Many decades ago, Republicans had a clear, well-defined vision of the nature of morality and rights and a strong commitment to liberty. Unfortunately, as public opinion started to move against them, they threw in the towel and accepted the premises of the socialistic welfare state and regulated society, primarily in the quest for "legitimacy" and political power. The only difference between conservatives and leftists today is that conservatives continue to cloak their approval of socialism in the garb of "free markets, private property, and limited government."
What vexes conservatives so much is that libertarians have maintained our commitment to the principles of morality and liberty above all else. The primary reason conservatives wish that libertarians would go away is that we remind them of what they once were and still should be.
Jonah Goldberg and the Meaning of Rights
No comments:
Post a Comment