Conservatism is not Capitalism by Andrew J. Galambos Conservation is the tendency to preserve what is established.
Capitalism is that societal structure whose mechanism is capable of protecting all forms of private property completely. The current confusion between conservatism and capitalism is not only nearly universal, but it is also a great danger to the development of a free capitalist civilization. So great is the confusion that most political conservatives sincerely think they believe in capitalism and most people who think they believe in capitalism are vigorously pursuing conservative political objectives, usually to the exclusion of other goals for which they find they have "no time." This short article is intended to show that capitalisma and conservatism are two different things. It is true that there is an overlap but this is minor contrasted with the basically different objectives and means employed by the two philosophies. >From the definition of conservatism, it is evident that conservatism is a relative concept because what is established is dependent upon time, place, and circumstance. To be a conservative in mid-20th century America is not the same as to be a conservative in mid-20th century Russia or to be a conservative in late-18th century America. The first wishes to preserve the Republic as established in the 18th- century. The second wishes to preserve Marxism-Leninism. The third wished to preserve monarchy (decidedly, a different goal from the present American conservative's goal to preserve the very Republic that once displaced monarchy). The reason it is easy to see why there is a confusion between present conservatism in America and capitalism is that the original Republic approximated a capitalist society better than any other society in history, and those who are satisfied that this is all there is to do to establish capitalism believe that "restoring the Republic" will do it. It is important to note, however, that only in the United States is it possible to associate even on such a superficial level conservatism with capitalism. Nowhere else is there anything worth preserving in terms of a capitalist heritage. Read the rest of this article at : http://www.banned-books.com/galambos/conservatism.html _____________________________________________ Do not post admin requests to the list. Goanet mailing list ([email protected])
