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    Defining A Conservative

    By Wes Keene | April 11, 2010 | In Category: General, Political Parties


    Recently a poll circulated on Facebook that asked users to answer a series of 10 questions that would determine where they fall on the ideological scale. Of course, such a poll is always fraught with danger as people are asked to put themselves in a political box. Needless to say, every poll falls short of objectivity, and this poll was no exception.

    The goal of any poll is to get a general idea of where a respondent stands on issues, not to drill down to minutia. For that reason, polls usually ask broad questions with multiple choice answers that may or may not accurately describe an individual’s exact position. Here’s one example:

    4. Foreign Policy A strong defense requires playing an active, interventionist role in world affairs. As the last remaining superpower, we have a moral duty to police the world at any cost, or else we will surely pay the ultimate price. If we don’t militarily wipe out terrorism, the terrorists will wipe us out. We must resolve to win no matter how long it takes. It’s better to strike now than to pay later for our inaction.

    America should play an active role in world affairs. We need to move toward more world government, particularly when it comes to issues such as global warming. The war on terror should rely heavily on diplomatic action. Military intervention should be used when there is a threat to our sovereignty, but this position can and should be reversed whenever public opinion turns against it.

    The role of our government, and the role of the United Nations, should be constantly expanded to help ensure that all of the world moves toward democracy. Complaints that government is too big already are simply counter-productive and should be ignored.

    Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations; entangling alliances with none. America’s interventionist policies over the past 100+ years have done little or nothing to reduce international instability, have led us into an endless series of wars, and have cost us dearly in American lives and money. The best defense of our borders is to defend our rights and liberty, not to sacrifice them while constantly growing our gigantic military, led by a parade of Presidents who repeatedly stick our nose into other countries’ affairs.

    This question is designed to draw the reader’s eye toward the fourth answer. Note that each answer provides some commentary (that’s generally a no-no in polling), and that the wording of every other option uses pejoratives. Also, notice the other options invoke a labyrinth of if/then type statements, or strong absolutes designed to direct respondents to other answers.

    The goal of this article isn’t to beat up on the Nolan Chart Survey, however. Instead, this article asks you to question your own beliefs. Were it not for a political party constantly yammering on about national security, might you feel differently about foreign policy? If no one identified “green energy” with Democrats would you have a different take on it?

    Americans do themselves a huge disservice when they vote a party instead of a person. Here in primary season voters have a critical chance to decide the next crop of Republican leadership in Congress. Instead of listening to candidates blather on about who is more conservative, voters need to decide for themselves which issues really matter, given our current state. That means ignoring issues that simply are not as essential to focus on right now.

    The two-party system has been extremely effective at putting voters into two groups and then getting them to declare outright war on each other. So, in effect, we’re taught that anyone who doesn’t vote for a given Democrat is a conservative right-winger. If you voted for Doug Hoffman in NY23, you’re a right-winger. Martha Coakley declared that MA had elected a hard right winger, in Scott Brown.

    When the labels are peeled off, and voters are asked where they stand on issues, that’s where we get real answers. The brand name of a political party is simply too powerful for most to resist. Like the 1980′s soft drink taste tests, many are surprised to learn the candidate they would support if they had to vote strictly on issues.

    Sadly, we are a two party nation, and that means there is a political reality that conservatives need to get behind less than ideal candidates if they want to keep the “greater evil” from winning in November. That doesn’t mean we need to have mediocre options in November. This season’s primaries could set the stage for a true conservative landslide in November…but only if voters pay close attention.





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