Conservatives Without Conscience (28 page)

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Authors: John W. Dean

Tags: #Politics and government, #Current Events, #Political Ideologies, #International Relations, #Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ), #Political Process, #2001-, #General, #United States, #Conservatism & Liberalism, #Conservatism, #Political Science, #Political Process - Political Parties, #Politics, #Political Parties, #Political Ideologies - Conservatism & Liberalism

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APPENDICES
APPENDIX A
James Burnham’s Analysis of Conservatism

The following table summarizes James Burnham’s analysis of conservatism as he found it in the late 1950s, at the outset of the modern conservative movement. It paraphrases and quotes Burnham’s material, adding necessary explanations from his more complete descriptions as appropriate. (While I have no question that Burnham can speak for the founders of modern conservatism regarding conservative thinking, liberals may find his analysis of their point of view less than complete.) My summary is based on Burnham’s
Congress and the American Tradition,
and principally drawing.

The Conservative Syndrome		The Liberal Syndrome
1. Conservatives believe that government involves a non-rational factor. Without allowance for magic, luck, or divine favor, there is no convincing explanation for why one government works better than another. There is no rational explanation for why one person should submit to the rule of another’s absent habit, tradition, or faith. But without such submission, government dissolves or relies on force, which is nonrational. The conservative distrusts abstract political ideology as a principle or formula for political life.		1. Liberals have a general confidence in the ability of the human mind to comprehend through rational science problems of government and society, and they often trust in a particular ideology as a key to a successful government.
2. Conservatives believe that human nature is essentially corrupt, or evil, and is limited in its potential; therefore, conservatives do not believe in utopian or ultimate solutions to major social problems.		2. Liberals believe that most human weaknesses and errors are the result of weak social structure or inadequate education, for human potential, if not infinite, has no discernible a priori limitations; therefore, it is not unrealistic for humans to work toward an ideal society in which problems such as war, poverty, and suffering do not exist.
3. Conservatives respect tradition, established institutions, and conventional modes of conduct. They are reluctant to initiate quick or deep changes in traditional ways, and seek to restrict or slow the pace of changes that have become unavoidable or morally imperative.		3. Liberals do not believe tradition alone justifies favoring an institution or mode of conduct; and they are willing to accept quick, drastic, and extensive social changes based on rational and utilitarian grounds.
4. Conservatives believe in a diffusion of “sovereignty” (used by Burnham to mean “governmental power”) and a still wider diffusion of power, thus honoring the “separation of powers” and “checks and balances” envisioned by the Constitution.		4. Liberals think that diffusion of power may be useful against “reactionary forces” but are not much troubled by most power’s being in the hands of beneficial social entities (the common man, the people, workers, and farmers) and will waive concerns about power altogether for certain ideological goals (full employment, racial equality, social welfare, or peace).
5. Conservatives reject unrestricted plebiscitary (direct election by all the people) democracy in favor of representative government in which a number of indirect institutions mediate between the people and those in charge.		5. Liberals tend to approve of plebiscitary democracy, seeking forms of government that express the will of the majority as directly and intimately as possible (e.g., direct popular elections for president, direct primaries, initiative and recall, popular referendums, election of judges, extension of suffrage, and the like).
6. Conservatives believe in “states’ rights,” or the retention by each state of an effective share of the federal government’s sovereignty, because this diffuses power.		6. Liberals see “states’ rights” as either unimportant (an anachronism) or inefficient, for it leads to reactionary policies like pro-segregation, anti-labor, and anti-internationalist measures.
7. Conservatives believe in the autonomy of the various branches of the federal government, and oppose encroachment or usurpation by any of them upon the other branches.		7. Liberals think that strict separation of the branches of government hinders government’s ability to solve major problems.
8. Conservatives believe the public should support limiting government powers.		8. Liberals think the public should support greater government power to accomplish progressive goals.
9. Conservatives feel that the American constitutional system embodies principles of clear and permanent value.		9. Liberals hold that the Constitution is a living document, with its meaning dependent on time and circumstances.
10. Conservatives want decentralization and localization of government.		10. Liberals think that decentralization and localization can hinder solutions to modern problems.
11. Conservatives believe private, profit-making enterprises are the most just and effective means for economic operation and development.		11. Liberals are critical of private economic enterprise, and believe in government control of private activities, if not some measure of government ownership. They find private enterprises are frequently opposed to the interests of the people and the nation, and that, in many cases, the government can do a better job than private enterprise.
12. Conservatives hold that the private life of the individual, as opposed to the destiny of the nation or of society, should be the focus of metaphysical, moral, and practical interest.		12. Liberals feel that an expanding sphere of government involvement—in social and cultural life as well as in the economy—results in the best mode of life for people. Thus, expansion of government activity aids in attainment of a good life.
13. Conservatives favor Congress over the executive branch of government.		13. Liberals favor the executive branch, with its administrative bureaucracy, over Congress.

While the majority of the “syndromes” set forth by Burnham have remained constant during the past half century, in a surprising number of instances conservatives and liberals have changed places (the positions described in numbers 7, 8, 12, and 13), and in others their differences are not as significant as when Burnham catalogued them (the positions described in numbers 1, 3, 4, and 5).

