Portal:Conservatism

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Introduction

Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional social institutions and practices. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the status quo of the culture and civilization in which it appears. In Western culture, conservatives seek to preserve a range of institutions such as organized religion, parliamentary government, and property rights. Conservatives tend to favor institutions and practices that guarantee stability and evolved gradually. Adherents of conservatism often oppose modernism and seek a return to traditional values, though different groups of conservatives may choose different traditional values to preserve.

The first established use of the term in a political context originated in 1818 with François-René de Chateaubriand during the period of Bourbon Restoration that sought to roll back the policies of the French Revolution. Historically associated with right-wing politics, the term has since been used to describe a wide range of views. There is no single set of policies regarded as conservative because the meaning of conservatism depends on what is considered traditional in a given place and time. Conservative thought has varied considerably as it has adapted itself to existing traditions and national cultures. For example, some conservatives advocate for greater economic intervention, while others advocate for a more laissez faire free-market economic system. Thus, conservatives from different parts of the world—each upholding their respective traditions—may disagree on a wide range of issues. Edmund Burke, an 18th-century politician who opposed the French Revolution but supported the American Revolution, is credited as one of the main theorists of conservatism in the 1790s. (Full article...)

Selected article

The Bricker Amendment is the collective name of a series of proposed amendments to the United States Constitution considered by the United States Senate in the 1950s. These amendments would have placed restrictions on the scope and ratification of treaties and executive agreements entered into by the United States and are named for their sponsor, Senator John W. Bricker of Ohio, a conservative Republican.

The best-known version of the Bricker Amendment, considered by the Senate in 1953–54, declared that no treaty could be made by the United States that conflicted with the Constitution, was self-executing without the passage of separate enabling legislation through Congress, or which granted Congress legislative powers beyond those specified in the Constitution. It also limited the president's power to enter into executive agreements with foreign powers. Despite initial support, the Bricker Amendment was blocked through the intervention of President Eisenhower and failed in the Senate by a single vote in 1954.

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Selected quote

The struggle between the opponents and defenders of capitalism is a struggle between innovators who do not know what innovation to make and conservatives who do not know what to conserve.

— Simone Weil, "The Power of Words" in Selected Essays 1934-1943 (1957)

Selected image

At first the Moderate Party of Sweden was clearly nationalist and staunchly conservative. The importance of a strong defense was underlined and other societal institutions embraced by the party were the monarchy and the state of law. The party held initially a protectionist view towards the economy, tariffs were widely supported as well as interventionist economical measures such as agricultural subsidies. In the defence policy crisis in 1914, which overturned the parliamentary Liberal government, the party sided with king Gustav V of Sweden, but stopped short of accepting a rightist government by royal appointment, instead opting for an independent-conservative "war cabinet" under Hjalmar Hammarskjöld, eventually overturned in favor of a Liberal-Social democratic majority coalition government and breakthrough of parliamentary rule, albeit reluctantly embraced by the right.

Credit: Raphael Saulus

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Did you know...

• 
  ...that Virginia Lamp Thomas (pictured), wife of United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, collected résumés for appointments in the George W. Bush Administration while working at the Heritage Foundation?

• ...that the 2008 Duncan Hunter presidential campaign was endorsed by both Chuck Yeager and Ann Coulter?

• ... that, in its campaign against a Romanian World War I alliance with the Entente Powers, the newspaper Seara employed conservatives, socialists and anarchists as contributors?

Selected anniversaries in September

21st

• 1854 – the United States Republican Party is founded. The party opposed the expansion of slavery, called for free homesteads to farmers ("free soil"), and sought to modernize banking, railroads, and industry.

27th

• 1871 – the Brazilian Parliament passes the Law of Free Birth, a measure championed by Rio Branco

29th

• 1994 – the Contract with America is signed by Republican Party members on the steps of the United States Capitol.

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