Conservative liberalism >From Wikipedia Conservative liberalism_[1]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-iPolitique-0) _[2]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-Nordsieck-1) is a variant of _liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism) , combining liberal values and policies with _conservative_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservatism) stances, or, more simply, representing the _right-wing_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-wing_politics) of the liberal movement._[3]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-Mair-2) _[4]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-3) _[5]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-4) Conservative liberalism is a more _positive_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positive_liberty) and less _radical_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_radicalism) version of _classical liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism) ._[6]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-5) Conservative liberal parties combine liberal policies with more traditional stances on social and ethical issues._[2]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-Nordsieck-1) They are generally supporters of _economic liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economic_liberalism) and they often identify themselves as _law and order_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_and_order_(politics)) -parties, tougher on _crime_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime) and, in the era of the so-called _War on Terror_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_on_Terror) following the _September 11 attacks_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_11_attacks) , more committed against _terrorism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism) .[_citation needed_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed) ] The roots of conservative liberalism are to be found at the beginning of the _history of liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_liberalism) . Until the two _world wars_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_war) , in most European countries the political class was formed by conservative liberals, from _Germany_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany) to _Italy_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italy) . The events such as _World War I_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_I) occurring after 1917 brought the more radical version of classical liberalism to a more conservative (i.e. more moderate) type of liberalism._[7]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-6) Conservative liberal parties have tended to develop in those European countries where there was no strong secular _conservative party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservatism) and where the _separation of church and state_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Separation_of_church_and_state) was less of an issue. In those countries, where the conservative parties were _christian-democratic_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_democracy) , this conservative brand of liberalism developed._[1]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-iPolitique-0) _[3]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-Mair-2) In the European context conservative liberalism should not be confused with _liberal conservatism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism) ,_[8]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-7) that is a variant of conservatism combining conservatives views with liberal policies in regard of the economy, social and ethical issues._[2]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism#cite_note-Nordsieck-1) Current conservative-liberal parties * Andorra: _Liberal Party of Andorra_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Party_of_Andorra) * Austria: _Alliance for the Future of Austria_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance_for_the_Future_of_Austria) * Belgium: _Libertarian, Direct, Democratic_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarian,_Direct,_Democratic) ,[2]People's Party[2] * Bulgaria: _National Movement for Stability and Progress_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Movement_for_Stability_and_Progress) * Colombia: _Radical Change Party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radical_Change_Party) * Croatia: Croatian Social Liberal Party[2] * Czech Republic: Public Affairs[2] * Denmark: Liberal Party of Denmark[1][3][2] * Estonia: Estonian Reform Party[9] * Faroe Islands: Union Party[2] * Greece: _Recreate Greece_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recreate_Greece) * Greenland: Feeling of Community[2] * Iceland: Liberal Party[2] * Japan: _Your Party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Your_Party) * Moldova: Liberal Party[10] * Mongolia: _Civil Will Party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_Will_Party) * Morocco: _Popular Movement_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popular_Movement) * Netherlands: People's Party for Freedom and Democracy[11][12][2][13][14][15][16][17] * Peru: _Popular Action_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popular_Action_(Peru)) , _Christian People's Party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_People's_Party_(Peru)) * Poland: _Congress of the New Right_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congress_of_the_New_Right) * Slovakia: _Freedom and Solidarity_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_and_Solidarity) * Slovenia: Civic List[2] * Spain: _Democratic Convergence of Catalonia_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Convergence_of_Catalonia) * Thailand: _Democrat Party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democrat_Party_(Thailand)) * Uruguay: _Liberal Party_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_Party_(Uruguay)) ============================================================= exemplars of Conservative Liberalism : Hegel Bertrand de Jouvenel Alexis de Tocqueville ============================================================== Liberal Conservatism Wikipedia As both "conservatism" and "liberalism" have had different meanings over time and across countries, the term "liberal conservatism" has been used in quite different senses. In political science, the term is used to refer to ideologies that combine the advocacy of _laissez-faire_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laissez-faire) economic principles, such as respect for contracts, defense of private property and free markets_[1]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-0) with the belief in notions such as natural inequality, the importance of religion and the value of traditional morality_[2]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-1) through a framework of limited, constitutional, representative government._[3]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-2) It contrasts with _classical liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_liberalism) and aristocratic conservatism, rejecting both the principle of equality as something in discordance with human nature, and instead, emphasizing the idea of natural inequality. As the conservative ideology in democratic countries embraced typical liberal institutions such as the rule of law, private property, market economy and constitutional representative government, the liberal element of liberal conservatism became consensual outside of the socialist camp. This consensus has been so complete in some countries (e.g. the United States) that the term liberal conservatism came to be understood simply as conservatism in popular culture,_[4]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-3) prompting some conservatives who embraced more strongly classical liberal values to call themselves _libertarians_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarianism) ._[5]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-4) Nevertheless, the liberal conservative tradition in the United States often combines the economic _individualism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individualism) of the classical liberals with a _Burkean_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Burke) form of conservatism that emphasizes the natural inequalities between men, the irrationality of human behavior as the basis for the embrace of traditional ethics, the human drive for order and stability, and the rejection of natural rights as the basis for government._[6]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-5) In other countries where liberal conservative movements have more recently entered the political mainstream, such as _Italy_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italy) and _Spain_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain) , the terms liberal and conservative may be understood as synonymous, while in _Latin America_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_America) , economically liberal conservatism is often labelled under the rubric of _neoliberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoliberalism) both in popular culture and academic discourse._[7]_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberal_conservatism#cite_note-6) Often this involves stressing free-market economics and belief in individual responsibility together with the defense of _civil rights_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_rights) , _environmentalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmentalism) and support for a limited _welfare state_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welfare_state) . Compared to traditional centre-right politics, such as those proposed by _Christian democratic_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_democracy) parties, liberal conservatism is less traditionalist and more _right-libertarian_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-libertarian) economically, favouring low-taxes and minimal state intervention in the economy. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- Note : Comte was Saint-Simon's secretary for about 2 years-- Wikipedia Scientific politics was a late 19th century _political theory_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_theory) based on the _positivist_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Positivism) _philosophy_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophy) of _Auguste Comte_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auguste_Comte) . Proponents of scientific politics advocated a society and political system that was to be organized in accordance with the laws of nature. Scientific politics was considered to be a sort of _liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism) , more specifically _conservative liberalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_liberalism) . Proponents of scientific politics rejected liberal _jacobinism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacobinism) , and sought to replace _revolution_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revolution) with _evolution_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution) . They rejected classical liberal notions like _individual rights_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individual_rights) , _natural law_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_law) and _constitutionalism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutionalism) as '_metaphysical_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaphysics) ' and disruptive to social and political evolution. They were willing to sacrifice political liberties such as _universal suffrage_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_suffrage) in order to foster _order_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_order) and social and political progress, which were considered prerequisites for the existence of _liberty_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty) . Nonetheless proponents of scientific politics didn't consider themselves to be opponents of liberalism, but rather its heirs. They shared the liberal views in support of _republicanism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republicanism) , _secularism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secularism) and the importance of progress. Some, but not all, proponents of scientific politics also espoused _social darwinism_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_darwinism) . Most proponents of scientific politics could be found in _France_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France) , _Spain_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spain) and _Latin America_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_America) . The rule of _Porfirio Díaz_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porfirio_Díaz) in _Mexico_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexico) and _Juan Vicente Gómez_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Vicente_Gómez) in _Venezuela_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venezuela) was justified by their supporters using the theories of scientific politics. The national motto of _Brazil_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazil) , Order and Progress (Ordem e Progresso), was one of the main adages of scientific politics. -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
