(That ought to drag in the search engines). John O’Sullivan reviews the current state of conservativism in the US, Canada, Austraila and Great Britain. (h/t Adrian)
(That ought to drag in the search engines). John O’Sullivan reviews the current state of conservativism in the US, Canada, Austraila and Great Britain. (h/t Adrian)
“power granted to a “Progressive Conservative” party that, as its name suggests, was like a schizophrenic confined in a state asylum.”
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exactly. Which is why I advocate all provincial parties nix the “progressive” handle from their names, LOL
I cringe every time I read/hear the word “progressive”.
Interesting read, but he lost some points when the line “conservative Canada wathcers Mark Steyn and David Frum…”
Steyn? Absolutely. Frum? Wouldn’t be able to pick out a conservative at CPAC.
Soccermom >
“I cringe every time I read/hear the word “progressive”.”
As do I.
We need to remember however, how far down the rabbit hole Canada was before Harper came to power, how terminally sick. You sometimes need to appease the crazies a little with gimmicks at first I think.
Had Harper put a little dash of green in the conservative party emblem, half of them would have fallen to their knees to worship him.
I’ve always wondered why they call themselves progressives, when apparently their mission in life is to send us back to living in caves and eating bark.
As Mom used to say,” Eat Your Greens”.
I cringe every time I read/hear the word “progressive”.
Soccermom, have a great day!
I also enjoyed the other link to Mark Steyn’s review of President Obama’s speech at Prince George Community College – The “smartest man in the room” – a quote about President Obama, methinks ‘not’!
Soccermom wrote: Which is why I advocate all provincial parties nix the “progressive” handle from their names, LOL
Then how are we going to be able to differentiate the fake conservatives from the real ones?
American conservatism remains vigorous and fundamentally healthy.
I stopped reading here. This could not be further from the truth if was designed to be. American ‘conservatism’ is represented by a party that places higher priority on ever-higher military spending and a border wall than actually cutting spending. Total disaster.
Great article.
Stephen Harper is Canada’s Richard Nixon.
I’ve said this before and I meant it as a compliment.
Harper “gets it” in a way that Nixon did.
Hopefully Harper doesn’t allow Partisan hatred to undermine his integrity. This is one element that Canadians of all stripes won’t tolerate.
Corruption.
Conservatism is in the hearts and minds of the individual and is thus expressed through its politics.
From my perspective Conservatism is defined as basing one’s life and one’s society upon eternal verities and not bowing to every breeze that promises newness or utopia. By examining the past one can discern those eternal verities. However trying to recreate the societies that have gone before is another example of utopia building. Also by examining the past one can see where the abandonment of those eternal verities has brought about the ruination of the society and/or individuals. Insofar as the 4 countries in the article have abandoned those eternal verities it must be said that none of them is very conservative. Ted Byfield used to write about the mankind’s tendency/ability to hold two completely opposite and conflicting views at the same time and hold both of them to be true. This is nowhere more evident than in the present mindset that we like to call conservative.
What a load of hogwash, especially the American part. None of the candidates are a true conservative. The only two that should be considered candidates, Romney and Santorum, are far from the ideal.
Romney is a “YES” man, and is Obama-lite.
Santorum is looking to step on way too many liberties in order to achieve his new society he envisions.
Yet, I will hold my nose and vote for either, as both are better than the Big ZERO.
If Maggie Thatcher has half her faculties, bring her back to fix things. Sounds like Labour has frigged up England’s advantages and the Liberal Democrats are doing all they can to keep it down. While everyone is borrowing themselves to prosperity no-one actually notices that the countries with the least debt are doing the best.
I don’t think this guy is on the same planet as the conservatives he writes of. The US conservative movement has been confined to the tea party and Ron Paul who represent true conservative gravatas back to constitutional republicanism, The RINOs in the presidential candidate stage could swap places with Obama and you’d never notice at street level.
Australia is totally screwed with a neo Marxist governing cabal selling that nation out to UN globalism. In Canada we have a conservative government with good instincts but too scared to make the changes needed to roll bacl statist socialism.
