[Today’s run: 6 miles]
I was thinking the other day, why am I a political conservative?
I’m not sure I have formulated a short answer to that.
Someone recently mentioned a “good emperor”, in a context I won’t go into.
I am a Christian and I want my moral values to reflect New Testament Christianity. There is nothing in the New Testament that says representative democracy is the best way to go. In fact, it says that a totalitarian one-world government headed by Jesus Christ is the ultimate “Kingdom of God”.
The problem is that none of our Kings, Emperors or dictators is Jesus Christ. So, the guys in the late 1700’s came up with this scheme of offsetting power centers against each other. And that is how we have what we have.
The whole thing is premised on the idea that power is corrupting and the only way to limit it is to hedge it about on all sides with other powers of more-or-less equal strength. “Little people”, like me, should lend what little encouragement we have to the underdog power, to keep up its strength for the day that we need it to check some large move. But when the underdog is fed and grows he becomes big and mean. And our encouragement should shift.
I’m sure this is upsetting to those at the top of the heap. There is always this erosion of their power and influence. The ground is always shifting.
One reply on “Politics”
I like Constitutional democracy with Bill of Rights. Rule of law and a level playing field where minorities, at least on paper, have same freedoms and prividges as the majority.
I’ve always thought Jesus acted as though a post-materialist socialist. He didn’t own much of anything and was big on helping those who couldn’t help themself.