APPENDIX B
Right-Wing Authoritarian Survey

The Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale
*

Note:
In including this scale with Bob Altemeyer’s permission, I agreed not to include the full procedure for scoring. In one of our exchanges he told me that “because people tend to believe their own psychological test scores far, far more than they should, my profession discourages letting people know what they have scored on a test.” He also noted that “when people know they are answering an authoritarianism measure, that can affect how they respond—which is another reason for treating individual scores with a grain of salt.” Nonetheless, a reader can get a good sense of where he or she might fall in the world of RWAs from a review of the following questions. This scale is one of several developed by Altemeyer. His current scale has just twenty questions, and he has found it as effective as this thirty-two-question scale.

1. The established authorities generally turn out to be right about things, while the radicals and protesters are usually just “loudmouths” showing off their ignorance.
2. Women should have to promise to obey their husbands when they get married.
3. Our country desperately needs a mighty leader who will do what has to be done to destroy the radical new ways and sinfulness that are ruining us.
4. Gays and lesbians are just as healthy and moral as anybody else.
5. It is always better to trust the judgment of the proper authorities in government and religion than to listen to the noisy rabble-rousers in our society, who are trying to create doubt in people’s minds.
6. Atheists and others who have rebelled against the established religions are no doubt every bit as good and virtuous as those who attend church regularly.
7. The only way our country can get through the crisis ahead is to get back to our traditional values, put some tough leaders in power, and silence the troublemakers spreading bad ideas.
8. There is absolutely nothing wrong with nudist camps.
9. Our country
needs
free thinkers who will have the courage to defy traditional ways, even if this upsets many people.
10. Our country will be destroyed someday if we do not smash the perversions eating away at our moral fiber and traditional beliefs.
11. Everyone should have their own lifestyle, religious beliefs, and sexual preferences, even if it makes them different from everyone else.
12. The “old-fashioned ways’” and “old-fashioned values” still show the best way to live.
13. You have to admire those who challenged the law and the majority’s view by protesting for women’s abortion rights, for animal rights, or to abolish school prayer.
14. What our country really needs is a strong, determined leader who will crush evil and take us back to our true path.
15. Some of the best people in our country are those who are challenging our government, criticizing religion, and ignoring the “normal way things are supposed to be done.”
16. God’s laws about abortion, pornography, and marriage must be strictly followed before it is too late, and those who break them must be strongly punished.
17. It would be best for everyone if the proper authorities censored magazines so that people could not get their hands on trashy and disgusting material.
18. There is nothing wrong with premarital sexual intercourse.
19. Our country will be great if we honor the ways of our forefathers, do what the authorities tell us to do, and get rid of the “rotten apples” who are ruining everything.
20. There is no “
ONE
right way” to live life; everybody has to create their own way.
21. Homosexuals and feminists should be praised for being brave enough to defy “traditional family values.”
22. This country would work a lot better if certain groups of troublemakers would just shut up and accept their group’s traditional place in society.
23. There are many radical, immoral people in our country today who are trying to ruin it for their own godless purposes, whom the authorities should put out of action.
24. People should pay less attention to the Bible and the other old forms of religious guidance, and instead develop their own personal standards of what is moral and immoral.
25. What our country needs
most
is discipline, with everyone following our leaders in unity.
26. It’s better to have trashy magazines and radical pamphlets in our communities than to let the government have the power to censor them.
27. The facts on crime, sexual immorality, and the recent public disorders all show we have to crack down harder on deviant groups and troublemakers if we are going to save our moral standards and preserve law and order.
28. A lot of our rules regarding modesty and sexual behavior are just customs that are not necessarily any better or holier than those that other people follow.
29. The situation in our country is getting so serious, the strongest methods would be justified if they eliminated the troublemakers and got us back to our true path.
30. A “woman’s place” should be wherever she wants to be. The days when women are submissive to their husbands and social conventions belong strictly in the past.
31. It is wonderful that young people today have greater freedom to protest against things they don’t like and to make their own “rules” to govern their behavior.
32. Once our government leaders give us the “go ahead,” it will be the duty of every patriotic citizen to help stomp out the rot that is poisoning our country from within.

APPENDIX C
Social Dominance Orientation Survey
*

Note:
This scale testing social dominance orientation does not include its scoring. Those interested in further information should consult F. Pratto, J. Sidanius, L. M. Stallworth, and B. F. Malle, “Social Dominance Orientation: A Personality Variable Predicting Social and Political Attitudes,”
Journal of Personality & Social Psychology
(1994), 741–763, at file:///H|/website/pubs/PrattoSidanius1994.pdf.

1. Some groups of people are simply not the equals of others.
2. Some people are just more worthy than others.
3. This country would be better off if we cared less about how equal all people were.
4. Some people are just more deserving than others.
5. It is not a problem if some people have more of a chance in life than others.
6. Some people are just inferior to others.
7. To get ahead in life, it is sometimes necessary to step on others.
8. Increased economic equality.
9. Increased social equality.
10. Equality.
11. If other people were treated more equally we would have fewer problems in this country.
12. In an ideal world, all nations would be equal.
13. We should try to treat one another as equals as much as possible. (All humans should be treated as equals.)
14. It is important that we treat other countries as equals.

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