The Classic Liberal Blog

Back to What is Conservatism? War Edition.

I wanted to get into libertarianism because libertarianism is the root of conservatism. There was a time during the life of someone you know (or have known) when what we call libertarianism today was called conservatism.

Now, whether you realize it or not, we are living in historical times. The entire geopolitical landscape is changing and the economy is being pushed towards disaster. So if now isn't the time to find things to focus on together, then when is?

War and the Conservative in 2009:

Right now I'd say the biggest thing dividing libertarians and conservatives are the 2 wars (Iraq and Afghanistan for those of you who went to pubic schools). As I've noted before, I was for the war before I was against it. And no, not like John Kerry. Yet support for war seems to be an iron-clad litmus test.

Which brings me to the olive branch. I read the following post this morning and thought maybe I'd try to bring a clearer understanding to the issue. Now I'm no expert. This is just how I see it. Here it goes ...

Why I left the libertarian ranks: Exhibit A – Hatred of the United States Military

The following picture and caption that I am about to show you, comes from the libertarian leftist blogger Lew Rockwell. I present this personal exhibit as to why I left the Paleo-Conservative/libertarian ranks in favor of the Conservative, Pro-military ranks ...

Now I'm a fan of both parties, so this isn't about "taking sides" ... but hopefully an olive branch instead.

First of all, Lew Rockwell isn't a "leftist" in any rational sense. Saying that he is only muddies the argument between left and right. Think about it. Do you have to love the State (leftist) to be anti-war?

Second, the post Patrick is referring to by Rockwell could easily be considered offensive. I generally agree with the guy and I didn't appreciate it either. Lew Rockwell is one of the most important intellectuals the right has to offer, but all too often he sticks his foot in his mouth.

But even if both parties remain in disagreement about war, can't they still agree on many other topics? Such as freedom?

However, of course, you cannot tell this to the likes of Lew Rockwell and his bastard gang of leftists who hate this damn Country; they still believe that George W. Bush ordered those planes into the trade center towers. What really troubles me, is that the author of this posting is none other than Dr. Lawrence Vance, who is supposedly a Born-Again Christian. How anyone can harbor such hatred for this Country and our Nation’s Military and still claim to be ANY kind of a Christian is beyond me.

From this point on, I'm going to describe why I'm against the 2 wars.

Al-Queda killed 2,996 Americans on September 11, 2001. Since then, an additional 4,371 Americans have been killed, 31,582 injured, and in the neighborhood of 100,000 innocents have lost their lives. I'm all for avenging the deaths of the first 2,996 victims, but at what cost in more lives?

How much money have the wars cost? Has anyone besides me looked at the national budget lately? The money's not there. We're not OK.

Politicians make war decisions. Conservatives by nature don't trust politicians. In America, "we the people" lead the politicians, not the other way around. And because I have so much faith in our military, I'm convinced the politicians have put American soldiers in a very bad spot.

Anti-war. In truth, aren't all sane people anti-war? Seriously. Who wants to go slaughter people? Worse, who wants to send people to go slaughter other people? As a Christian, I can't favor death.

Eight years. They've had eight long years (twice as long as WWII), yet bin Laden is still out there crawling around in caves. 4,371 America lives lost and another 31,582 injured.

Nation-building. Nation-building is nothing but the New Deal/Great Society dragged overseas. Has anyone seen Iraq's Bill of Rights or Constitution? Are they based on natural law?

If we don't believe in central planning at home then we certainly shouldn't be trying to push it on our neighbors!

All signs point to the economy continuing a long-term decline. The men and women in our military should be where they're needed the most - at home. Taking care of their families in these troubling times.

Straight-up! Right now, the government in Washington DC is a greater threat to any of our individual lives than anybody on the other side of the planet. Never forget, America is not her government. Hating government is as all-American as you can get!

In summary, I'm against the 2 wars because the cost in lives is too high, the cost in dollars is too high, the politicians are lying about their ambitions, I don't like killing people, I'm worried about the soldiers families back home, and consider nation-building to be a progressive utopian dream.

The Old Right (libertarian) should try to be more specific about who their target is, which is always government. Soldiers are individuals. Conservatives on the other hand, should realize there's plenty of conservative reasons to be against the wars.