Seven Sentiment Squabbles Separating Conservatives from Liberals (2 of 3)
In part two of our series featuring a few fundamental differences between Conservatives and Liberals we will delve into the core beliefs that each ideology has as they relate to citizens and their government.
Conservatives believe in equal opportunity; Liberals believe in equality of outcome.
Conservatives believe that every individual, regardless of skin color, gender, or social class, should have the same opportunity to access public services and institutions. No group, no matter how underrepresented, should be allowed privileged access to these services. Liberals dismiss this view as an idealistic fantasy. Instead, Liberals see the inequality of outcome that many public services provide (such as low minority college enrollment, unequal pay for women, and underperforming low-income children on standardized tests) as racist, sexist, and classist. Conservatives also see these inequalities in outcome as problematic, but differ drastically from Liberals when it comes to solving them. To remedy these inequalities, Liberals institute and propose programs that allow privileged access for the underrepresented groups. They institute programs such as affirmative action for college enrollment, affirmative action for public employment, and greater funding per student for low-income area schools. In essence, they institute programs that discriminate against other Americans so that the outcome is the same for all Americans regardless of their individual, cultural, or ideological differences. Conservatives, on the other hand, believe that societal pressure is the best way to fix inequalities in outcome, not governmental mandates.
Liberals believe in the redistribution of wealth; Conservatives believe in work.
For Liberals, the ideals of Karl Marx are alive and well in their belief that the wealthiest individuals need to be taxed disproportionately higher (much higher) than less-wealthy individuals. They remember the childhood story of Robin Hood: valiantly stealing from the evil rich and giving to the noble poor. This childish view assumes that the rich became rich by stealing from the poor (indirectly of course). The fact is the rich became rich by making everyone else richer, through employment or the convenience of a new good/service. If it was not for the rich Henry Ford, the “poor” would have no cars. If it was not for the enormously wealthy Bill Gates, the “poor” would not have the PC as we know it. Wealth in America is generated through innovation and entrepreneurship, not swindling and extortion; its time for Liberals to grow up to this reality.
