Conservative Student News

Recently, I was talking to a friend about the political stances typical of college students. It seemed to me that there is a tendency for people my age to refer to themselves as liberal and claim to be against the conservative way of thinking. Although my friend agreed that many students call themselves “liberal,” she said most really are not.

Her assertion is that a significant amount of students uphold what are in reality conservative ideals, while identifying themselves by the term liberal. Naturally, I was surprised at such a speculation. I soon realized, however, there is truth in this statement. She continued to tell me how she has asked friends and peers what it is they believe when they tell her they are liberals. Their feedback has consistently resonated with many of her own conservative ideas.

Her words made me start to think more seriously about the conflict in the way people define themselves and the ideals they live by. I recalled how many people I knew and had met that did not seem to know what the terms liberal and conservative stand for on a political level.

A substantial amount of this confusion is due to ignorance. One cannot claim to be liberal or conservative when they are unsure what it is to be a liberal or conservative in today’s society. These terms carry with them more than simply political connotations; they carry a variety of connotations and are also subject to change over time. What conservative and liberal meant even 50 years ago does not coincide perfectly with what these words mean today.

People mislabel themselves for a variety of reasons. Some are not sure what the left and right stand for; others have not been presented with the ideals of these sides correctly; and many wind up terming themselves moderates for fear of what each side might think if they take a stand opposing them.

In the midst of all this confusion of terms and ideologies, how does one determine what set of beliefs best fits one’s world view? It seems necessary that a person should first analyze the beliefs presented by both conservative and liberal thinkers with an open mind and without preconceived notions that their environment, the media, and society in general have imposed.

One might ask why it is important to look deeper into what these terms stand for and what the ideals are that conservatives and liberals stand for. It’s quite simple actually; if you claim to be something , then you should know what it is you are.

For example, if I were in a conversation with someone and we began to discuss sports—hockey, specifically—and they told me they were a Todd Bertuzzi fan, I would be more than curious to have them tell me why. They would need to give me reasons for why he is better than other hockey players, not too mention how they see his behavioral problems as something to be a fan of. If this person could not present me with reasoning for why they are a Bertuzzi fan, I would be puzzled and unable to know anything about that person except that they claim to be something that makes no sense to me.

When you define yourself according to the terms conservative and liberal, you are making more than a statement about what your taste is in food or hockey players. You are telling people what it is you do and do not stand for; what you value and what you do not value; how you think one should live one’s life. Choosing the best terms to define yourself is like sketching a self-portrait that gives the viewer quite a good impression of who you are and it’s my guess you don’t want people thinking you are something you are not.

So, what are you? Well, that can take a while to figure out sometimes, but in the meantime, I would like to present you with some common conservative ideas and by doing so, put my friend’s hypothesis to the test. People are presented with material from both the right and left wing on a daily basis; however, the ideas are not always regurgitated correctly when coming from the opposing party.

For example, I have been told by a professor, peers, and various individuals who are of liberal mindsets that the right is too quick in its judgment of those on welfare. They have claimed that conservatives are selfish and believe all Americans on welfare are lazy. This opinion is a rash assumption itself.

The right does not believe that all those who receive welfare are lazy. It certainly does not assert that they are incapable of supporting themselves.

Welfare does not help men and women who are capable of working to support themselves and their families. It simply redistributes the money of American workers to those who are unemployed. What do help are systems like those instated in New York by former Mayor Rudi Giuliani: Programs that direct people in need, not to monetary handouts, but to jobs and careers where they can help themselves and earn the self-respect that the left’s solution deprives them of.

The success of welfare-reform bill that President Clinton signed in 1996 is proof that big government programs cannot solve the world’s evils. Rich Lowry wrote in a recent Townhall.com article titled “The Welfare Reform Miracle” that welfare caseloads have dropped 60 percent, and significantly more people have joined the workforce, particularly from the most disadvantaged group—never-married mothers—whose rate of entry into the workforce has increased 50 percent from 1993 to 2000. In Ron Haskin’s book, Work Over Welfare, released in Nov. 2006 he states that: "Employment changes of this magnitude over such a short period for an entire demographic group are unprecedented in Census Bureau records."

Welfare is just one case in which the left seems all too eager to label people and situations as problems rather than coming up with a solution that solves the problem. Welfare is the sugar-coated solution that only leads to people being dependent upon others. When given in a continued manner to those who do not truly need such aid, it deprives them of the permanence and self dignity conservative thinkers strive to offer.

Another issue where the opinion of the right is distorted is that of abortion. The left claims the rights of the woman are overridden by pro-life theories. However, the facts about abortion are severely skewed. Women who receive abortion are at high health risks, many of them suffer from life-long depression, and typically aren’t even given the “right to choose,” but rather are persuaded into aborting their unborn baby by doctors and society.

In general, I have found that things that are unnatural usually are not healthy for one’s body. Killing that which is meant to be born is about as unnatural as you can get. The downsides are never presented to women by the left and those who are pro-abortion; this seems rather hypocritical. The left does not seem to care about the consequences in the women’s lives who have had abortions; once a woman has had her abortion, Planned Parenthood and other such institutions could care less whether the procedure has ruined this women’s life physically and mentally. Yet liberals argue that they are supporting women and protecting their “right to choose.”

I will never forget last year in one of my classes we were in the middle of a debate about abortion when the girl sitting behind me could not seem to handle the fact that some people believe abortion is wrong. Naturally, the only way she could justify partial-birth abortion and other methods of killing unborn children was to state that “every woman has the right to do with her body as she chooses.” To add to this logic, she blurted out: “I believe every woman has the right to kill her child!”

(I just thank God I do not have a mother who thinks the same way).

Whether you see yourself as inclined towards liberal or conservative thinking, I strongly encourage you to look into what is going on in the news on a local, national, and global level—so that you may be able to form your own ideas and opinions. Get involved with organizations that resonate with what you believe in or start your own club, movement, or creative efforts towards creating a better world. Do this through the betterment or education of yourself and the enhancement of your world view by opening up to see what is out there and what you find is true.

Liberal or Conservative Test Yourself!

Where to you stand on the great and growing gap between traditional American values and the secular liberalism of the Left? Take the fo llowing test.

Score each statement from 1 to 10 depending on how much you agree or disagree with it, with 10 meaning you strongly agree and 1 meaning you strongly disagree. If you’re neutral, write 5. Add the score at the end. The higher the score, the more you lean toward traditional American values. The lower the score, the more you favor the secular left-liberal system.

The percentages next to each question are recent poll numbers that reflect public opinion on the issue.

____ 1. We should be allowed to say “one nation under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. (91 percent of Americans agree)

____ 2. Able-bodied people on welfare should be required to work. (87 percent agree)

____ 3. Men who assault pregnant women and kill the unborn child should be prosecuted for assault and murder. (84 percent agree)

____ 4. The United States should put its own interests first and cooperation with international organizations second. (73 percent agree)

____ 5. Believe in God. (92 percent agree)

____ 6. Proud to be an American. (91 percent agree)

____ 7. Schools should teach new immigrants about American values. (88 percent agree)

____ 8. Everyone should learn English. (81 percent agree)

____ 9. Personal injury lawyers should get no more than 15 percent of any award. (75 percent agree)

____ 10. It is possible to use new technology and new science to develop clean, renewable energy that protects the environment and the economy.

Add up your score. If you scored above 51 points, you are in favor of protecting and defending America’s traditions and values.

Quiz adapted from Newt Gringrich’s book, A 21st Century Contract with America.