Conservative Case

Brandon Keeling

CIN # 303133966

In the light of reading chapter 7 in the Wilson text, in addition to the class lectures, I'm learning a lot about how people think of our government and the particular views of American society; whether it be conservative or liberal. The focus of chapter 7 is on public opinion; how people think or feel about particular things, political socialization; the process by which background traits influence one political views, political ideology; a more or less consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to pursue, and about political elites, public opinion and public policy. For the purposes of this paper, I'm going to focus on three main points; whether or not I'm a liberal or conservative, which areas have influenced my political attitude formation, and finally whether or not I'm ideological in my political thinking.

After reading chapter 7 on public opinion and attending the class lectures, I've came to the conclusion that I'm very much conservative in my way of thinking when it comes to economic policy, civil rights, and public and political conduct issues. As far as economic policy goes, I'm very much conservative. Whereas liberals believe that the government should provide jobs for everyone, spend more money on education and Medicare, and increase taxes on the rich, I believe as a conservative that there should be free markets where economic growth provides more jobs, and a higher standard of living than those that are burdened by an excessive government regulation, as liberals believe. When it comes to Medicare and education, as a conservative, I believe in a competitive free market healthcare system. I don't believe that the government should regulate healthcare. In addition, as a conservative, as far as education goes, and the dispute in regards to vouchers, I believe that vouchers for should be given to the parents of those children who can't afford private schools. I truly believe this will level the playing field for those who can't afford private schools and have the performance to be competitive. Furthermore, as a conservative, I don't believe in higher taxes on the rich; quite the opposite; lower taxes. I simply believe that society should be taxed according to their personal incomes, if you make little you get taxed little, if you make lots, well then, you get taxed accordingly.

In addition, I'm very much a conservative when it comes to civil rights issues. Whereas liberals believe that there should be federal action to desegregate school, increase hiring opportunities for minorities, and enforces civil rights laws strictly, I'm on the other side of the spectrum. As a conservative, although civil rights paved the way for success for colored individuals, I don't believe that it's not too much of a relevant issue today, at least to the extent where we need government intervention. I believe that individuals should be hired based upon their qualifications, not on the bases of their skin color; individuals should be accepted into schools based upon performance and not skin color. I don't think that reverse-discrimination is the answer to the civil rights issues that we face today. Again I'm very much conservative when it comes to civil rights issues.

Furthermore, when it comes to public and political conduct, such as being tolerant of protest demonstrations, legalizing marijuana, decriminalizing victimless crimes, protecting the rights of the accused, and eliminating the causes of crime rather than getting tough with offenders, I take the conservative view as well. I think protest demonstrations are annoying can get way out line. I'm totally against legalizing marijuana due to the health effects. Decriminalizing victimless crimes is foolish and brings about a corrupt society. I think rights of the accused should be stripped if they are accused of a crime, and that law enforcement should get tough on offenders.

The biggest area that has influence my political attitude is definitely my family; to be more specific, my grandfather. He was a huge positive influence in my life. There is basically two areas that I can remember my grandfather taking a stand on, which is very much conservative. He is a wealthy business man, and I can remember talking to him about taxes. He totally disagrees with higher taxes on the rich, which is very much a conservative view; he thinks the rich and free market creates jobs. In addition to his strong views on the free market, and taxes on the rich, he stands strong as a conservative when it comes to gun control laws. He owns a guns and ammunition business. He has made millions. I remember growing up and listening to him talk about the laws that are hindering his business. Laws that have been brought about from the liberal side. As a result of growing up with such a strong influence in my life, I have adopted my grandfather's political beliefs. Even as I grow older, and am at liberty to adopt my own political beliefs, I still am very much on the conservative side.

Finally, I'm very ideological in my political thinking. The text defines political ideology as "a more or less consistent set of beliefs about what policies government ought to pursue" (Wilson 173). Wilson says,

"Political scientists measure the extent to which people have a political ideology in two ways. The first is by seeing how frequently people use broad political categories (such as "liberal," "conservative," "radical") to describe their own views or to justify their preferences for various candidates and policies, and second, by seeing to what extent the policy preferences of a citizen are consistent over time or are based at any one time on consistent principals" (173).

Based upon these two measures of political ideology, I definitely see myself frequently identifying with the conservative views, in addition to being consistent in my views as a conservative. Again, I believe that my political Ideology was largely influenced by my grandfather's political ideology. Although as I get older, I consistently identify with the conservative view.

Again, after reading chapter 7 in the Wilson text, and attending the class lectures, I consider myself to have very much conservative views, in which was largely influenced by my grandfather, who has conservative views, in addition to being ideological in my political thinking. When it comes to topics such as economic policy, civil rights issues, and public and personal conduct issues, I have all conservative views. To put simply, I don't think that government intervention is the answer. I believe quite the opposite, limited government. I believe