Among the political arguments these days, the most obvious combatants are Modern Liberals vs Conservatives. There appears to be little, if any, common ground between these two adversaries. And as Modern Liberals drift further Left, the sides become more polarized than ever, by most measures. Big vs Small government, Collectivism vs Individualism, etc. are all examples of that drift. But another, less obvious, ideological battle is being waged—Libertarianism vs Conservatism. Let’s dig.
First, a definition of terms. Libertarianism is defined by Merriam Webster as: “a person who upholds the principles of individual liberty especially of thought and action”. I like to think of Libertarians as the ‘leave me alone’ group. Their general approach is: as long as person A’s behavior does not infringe upon the rights of person B, person A’s behavior should be allowed, if not encouraged. Conservatism is a bit harder to define, but Webster says: “tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions.” I have some minor issues with that definition, but let’s take it at face value for a while. Calling Conservatives ‘tending to maintain existing views’ implies that Conservatives are happy with the status quo, for the most part, where Libertarians think the existing systems are too restrictive against personal freedoms. That is a simple, Reader’s Digest comparison, but it works, on the whole. While these two positions have quite a bit of overlap, there are also outlying sub-positions that are very difficult to reconcile.
For example, many (not all) Libertarians are staunch defenders of legalizing formerly illegal drugs—usage, possession, and sales. They equate such drug industry with the alcohol industry: yes, these substances can harm the user, but it is up to the adult user to choose to imbibe or not. They see that illegality as an infringement of personal liberty. Many (not all) Conservatives feel quite differently. They see it as an unnecessary harm to society, with no upside at all. Note that many of the Conservatives that align with this thought process were on the side of the Prohibitionists in the 1920s.
Many Conservatives (not all) are in favor of a strong, forward positioned US military presence. They feel the ‘Superpower’ label should be exercised to ‘export our freedom-based type of government’. That US forces should maintain bases in many countries, to allow for quick response to threats virtually anywhere. That goes completely against standard Libertarian doctrine, as their approach is that other countries’ business is not our own, at all. Unless it is a direct threat on the US, Libertarians feel such positioning and deployment of US troops anywhere but locally is a complete overreach. In summary: not our circus, not our monkeys. And any American lives or treasure spent on foreign soil, excepting direct threat to the US, is not only greatly wasteful, but flat-out wrong.
Many Conservatives (not all) believe that the US Federal government should regulate commerce, such that government should ensure a level playing field for all participants. Libertarians (not all) are much more likely to endorse a ‘hands off’ approach to commerce, leaving disputes to the courts.
Now for some true disclaimers: it is VERY difficult to find examples of pure Conservative or pure Libertarian politician. Both are as rare as can be. There are the few examples: Rand Paul is a Libertarian icon, and there are a few Conservative folks out there. And strict doctrinaire people on either ideology is even harder to find—some adopt many planks of the platform, but not all. One hopes that the overlaps join the two sides, rather than splinter them into their separate camps. Standing alone, neither has the numbers to overcome the Modern Liberals.
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