The term 'conservative' means many things to many people.\n\nTo me, conservatives want more social control (ie no gay marriage) but less economic control. They are deeply opposed to social systems that foster dependence.\n\nWhat is a conservative to you?
209537
they dont want change and dont usually respect others thoughts and beleifs
119294
I am a Conservative because I agree with a lot of Conservative idealogies.\n\nI believe in God\n\nI believe in Jesus as my Savior.\n\nI support the Military\n\nI believe in the Right to Keep and Bear Arms\n\nI support the Death Penalty for the crimes of Murder, Rape, Molestation, and Treason\n\nI oppose Abortion except for Threat to a Mother's Life.\n\nI believe in the right to pray to whoever you wanna pray to, if ya don't wanna pray that is fine with me but don't deny the right to those who wish to pray.\n\nI believe that those who are able to work Full Time should be working a job instead of being on Welfare (only Widows, War Veterans and Disabled persons should be allowed to get Money from the Government, and a good amount of our injured War eterans would be getting the Money due to them for their service if it weren't for Lazy people who can work being on Welfare instead of working).\n\nLiberal use to have a different meaning that it does today, for instance there are soem Viewpoints I hold that would have deemed me Liberal in Lincoln's time (Lincoln was Liberal according to the standards of hsi time but according to today's standards he was pretty Conservative).\n\nMuslim Clerics would deem me Liberal because I am opposed to forcing a Woman to wear a Veil (I have no problem with the Veils themselves but im against forcing a Woman to wear it).
448528
true conservatives have had their philosophy usurped by the neoCONS. neoconservatives new conservatives for whom the only thing worth conserving is their ability to amass power and great financial wealth.  it's kinda like how Christianity has been usurped by the Fundy Evangelicals whose whole point in power is to force their dogma onto others via politics.
411617
Basic conservative mindset. The strength of conservatives is that they tend to operate in a more organized, coherent, and group-minded fashion. \n\nLiberals tend to be more creative, more flexible, and as a result, often come up with different ideas about how to solve a problem. Since most Democrats are liberal to one degree or another, that also shows through in the lack of coherence in the Democratic party.\n\nThe only question is, can the all at least reach consensus about specific issues, and thus be able to accomplish those tasks? Time will tell.
534979
The term means "New Conservatives". Their ideology differs somewhat from that of the "Old Conservatives", whose  belief system is more consistent & above board. In other words, the real neo agenda is more hidden than the old conservatives'  agenda.\n\nThe original Conservative ideology was for government to stay out of the affairs of the private sector. They acted on the belief that business & individual matters is best left left with the people & not in government. The neocon record speaks for itself. Though they pay lip service to this philosophy, The actuality is, never before in this country has the Govt been more intrusive, at the expense of small business & the public at large.\n\nOpen mindedly comparing the records of Presidents Eisenhower, Ford & Reagan with Bush, Cheney, & Robertson will show the truth of this argument.
103766
conservatives like to talk, liberals take action...\n\nTHANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
467628
they like things the way they are:\n\n"Conservatism is a political philosophy that necessitates a defense of established values or the status quo."
184773
There's nothing wrong with conservative. I personally prefer intelligence as I love a good meaningful conversation, but I can't speak on behalf of all males as they usually don't.
554011
Fiscal conservatives are in favor of limited government and prudent spending.\n\nSince I probably spurred this question, how would a fiscal conservative justify spending vast resources on experimentation?\n\nSocial and fiscal conservatives historically have agreed that federal money should not be used to further ANY agenda.
69845
I have read both articles before.  censorship is traditionally a conservative idea.  liberalism usually takes a strong pro-individual stance on most social issues, including censorship.  One of the central tenets of liberalism is the rights of the individual against social traditions.  conservativism has typically taken a group centered (community, nation, etc.) stance on social issues, arguing that the rights of the individual are subservient to the desires of the group.  I'm not trying to argue for either approach, they both have their advantages and disadvantages.  But, censorship is traditionally a conservative position.  \n\nThis being said, there are instances of liberal censorship.  In some cases, as in the one you cite, the censorship is consistent with liberal principles (separation of church and state, the right of individuals to be free of religious coercion).  Liberals may wish to censor speech (or expression) which is seen as unduly infringing on the rights of individuals (as in this case or in the case of hate speech.)  \n\nI would say that censorship exists to some degree in both philosophies, but it has traditionally been used more often by conservativism, due to conservativism's preferrence of the group over the individual.
535304
It's inherent in the idea of tradition and conformity, which are strong conservative values.\n\nThe conservative model advocates slow change, conformity and respect for doing things the same way they had been done. They oppose radical shifts, and fringe or alternative lifestyles, because those tend to be (as they believe) destablizing influences.\n\nThey also tend to believe that groups make decisions better than individuals, and that people should not be allowed to make choices that are harmful. It's a very parental attitude.
