Conservatism Is Simply a School of Political

Conservatism is simply a school of political thought that accepts tradition as a source of wisdom rather than ideology (Wikipedia). Conservatism can encompass social or values conservatism, fiscal conservatism, and even business conservatism. In today's America, conservatism is most closely associated with the Republican Party. Critics of conservatism note that the school of thought does little to prepare American policies for the rapid economic, social, and political changes brought about by globalization.

As a political view, Kalb notes that conservatism views tradition as a source of wisdom "that goes beyond what can be demonstrated or even explicitly stated." Reliance on theory is often seen as the alternative to conservatism's reliance on tradition. Kalb argues that conservatism is based on "habits, attitudes and implicit presumptions" that commonly foster unity over division, and articulates things that are often difficult to express in theory.

Social or values conservatism focuses on morals or values. This type of conservatism often defends "traditional values" like the nuclear family and the paternalistic view of the father as the head of the family. Given conservatisms emphasis on tradition, conservatism can sometimes advocate revolutionary changes to the status quo. The "Reagan Revolution" brought on by former President Ronald Reagan was a form of social conservatism that rapidly changed American social policies (Wikipedia).

There are many other types of conservatism. Fiscal conservatism generally opposes government debt, while institutional conservatism refers to resistance to change in societal and governmental institutions (Wikipedia). Business conservatism refers to the support of the "business-owning class" (Wikipedia).

Fascism and many reactionary movements are to the right of conservatism on the political spectrum. On the other hand, socialism, progressivism, and liberalism are to the left of conservatism on the political spectrum. Conservatism is often seen as support for traditional politics and values, which can be translated differently in different cultures and times. For example, American institutional conservatives oppose publicly funded medicine, while institutional conservatives in Europe often strongly oppose cutting of national health programs. In America, traditional politics favors a lack of publicly funded medicine, while the opposite is true in America (Wikipedia). In addition, American social conservatives in China would advocate Christianity, while Chinese social conservatives would see "Christianity as a suspect alien cult" (Wikipedia).

In the United States today, conservatism is largely associated with the views of the Republican Party. George W. Bush's opposition to abortion and welfare reforms are clearly a form of social conservatism and the government's support of business is a type of business conservatism. In contrast, the Democratic Party is seen as much less conservativist in nature. The Democrats espouse ideas that social conservative would reject, such as Clinton's attempt to redefine Medicare, and a focus on liberal human rights.

One important criticism about the validity of conservatism in America today is the potential difficulty that conservatism faces in predicting and dealing with the complex web of political, social, and economic changes that are sweeping the globe. Today, the forces of globalization are transforming economies and even societies at an unprecedented rate. The political situation of America itself is profoundly impacted by these changes. As such, a pure reliance on conservatism may result in a lack of understanding of these changes, and the impact that these changes can have on the worldwide social, political, and economic fabric.