I Am Not a Right-Wing Nut Job

I've covered this sort of subject in my blog posts, but here I am addressing it directly. While I have many conservative ideals, I think that everyone should, I am primarily a progressive.

My conservative ideals stem from a belief that any mechanism that is designed should strive for efficiency. Efficiency is defined as achieving a finely defined goal with the smallest amount of energy and resources. There are problems that the government can and should solve (progressivism), those problems should be solved with the smallest, most efficient government possible (conservativism). That is the core of my conservative beliefs.

I am also somewhat conservative in the classical sense: I want large state government and small federal government. I want that because the Southern United States is retarded, and I want them to have as little control over me as possible. A large federal government gives them control.

You could also call me conservative in the sense that I think that government's ONLY goal is the stewardship of freedom. All actions taken by government should be with the mind of increasing freedom. This can come in odd ways, though. For example, high taxes take away the freedom of deciding on what I can spend my money, but they provide things like highways, which incalculably expand freedom.

It is in that quest for more freedom that I become incredibly progressive, though. Protecting people from problems expands their horizons. Remember Maslow's hierarchy to self-actualization. We cannot achieve a higher sense of self and existence when we are worrying about the fundamentals of life. If government can provide three square meals a day, medical care, and a bed to sleep in, the government should provide it. The goal of government vis-a-vis its constituents is to raise the baseline of life high enough such that death on the streets is impossible and there is always a helping hand to get you on your feet. Beyond that, the free market and capitalism is what will provide you with a 900" television and a BMW, but the government should make sure that if you fall, you don't fall into darkness.