Liberalism vs Conservatism ?

[kentuck]

the "conservatives" became what they so criticized and despised. Big spenders and overseers of Big Government. Just what they accused the "liberals" of doing. They spent us into oblivion - even beyond the wildest imaginations of Keynes or Galbraith. They created huge government programs without thought of the cost and effect.

It is now the "liberals" that are calling for "fiscal responsibility". After all, it was a Democratic President that last balanced the budget. The Republicans, faux conservatives all, talked the talk but did not walk the walk. If this be conservatism, please let it die and disappear.

[BOSSHOG]

1. "Without thought"

That is the big difference between the two concepts. Conservatives don't think about a goddamn thing, care not about the consequences of their actions and choose not to be curious about anything. They revel in their ignorance, considering it an asset. Don't need no smarts; only libruls want to get an edumucation. But on the other side of the coin, conservatives will be first in line to benefit from any advances made in any field, advances brought to us by liberal minds at work.

[EST]

2. False dichotomy.

There are liberals and conservatives in both parties.

The problem is that the republican party and, to a lesser extent, the democratic party have been taken over by imbeciles, tyrants, crooks, big spenders and irresponsible immature scalawags.

[Finder]

3. It was the marketing of the term "conservative"...

to mean middle-class, church-going, family supporting, patriotic americans. Liberalism was framed as hippy, gay, feministic, immoral, tax-raising and pro-communistic.

[kentuck]

4. But their warranty ran out...

and the people saw they had bought a lemon.

[Finder]

10. Indeed it did. n/t

[OneBlueSky]

5. conservative = "let's make things better for me" . . .

liberal/progressive = "let's make things better for all" . . .

regardless of which label they personally prefer, I'm convinced that most Americans would describe themselves as being in the latter category . . .

[More Than A Feeling]

6. It was inevitable, because the basis

of conservatism is "We are justified in telling you what to do based on our own interests, and your criticisms are illegitimate because you aren't a member of our tribe."

Conservatives only wanted small government when they viewed government as being in the hands of the enemy. When they took power, they still hated government when it did things for their enemies, but they loved the personal power they gave them. So they split the difference, and gave us big government that didn't work except for their own wallets.

[underpants]

7. "Smaller government" means no regulation and no taxation of the top

That's all that has ever meant but all those angry white guys not actually in the management class (regardless of title) and the self employed listened to their radios that told them the reason they are so angry about the traffic and their job and their wife was because of welfare ;-) , and the liberals and the government telling them what to do and they ate it up with a spoon.

[More Than A Feeling]

9. "Liberal elitist" is an oxymoron.

Liberals as a class are not elitists. That term is a conservative way of projecting their desire to impose their ideas and beliefs on everyone else. They believe they have a right to do that, and so they feel that they are being cheated and discriminated against when other people resist their domination (which is actually illegitimate, but they don't recognize that).

[underpants]

11. discriminated against when other people resist their domination

Oooh excellent. I will have to remember that one.

[FormerDittoHead]

8. Liberals are not for destroying government. The neocons want to "starve the beast"...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starve-the-beast

Blame the neo-cons for the spending. It's call "starving the beast". The plan INTENDS to run up the debt so high that the government will be FORCED to stop all discretionary spending (all but military and interest payments for the debt) so that, in the absence of any government services (eg: Katrina) people will revolt and reject the idea of government being good for anything (and at that point, it won't be good for anything) and the 'mission' will have been accomplished: convince the people that government shouldn't be used for anything more than the military, and we're better off on our own (ie: subject to the profit motives of the corporations) for education, medical care, retirement, etc.