My political ideology is conservatism. Conservatism is a social thinking and political philosophy which promotes customary social institutions in a civilization and culture context. The main ideas surrounding conservatism include human imperfection, tradition, property rights, authority and hierarchy, and organic society (Brooks, 45). As a conservative, the key idea is to preserve various institutions which include religion, monarchy, and the federal parliamentary authority with an objective to strengthen continuity and social stability. The primary purpose is to see that all political, social, and economic practices result in a unified American society.
Nevertheless, there is always different political ideology, liberalism, which differ in particular views with conservatism. Liberalism today can best be understood from the viewpoint of McGovern who practiced politics which were more profound than what Democrats and Republicans believed. McGovern's ideas can still be applied today because they were better and pure politics since they were rooted in patriotism to American history. McGovern's definition of liberalism was based on the principle that it is better to treat diseases and feed people rather than engage in conflicts. McGovern supported various social courses like the broad civil rights which were committed to promoting the progress of ethnic and racial minorities, the progress of women, people living with disabilities, and gays and lesbians (48). Moreover, there were additional rights which McGovern has championed for like the vision of employment as well as affordable health care for all Americans.
Conservatism on Particular Issues
Social Issues
Conservatism, in a social context, concerns several factors which affect the whole society. Religious conservatism provides social perception and opposes the changes in moral and traditional practices on gender roles and sexuality. For instance, there is the opposition to abortion and anti-discrimination of laws against same-sex marriage. The concept of religious conservatism can best be illustrated from McGovern's viewpoint. McGovern suggests that there is always a free will and each citizen should be supported in their paths as long as they do not hurt other members of the society (78). Besides, issues such as abortion depict an immoral society. Therefore, in trying to shape the community, conservatism mainly focuses on the perception of conserving lives.
Similarly, conservatism in a social context bases its philosophy on culture. One of the most recognized aspects of culture is multiculturalism. The idea that people in the society must sacrifice their racial and ethnic identities to integrate for the common good of the society (Brooks, 111). Mainly, conservatism has always aimed to limit the inequity based white dominance in American society. There has been a constant fight against ethnic bias against minority communities and immigrants in society. Generally, the central concept supported by conservatism is individualism. In this manner, there has been constant advocating for cultural diversity.
Economic Issues
Conservatism in economic perspective focuses on policies which are based on the need for fixing expenditure and taxation. Fiscal conservatism focuses majorly on limiting federal spending and taxation rates. Conservatives suggest that the national state has been using debt to justify corruption politics. The main concern is that bier spending is a way of ruining the society's moral and that the nation's debt is creating a dangerous group of speculators. Some activists argued that there must be balance budgets. A budget which is aimed at narrowing down tax rates (McGovern, 89). Besides, overtaxing is a way to enslave ordinary citizens to the government. Their hard labor is never appreciated and that the little they earn is always taken away. Conservatism thus tries to improve the lives of people by devising means which prohibit authoritarian rule of the federal state to take away peoples privileges.
Besides, a similar factor which conservatism advocates for is low spending by the government. The main argument behind this idea is that low spending ensures adequate circulation of capital in the society (Wilson, 98). Therefore, there will be more jobs created as there will be the establishment of various institutions. Also, such low spending would increase the dominance of the free market instead of the regulated market. Free markets are important especially to the civilians since there are easy importation and exportation (Sexton, 172). These activities are not only beneficial to the government's economy but also has improved the lives of individuals. The free market practically is the surest way to grow the economy which will ensure that there is balanced budgeting, low spending, and low taxing. Overall, the primary economic purpose of conservatism has been to support economic growth in ways which do not harm civilians.
Political and Foreign Issues
There have been various factors when it comes to political contributions of conservatism. The central aspect has been trying to support opinions which are not documented in the constitution. Just like any other nation, advocating for rights, not within the law can be harder especially if the authorities adhere to the constitutional statute. One aim of conservatism has been uniting liberals with socialists. In American society, two major political parties have been dominant, the Democrats and the Republicans, with each supporting and conducting their philosophical ideas while in power (Sexton, 65). These two parties continue to maintain a divided American society. Conservatism seeks to have an American culture where these political affiliations do not affect the integration of people. McGovern in this issue suggested that a divided American society will be the start and the fall of a unified America. Therefore, even with the political heats, people should try not to hold on these ideas tightly to the point that causes anger and hatred.
In addition, conservatism establishes the purpose of a government to both domestic and foreign practices. There are practically many evils in society. For example, there has always been a constant misuse of political powers. Elected officials have used their offices for personal benefits instead of playing their roles in society. According to Brooks, in the book The Conservative Heart, a happier America will only be possible when all the wrongdoings in the nation come to an end (98). The society relies on the authorities, thus the authority must serve their purpose which people entrusted in them. Also, the foreign policies have been based on American diplomatic relations with other countries. America has continuously engaged in confrontations like China. Conservatism suggests that better diplomatic ties are essential for peaceful coexistence among nations since international relations will affect citizens when there are political and economic challenges.
Conservatism and the Government
According to my ideology, the primary responsibility of the government is to be a servant to its people and not a master. Therefore, the existing way of practices portrayed especially in a political context must be transformed to meet this primary purpose. There are various ways which the government can serve its people. First, the government needs to ensure that it supports human rights by all means. For instance, the cases of ethnicity and racial disparities would have been eliminated suppose the government is not hypocritical, siding with the dominant populations instead of considering the rights of other minority populations. There is also an economic responsibility which is to ensure that all people access fiscal elements which can help them in improving their lives. For example, the government should establish an economy where the people benefit.
To some extent, the American government has achieved this purpose in the past. One primary responsibility it accomplished was the establishment of civil rights in the pre-history of America. The government ensured and articulated how all its citizens could have equal rights especially the African Americans (Oberschall, 72). Besides, creating a better economy has been achieved since America is considered an economic hub. There was consistency in the previous governments to try and improve the financial status of the succeeding regime by developing improvement policies.
Nevertheless, I believe as a conservative that the government is responsible for addressing all the political, social, and economic issues in the society. The people give a mandate to the authority to ensure that all the essential society continuation elements are achieved to foster a better American society (Wilson, 56). Besides, the main idea is to promote individualism, the government purpose to each citizen. In this way, the government should always focus on pursuing individual rights. Besides, conservatism suggests that the government contributes to all the abuse of power and evil in the society since it has used its ability to benefit itself. A happier, healthier, and fairer America will only be achieved when the government adopts some conservatism concepts in conducting its roles.