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January 25, 2006
Confused Americans for Truth - Why Fanatics Seek Wiggle Room While the Mainstream Says It's All or Nothing
My article Abusing Ben Franklin for Political Purposes was cited by Michelle Malkin today, proving that the lady has superior taste. The increased traffic brought the following comment.
Funny how all the right wing fanatics, who obsess over their guns and treasure and do all they can to keep the government away from them, are usually the first to jump up and let the government search their house, tap their phones and test them for drugs.
I thought it was worth treating this comment in an article because it is addresses a very important issue about the nature of conservatism. Well, okay, it's mostly because I wanted to brag about being cited by Michelle Malkin but even so, that there is an important issue at stake here and I should write about it.
At the heart of modern conservatism is the belief that everything is a trade-off. When it comes to gun control, conservatives will argue that it does not genuinely reduce crime, and therefore the benefit is not worth the cost. In the case of the NSA wiretapping, actual terror plots were stopped, and we have yet to see somebody's life disrupted by the intrusion. In this case, we see a high benefit and a lower cost.
This is an alien way of thinking to liberals and libertarians both. To a libertarian, all intrusion is a giant water slide with fascism at the bottom, and a middle ground is the same as a defeat. To liberals, privacy intrusion interferes with their ability to do what they want without upsetting the neighbors. It would be sheer lunacy from that viewpoint to allow the neighbors to decide how much peeking is necessary.
So, I understand the guy's point. Now, if he would just understand my point, then maybe we can work out a compromise and settle on some workable safeguards. I'm serious about this, people. There's a certain whimsical irony in being called an extremist by people who can't see any wiggle room, but the benefit is not really worth the cost.
Respectfully submitted,
Ferdinand T. Cat
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