499028
I agree. I think it was Conservatives that switched Civil Unions to GAY MARRIAGE to freak out church goers to vote. Someday America will look back and regret their decisions just like they did with slavery, women and civil rights. This is clearly a violation of church and state. But I think that a grandmother and her caretaking granddaughter should be able to enter into a civil union to if they life together to enjoy the same rights. Family is more complicated these days then a man and a woman and the divorce rate will tell you that.\n\nI DON'T WANT GAY MARRIAGE!!!\nYou straight people can have it, sit on it, spin, and repeat three times.\n\nAND the fact the conservatives deny gay people marriage only further helps us to "corrupt your children" into polyamourous life styles, cause gay people are so "much cooler" role models. LIKE SEX IN THE CITY!!! and the whole metrosexual trend amoung straight huys so that they can get more punany and justify being players.\n\nOf course, some gays, but especially lesbians would benefit: Adoption, Inheiritance, Medical Insurance and Patient Rights, etc. So I do want Gay Marriage for them (Just not for me---at least at this point in my life).\n\nBut actually, here is a nifty solution:\nAbolish governement recognized marriages alltogether.\nYou get a CIVIL UNION at the Court House.\nYou get the Sacrement of Marriage at a Church.\n\nThen Priests and Ministers could be more selective and curb the divorce rate...But wait, that is how they make money by leaching off social needs. So why don't they let all those rich, over-embellishing, excessive-spending gay people get married and take their money???\n\nWell I am just as happy to keep my $ and my freedom!
624636
You're making invalid assumptions. The middle ground for both major parties are moderates, with very few going far afield.\n\nOne end of one spectrum is conservative republican. The other ends of that spectrum are moderate republican and federalist.\n\nOne of the a different spectrum is liberal democrat. The other ends of that spectrum are moderate democrat and libertarian.\n\nBasically, there are two scales of values. One is big government versus small government (Republican -- Libertarian). The other spectrum is group rights ("traditional" values) versus individual/personal rights (Federalist -- Democrats).\n\nRepublicans (nowadays) want  group rights (conformity with "traditional" values) and a large government to ensure domestic tranquility (by enforcing those conservative majority beliefs). Moderate republicans (originally called fiscal conservatives) want a small government, just large enough to provide for the common defense. The republican party does not really have a liberal wing, and usually treat the goal of individual liberties (being liberal) as a dirty word.\n\n\n\nDemocrats want individual rights and a large government to promote the general welfare.  Moderate democrats don't want a lot of wasteful spending., and want to achieve their goals without causing too many problems. Democrats do have a Conservative wing, which focuses on better ethical leadership and greater protection for both groups and individuals. The main difference is that conservative democrats still don't believe in enforcing their views on the minority, even if their own personal choices would be the same as what conservative republicans would make.\n\nLibertarians want a small government (no wasteful spending, and very little welfare/entitlements), but lots of protection for individual liberties. They are moderate about most issues, except for being adamant that the majority should not impose its beliefs on the minority.
604180
I am conservative, but do not belong to any political party in particular.  Although there are many liberals and liberal organizations in power (NOW, PETA, ACLU) who take the view of the extremes most liberals on the street are suffering from various levels of ignorance about what they are really supporting. \n\nWhen it comes to ordinary everyday people, Liberals tend to be those who think with their hearts when it comes to decisions affecting others.  People who think with their hearts tend to consider how their decisions affect the individuals involved.  They tend to work well with individuals or small groups in helping careers such as teaching and nursing.  This is no reflection of their intelligence, because there are plenty of intelligent liberals out there.  It is only an indication of how they make decisions.  People who think with their hearts may need to put extra effort in learning to look at the logical side of things when making decisions in politics.  Liberals also tend to jump feet first into accepting new ideas hoping that the ideas will work, so that they can be on the ground floor.\n\nOn the other hand, conservatives tend to think with their heads.  They focus on how their decisions affect the group as a whole.  They usually work better in logical fields such as in laboratory science or the law.  This is not a reflection on conservatives ability for compassion, but only on how they make decisions.  People who think with their heads may need to put extra effort into considering how their decisions affect the individuals involved.  Conservatives tend to look before they leap and accepting new ideas only if there is good reason to believe that those ideas will work better than those that are in place.  They are more likely to give up being on the ground floor in favor of caution. \n\nMost people are somewhere in the middle of the road.\n\nThat having been said.  Running the government (as opposed to a local club or group) requires much thinking in terms of the whole group.  There is no way that a federal government over 300 million people or even a town government over 3,000 can meet the needs of every individual in those groups.  The federal government should limit itself to issues affecting the country at large (national defense, disputes between the states, etc).  State governments should limit itself to issues which affect itself as a whole (maintaining state highways, justice systems, etc).  All other issues (schools, county road and park maintenence, zoning laws, etc) should be handled by local governments.  The needs of individuals should be handled by families, churches, and private charities.
544140
its a word to describe many ppl in the current republican party (usually) that have "conservative" values. BUT, if you look at the conservative values of Nixon, or even as recent as Reagan, their views on a lot of major issues are no longer the same as their party has historically been. \n\njust to give you an idea, Bush has brought up the "tax and spend" democrats in many of his interviews and addresses, but HIS cabinet has spent more money than anyone in history. i think he's only vetoed 1 or 2 bills to date.\n\nthats typically not considered to be a conservative way of behaving.
231619
I would say this depends on what you are conservative about.  The issues that conservatives used to identify with the GOP are no longer fundamental to that party especially as concerns fiscal responsibility.  Civil liberty protection, refrain from nation-building, separation of church and state and a well-defined balance of power within the branches of government all USED to be core conservative positions.  Conservatism above all used to be about CIVIL BEHAVIOR (Rush!) HONESTY (W!) and COMMON SENSE (Rummy!)  Neo-conservatives have surrendered moderates to the RELIGIOUS conservatives and THEY now define YOU.  Even Nixon was more honest than this bunch.
544733
It's as simple as this.  Liberals feel that they are better able to spend money collectively for the good of a society than individuals are able to spend their own money for the good of society.  It is a mindset.  Liberals think society first at all costs and conservatives feel individual first.  On the outside the liberal side sounds better but to achieve their mindset they have to forcibly take from others (continuously higher taxes) which unless it's done by a government is generally called stealing.