Is there a real conservative utopia anywhere in the world?

[CJCRANE]

The Scandinavian nations are generally held up by liberals (or DUers at least) as a good example of social democratic countries with a mixed economy, strong social safety nets and a strong and broad-based middle class.

But I just wondered if there is a good example of a succesful conservative country?

One with low taxes and minimal government where the rich create jobs aplenty and the wealth trickles down to create a good standard of living for everyone?

Does such a place exist...and if so where is it?

[SpiralHawk]

1. Flopistan?

Just a wild guess...

[kratos00]

2. Yes

Haiti and Somalia are good examples of low tax small government paradises.

[Vincardog]

3. DumFuckistan?

[DJ13]

4. Somalia?

Those pirates are free market types.

[snagglepuss]

Saudi Arabia.

[dtexdem]

5. Somalia?

Yeah, I think that's it.

[provis99]

6. well, I disagree with your assumptions.

I don't think a conservative utopia would be concerned with job creation and wealth redistribution; that's more like socialism to me.

A conservative utopia I would think, would be more like feudal Europe in the Dark Ages: overrun with religion, dominated by reactionary nobles who oppress the peasants, and ruled by a right-wing absolute monarch.
Conservatives would consider that to be a successful society, though I doubt the peasants would.

[Bragi]

11. I think you just described Afghanistan /nt

[provis99]

14. I'll accept Afghanistan.

Afghanistan also has widespread ethnic hostility, which conservatives also seem to like. From the conservative point of view then, Afghanistan is a sucessful society; not so much from the ordinary Afghan's point of view.

[Bragi]

17. Afghanistan has it all

Tribal chieftains, drug barons, war lords, and religious medievilists. It's a great conservative coalition.

[Initech]

22. I'll see your Afghanistan and raise you Uganda.

Take the religious fundamentalism of the middle east, subtract the government, replace Islam with Christianity, add a nearly psychotic hatred of the GLBT community, and the preachers are the ones in charge. There you have it.

[Bragi]

26. Good one.

Closer to home, Haiti has a lot of potential in this category as well.

[Demonaut]

7. behind the gated communities

[banned from Kos]

8. Ireland? 12.5% corporate tax rate and abortion illegal

as well as an unregulated fucked up banking system that is screwing over the people (recently had to take banks into receivership)

I may be wrong about abortion being illegal.

[CJCRANE]

15. True, Ireland did have a brief period of prosperity...

but it isn't doing that great at the moment.

I'd be interested to hear the Irish take on their current system.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

20. Ireland just plain collapsed about a year ago

Conservatives don't talk about it much anymore.

[D B Cooper]

9. Utopia

The Lawrence Welk show. It is Reality TV to Conservatives.

[Enrique]

10. that's why they talk about "American Exceptionalism"

people ask, why don't your ideas work anywhere? they answer, they'll work here because we're special.

people ask, how come all the socialist countries in Europe are doing ok? they answer, that won't work here, because America is special.

[FSogol]

12. Sudan and Somalia. No taxes, small govt, muchos firearms, and bootstraps!

:party:

[Warpy]

13. The closest would be Switzerland

but even they are far to the left of US "conservatives."

It's very telling that we can easily point to at least half a dozen conservative hellholes.

[elleng]

16. No

[ladjf]

18. None that I know of. Conservative philosophy doesn't lead to

"Utopian" conditions. Quite the opposite. nt

[CJCRANE]

28. Exactly...just look at the London Riots for a topical example. nt

[Initech]

19. Somalia - no taxes, no government, no one has money, everyone has guns and no one's in charge.

[CJCRANE]

29. A great place for entrepeneurs...

it's just a pity they're not so hot on security, infrastructure, medical services or food supply.

[geckosfeet]

21. Texas?

[Ian David]

23. Haiti and Jamaica. n/t

[Evasporque]

24. Batshittistan! nt

[Patiod]

25. The Green Zone

Lots of idiots went over to Iraq to institute a conservative utopia.

How's that working out for them?

From the Amazon.com description of Rajiv Chandrasekaran's "Life in the Emerald City"

"In the vacuum of postwar planning, Bremer ignores what Iraqis tell him they want or need and instead pursues irrelevant neoconservative solutions—a flat tax, a sell-off of Iraqi government assets, and an end to food rationing. His underlings spend their days drawing up pie-in-the-sky policies, among them a new traffic code and a law protecting microchip designs, instead of rebuilding looted buildings and restoring electricity production. His almost comic initiatives anger the locals and help fuel the insurgency."

[riverwalker]

27. that is great question

and we need to take advantage of it. Bachmann's dream is to turn the America into Uganda.

[Proles]

30. I would say Somalia.

Seeing as how the government that governs least, governs best -- what country governs less than Somalia?

That's what the conservatives dream of.

[DonCoquixote]

31. OODLY enough

I would say China, for all the images of mao, they have become the union busting, press censoring, fascists that they used to hate.

[War Horse]

32. That's a good point n/t