The Null Device

The Howling Wilderness of Pseudoconservatism

An essay by a classical conservative in West Virginia, putting forward the case that post-9/11 American conservatism is a belief system in a state of decadence, much as liberalism was some 30 years earlier. The evidence ranges from lionisation of leaders (Reagan on Mount Rushmore anyone?) and demonisation of villains (from the Clintons and latter-day Stalins in the Democratic Party to Ann Coulter's traitor-class of liberals) to foreign-policy messianism, militarism, crony capitalism, unquestioning devotion to ideologically sound foreign powers (be they the late lamented British Empire, right-wing Catholic despots or Ariel Sharon's Israel), and indeed calls for mass conformity in the defense of "liberty". (via The Fix)

Though I'm wondering whether this "pseudoconservative" position is not somewhat of a straw man. Do most, or indeed many, self-identified "conservatives" in America subscribe to this particular ideology/demonology?

There are 2 comments on "The Howling Wilderness of Pseudoconservatism":

Posted by: Graham http://grudnuk.com/ Thu Apr 15 13:47:22 2004

I guess that's the difference between paleoconservatism, and neoconservatism, which might be better described as "belligerent liberalism"...

Posted by: Graham http://grudnuk.com/ Thu Apr 15 13:48:06 2004

"belliberalism"! I can't be the first person to think of that...