.

Can you give some examples of that. Like when the epa dumped a ton of toxic waste into... oh wait sorry. That was Obamas watch.

 

[brightmoon]

Well we could start with Reagan’s track record, it’s worth recalling his infamous public statement that “trees cause more pollution than automobiles do,” and that if “you’ve seen one tree you’ve seen them all.”

The administration tried to cut EPA funding by more than 25 percent in its first budget proposal And massive cuts to Carter-era renewable-energy programs “set solar back a decade.

“In the first year of the Reagan administration, there was a 79 percent decline in the number of enforcement cases filed from regional offices to EPA headquarters, and a 69 percent decline in the number of cases filed from the EPA to the Department of Justice.”

http://grist.org/article/griscom-reagan/

Then we can move to the Bush Era...

 

[j654dgj7]

Well we could start with Reagan’s track record, it’s worth recalling his infamous public statement that “trees cause more pollution than automobiles do,” and that if “you’ve seen one tree you’ve seen them all.”

The administration tried to cut EPA funding by more than 25 percent in its first budget proposal And massive cuts to Carter-era renewable-energy programs “set solar back a decade.

“In the first year of the Reagan administration, there was a 79 percent decline in the number of enforcement cases filed from regional offices to EPA headquarters, and a 69 percent decline in the number of cases filed from the EPA to the Department of Justice.”

http://grist.org/article/griscom-reagan/

Then we can move to the Bush Era...

reagan wanted people to hate the government, so he defunded it until it sucked, and people started hating it. he took a page right out of the old henry "lets pay people to piss in public transportation" ford handbook.
if you dont believe me, look up "starving the beast". thats what reagan called his strategy.

 

[invisible]

I am absolutely not in any way blaming anyone for having this kind of discussion or trying to prevent anyone from having this discussion, but this kind of discussion really bothers me. When I think of left and right on the political spectrum, what I think of is communism and capitalism. America, obviously, is the most capitalist nation in the world. There is absolutely no one in American politics suggesting that the public should seize all private property. The locus of general discussion has shifted so far right that no one remembers what the left really is anymore. It's farce.

It's also just ad hominem disguised as discourse. "Right wing agenda", "left wing agenda". Might as well be saying "Right wing scum", "Leftist filth".

 

[Eventhorizon]

reagan wanted people to hate the government, so he defunded it until it sucked, and people started hating it. he took a page right out of the old henry "lets pay people to piss in public transportation" ford handbook.
if you dont believe me, look up "starving the beast". thats what reagan called his strategy.

Interesting take but history has recorded something much different than what you detail here.

 

[Eventhorizon]

I am absolutely not in any way blaming anyone for having this kind of discussion or trying to prevent anyone from having this discussion, but this kind of discussion really bothers me. When I think of left and right on the political spectrum, what I think of is communism and capitalism. America, obviously, is the most capitalist nation in the world. There is absolutely no one in American politics suggesting that the public should seize all private property. The locus of general discussion has shifted so far right that no one remembers what the left really is anymore. It's farce.

It's also just ad hominem disguised as discourse. "Right wing agenda", "left wing agenda". Might as well be saying "Right wing scum", "Leftist filth".

I thnk discussions like these are informative and needed. Your opinion that agenda means something other than what it actually means is baseless. If anything it simply means "goal". As for land seizures, all you have to do is look up eminent domain and see who has used it for what.

 

[invisible]

I thnk discussions like these are informative and needed. Your opinion that agenda means something other than what it actually means is baseless. If anything it simply means "goal". As for land seizures, all you have to do is look up eminent domain and see who has used it for what.

This is EXACTLY what I mean.

 

[the]

My guess is that the conservative agenda is to further entrench ourselves in the things which make us morally superior. Things like being the best at war, sucking the most resources out of other countries, ensuring that only the elite can molest children and do drugs. Things like that.

 

[brightmoon]

Interesting take but history has recorded something much different than what you detail here.

What history is that? The whitewashed history of the Reagan years or what actually happened? The history of that time has now been so distorted its not really recognizable, so many things that just accepted as truth.

"Reagan freed the hostages"

"Reagan won the cold war and defeated the Soviets"

"Reagan shrank the size of government"

"Trickle down economics actually worked"

All lies that are based on myth than reality. These generally accepted statements represent what people want to believe not what actually happened. Distorting history like this impacts the present and the future because it makes more likely to base present day decisions on nothing but fabrications.

 

[j654dgj7]

Interesting take but history has recorded something much different than what you detail here.

are you willing to enlighten me?