Can
Liberals and Conservatives Ever Agree?
Liberals and Conservatives will probably never
agree. They might as well stop trying to convince one another. Logic doesn’t
work. Facts don’t work.
Egged on by the media in a constant chase for ratings,
the two sides engage in a never-ending cycle of “gotcha.” But no amount of
arguments by either side will ever convince the other that their position on
issues, which separate them, is not the right one.
Each is irrevocably convinced of the merit of
their beliefs about values, ethics, morality, government, religion, that is,
G-d or no G-d, education, national defense, energy, protecting the environment,
economics, taxation and so on, ad infinitum. Both claim that the other side
distorts the facts or just plain lies to support its arguments. Who is to be
believed in what has become the continuous propaganda war that is waged daily
in the media, on the Internet, with e-mail messages and the endless stream of
communications that has become the hallmark of modern societies?
So, why do they bother to keep trying? Neither
side will ever convince the other, but they persist in trying. What is it that
they really want? Is it just about political power and control of government?
Both sides claim they target those who occupy
the center of the political spectrum, reported to represent about one-third of
the voters. But, everyone knows that when the Left and the Right argue their
respective positions they are primarily “preaching to the choir,” who occupy the
more extreme philosophical positions of their respective groups.
Transition
from Liberal to Conservative
People tend to be more liberal when they are
young, usually because (I believe) they generally don’t have a realistic
appreciation of the costs and motivations associated with correcting the
inequities and injustices they perceive. They are often more sensitive, perhaps
less cynical than their elders and want to improve conditions. But they are
also less experienced, have not seen as many ideas tried and fail, and they
have less understanding of human nature. They also usually have more faith in
the “system,” as in government and in the ability of those in power to make
decisions for the many and to enforce them fairly.
As they gain experience and added years,
people often tend to become more conservative. It is in their more mature years
that they may have supplemented their education with sufficient experience to
begin understanding the benefits of our nation’s capitalistic philosophy and I
suppose some of its limitations. Young people generally take too much for
granted, but ultimately most of us eventually learn that nothing in this life
is really either completely “black or white,” or free. Thomas Sowell, a retired
Harvard economics professor and highly regarded conservative columnist, who
noted that he started out as a Marxist, commented, “There was no book that
changed my mind about being on the political left. Life experience did that –
especially the experience of seeing government at work from the inside.”
Liberal
vs. Conservative Philosophies
Most political beliefs are actually shades of
gray, with questions and arguments on all sides of the issues. And, all systems
of government are predicated on economic philosophy. In the final analysis, it
is the means by which a society organizes its productive capabilities and
distributes that productivity that is really the underpinning of its political
system. People often seem to separate politics from production (business,
economics and property rights) in their minds. They aren’t separable.
Perhaps the difference between the political
beliefs of the Left and the Right is based on their respective philosophies
about human nature - about how individual and collective behavior is
influenced, motivated or compelled.
The Left generally believes it is wrong for
individuals to accumulate what they consider to be “excess” wealth or to have
income in “excess of their needs.” In the extreme, their concept is that each
individual should be able to take those things from the system that they
“need,” while contributing “according to his (her) ability.” This is usually
interpreted to mean that everyone should receive the same material benefits
from the available resources and that those resources are finite, that there is
only so much to go around, and that people can be convinced to put personal
gain or advantage aside and act altruistically. Those on the Left also believe
the economy is a zero sum game. If someone wins (earns or profits more than
others), someone else loses.
On the other hand, those on the Right believe
that additional “capital” is created by increasing or improving productivity
and providing incentives. They believe that when someone wins, usually by
providing a product or service that others need or want, the income or capital
of others is not diminished, but that more is created. Those on the Right also
believe that it’s simply human nature for people to act in their own
self-interest, that self-interest is what motivates their behavior and that the
economic system works best when it is structured based on this reality.
Evidence of this principle is found in early
American history, around 1620, with the first colony at Plymouth. “The success
of the Plymouth colony can be attributed to the wisdom of the colonial
leadership to recognize a failed experiment when they saw one. That experiment
was socialism. And, the rapidly approaching
outcome was starvation, economic regression and total failure of the colony.
‘From each according to their ability and to each according to their need’
simply did not work and could not work without government coercion,” according
to the article “Failed Experiment and Failing To Learn” by Tony Ruboletta
posted on TheRant.us on July 22, 2004.
The
Art of Compromise
The short answer to the question, “Can
Liberals and Conservatives Ever Agree?” is no, not on their core beliefs. They
occupy opposite ends of the political spectrum because their core beliefs and
worldviews are 180 degrees apart. However, what they can and often manage to do
is compromise to achieve certain aspects of their respective goals. The saying, “Politics is the art of
compromise,” is correct. Just remember, we rarely convince the other side that
our beliefs about economics or human nature are correct and that theirs are
wrong. Only experience can do that, at least for conservatives. But, that’s
just my opinion.
Harris R. Sherline is a retired CPA/Business manager and
executive that has lived in the Valley for over 20 years. Harris also has an
extensive background in the charitable works, having served on many non-profit
boards, including seven years as Chairman/CEO of the Santa Ynez Valley Cottage
Hospital. He stays active with business
consulting and writing opinion columns on a wide variety of topics. Contact -
hrs100@verizon.net
© 2007 Harris R. Sherline,
All
Rights Reserved