Defining American Conservatism
It’s interesting to me to look up the definition of ‘conservative.’ I would have expected one definition at least to be ‘someone who conserves.’ But alas, that explanation fails the current list and I find instead:
Adjective: Believing in or supporting tenets of the political right: "The Conservative authoritarians who were more inclined to violence."
Noun: A member of a Conservative Party.
Wouldn’t one at least expect a throw-away to those who care about the planet, or possibly those who seek to maintain (conserve)—at least in the American context--our freedoms, willingness to welcome the poor and disadvantaged of the world and possible support for the upward mobility for which all citizens strive?
Nary a word in that context.
So, given that the word itself has been hijacked, let’s take a look at the scorecard under its current (and woefully political) definition. The ‘political right’ in the dictionary definition rather neatly…
Scrapped all hope of environmental sensitivity, opting instea…