All in all Canada is way ahead of the US for breaking out of the grip of the largely lefty oligarchs who own old line parties.
Stephen Harper is Canada’s Richard Nixon.
I’ve said this before and I meant it as a compliment. He gets it blah blah
“We’re all Keynesians now” -Richard Nixon
Nixon’s ‘accomplishments’ include ramping up the War on Drugs, establishing the EPA, and of course Watergate. You’re right: Harper is our Nixon. He ‘gets’ right-wing big government. Or rather we get it from him.
Nixon got the US out of Vietnam and normalized relations with China. Clearly one of the best presidents unless you ask a Democrat. Nixon wouldn’t rat out his friends and paid the price. Who kinew what when?
He also ended the draft, so yes he was very good for that and foreign policy. Since Canada’s foreign policy really isn’t a concern, I’d rather not have a Nixon in charge of Canada.
Texas,
I agree with you, but I posted a long comment on the original web posting; hopefully it will be published – check there tomorrow and see if it is.
The main thrust is that the three wings of the Conservative movement, social, fiscal and libertarian, can be united in common cause, as in Canada at the moment. We await the first majority government to prove our efforts worthwhile, or not.
I hate the word ‘Progressive’ too soccermom; it has long since lost any positive meaning for me. I blame Glenn Beck for that – I will always be grateful to him for his informative broadcasts.
PMSH has much more of the Libertarian philosophy than the Big gument Mitt/Rick/Newt/ ilk. For this reason, PMSH won the last election here in Canada.
IMO, USA Repubs should nominate the only candidate that can win -Ron Paul – not mentioned in this article; the man that draws thousands to his rallies and runs on small grass root donations (no goldman sacks, Bains or unions in Ron Paul’s donor bin…humm, did the goof forget something or is it something else; hummm?
Stephen Harper, like Ron Paul, had a steep mountain to climb (SDAers will see the parallels) and the Reform Party had defectors to the PC/Liberano Party but the people who believed in the ideas that founded the Reform Party prevailed – those ideas were very much akin to the ideas of Dr. Paul.
Not a great mind at work, IMO, but he got Canada; probably because he read that article by Kevin Lubin, he linked it at the bottom of the page.
PMSH has much more of the Libertarian philosophy
So that’s why he wants to escalate the war on drugs, bail out GM, block foreign investment, and maintain Supply Management?
Now, why would a guy leave Hudak out of an essay about conservatism?
Harper is like Nixon in that he is fat and he is a master strategist that hates leftists and is willing to do what it takes to not just beat them, but absolutely ruin them, instead of being a nice guy who wins the moral high ground and cedes power to leftists.
That’s all I meant.
P.S. – Stephen Harper is awesome.
Take your minor complaints and stuff’em. Remember what it was like ten years ago and ask yourself if no progress has been made.
jeff
Harper ruined the Liberal Party. Didn’t the fools do it to themselves? They ran on personality instead of policy and the last 2 leaders were scary strange.
Agreed Scar, I cannot wrap my mind around what the Liberals in power were thinking to pick Iggy or Dion… Were there ever 2 more offputting people running as a party leader in this country?
I remember when I first posted here a few years ago – so young and naive and just taking my first steps away from brainwashed liberalism, and I said everyone missed the red tories. I hereby retract that statement, PM Stephen Harper has done a wonderful job thus far and hopefully will continue to do so.
Anyone who says he’s not doing enough or doing it fast enough doesn’t realize the mindset or the sheer number of those who are blindly filled with pure hatred for that man and his party. Slowly he is winning people over and that’s the best thing he can do for long-term chances for the Conservative Party of Canada and indeed the country itself.
Prime Minister Harper hasn’t won his minorities or even his majority because of his policies. He’s won because he’s the safer, less confusing and saner of 2 choices – Dion and Iggy won us our Conservative governments since 2006 – Harper will win the next one based on the great job he’s done since 2006.