I like this take from Big Hollywood blogger Leigh Scott:
There are really only two core beliefs that you need to be considered a Conservative in my book. One, as I’ve stated before, is the conviction that personal liberty is paramount. Two, you don’t look to your enemies for validation.
But while I agree with it on its face, I think it misses an essential element – the advocacy of policies which actually promote that personal liberty.
Of course, many of us who call ourselves “conservative” disagree on those policy outcomes – for example, pro-choice is conservative if you don’t think a fetus is a “person” who can have “personal liberty,” but if it is, conservatism philosophically demands a pro-life stance.
The key is to always start with that core philosophy first, and to have our internal debates on those terms.
And, of course, avoid Mr. Scott’s correctly described “trap” of spending so much time and energy nitpicking each others’ “purity,” methods, and “tone” that we forget to focus on the real threat to our essential liberties – those politicians and voters who think they are a secondary concern.
