Pushing The Fantasy

tom swift

“Social Conservative (which includes fiscal conservatism for the clueless)”

Absurd. Social conservatism doesn’t subsume fiscal conservatism. The two concepts are totally unrelated. Recognition of this obvious fact has been the most important development in American politics of the past half-decade.

There are two groups trying to push the fantasy that the two philosophies are intrinsically related (in a more fundamental way than a partial similarity of names). First, social conservatives themselves, presumably because they don’t want to be left behind by the surging popularity of fiscal conservatism. And second, our Leftoids, who hope to confuse the electorate into thinking that fiscal conservatives suffer from the same glaring faults as do the social conservatives. But it’s a load of rubbish.
August 10, 2011 - 5:18 pm

From the comments at Vodka Pundit who had this to say. "Well said, Mr. Swift."

Let me add that there are a fair number of social conservatives who are on the left. Blacks and Hispanics mostly. And a fair number of social conservatives (Billy Sunday ring a bell?) joined with Progressives to give us Alcohol Prohibition, thus helping to make Progressivism the deleterious force it is today. It would be nice if I could be assured that social conservatives wouldn't again fall for that stuff. But they still support Drug Prohibition which looks suspiciously like a smaller form of Alcohol Prohibition. Not in the nature of the problem but the numbers of people involved. And still the social conservatives (that bastion of historical rememberance - according to them) don't seem to be able to learn from the history of Alcohol Prohibition. Pity.

Anyway - given the numbers of social conservatives on the left and given that a fair number are black - why am I not seeing calls from that group for fiscal conservatism? It is a wonder. Or it may be that social conservative does not equal fiscal conservative.

So what group is consistent on the fiscal question? I'd have to say libertarians. Except that there are a fairly large number of left libertarians. That leaves the Tea Party. So far. Except a fair number of them were pushing their social agenda items up until a few months ago. Which may merely mean they have gone into stealth mode.

So it is really not just the Left that I'm fighting. It is the statists of the Right and the Left. The folks who want to wield the fasces. And you know what we called those people in the 20th Century.

H/T Instapundit

Cross Posted at Classical Values