We Shouldn't Fuse Conservatism And Libertarianism, The Differences Matter, Especially To Me

We Shouldn't Fuse Conservatism And Libertarianism, The Differences Matter, Especially To Me

Just because two groups share the same ideas doesn't mean that they belong to the same classification.

Deva Dotson
Deva Dotson Jan 14, 2019
271
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In this age of political discourse, you might have heard that both conservative and libertarian voices are being censored. What most people don't know is that conservatism and libertarianism are often conflated with far-right ideologies that promote division among others, but this actually isn't the case.

Both ideologies promote the ideas of individuality, the free market, and limited government interference. Even though both ideologies advocate for the same beliefs, the terms are not interchangeable. Conservatism is defined as the commitment to traditional values and ideas with opposition to change or innovation and the holding of political views that favor free enterprise, private ownership, and socially conservative ideas.

Libertarianism is defined as an extreme laissez-faire political philosophy advocating only minimal state intervention in the lives of citizens. Topics such as national security, drugs, and immigration are where conservatives and libertarians ideas often butt heads. Despite the ideologies having their similarities, both conservatism and libertarianism harbor different worldviews.

A debate conducted by the CATO Institute and the Heritage Foundation conducted a poll among the attendees to see where they align when it comes to the differing ideologies. The top three topics that conservatives are the most concerned about are abortion (41%), foreign policy (35%), and free speech (34%). For libertarians, the top three topics of concern are free speech (47%), government spending (37%), and regulation (28%).

From what it looks like, both conservatives and libertarians are passionate about preserving the natural human right to express their views without the risk of being censored and share the top priorities when it comes to immigration (24% vs. 20%), the welfare state (14% vs. 16%), and taxes (25% vs. 24%).

When it comes to topics like foreign policy, pronoun usage, and combating the opioid crisis, things start to contrast. 82% of American conservatives believe that U.S. foreign policy has brought peace and stability throughout the globe while 86% of libertarians say that U.S. foreign policy brought more instability and chaos.

When it comes to using a person's preferred pronoun, 75% of libertarians will use a person's preferred pronouns while 73% of conservatives will use the pronoun that corresponds to the person's biological sex. This comes from the fact the 52% of conservatives believe that society shouldn't do more for the LGBT community being accepted with 20% having no opinion, and 27% saying that society has to do more. On the contrary, 55% of libertarians believe that society should do more for LGBT people being accepted into society while 24% didn't hold an opinion, and 22% disagreed.

When it comes to the current opioid crisis, 71% of conservatives want more government involvement to counteract the addiction of prescription painkillers while 14% don't want the government to combat the problem with the same percentage neither agreeing or disagreeing with the statement. On the other hand, 59% of libertarians believe that the government shouldn't be involved with combating of the drug crisis with 25% saying that the government should do something and 15% preferring neither option.

The most immense difference between these political ideologies is their opinion on the Commander-in-Chief, Donald J. Trump. 91% of conservatives approve of President Trump's handling of the country with 9% disapproving of his job. On the contrary, 69% of libertarians disapprove of Trump's handling of the country while 31% approve. This is very telling, displaying the political differences between the two ideologies and that they're not exactly identical.

Where do I fit into this? Personally, I tend to take things from both ideologies, with the conservative ideas of preserving tradition combined with the libertarian ideas of minimal government intervention. There are some things that I disagree with when it comes to both ideologies, with a majority of conservatives believing that you need to raised with religion in order to be a good person — but the truth is, you don't need religion in order to righteous — and a majority of libertarians opposing the idea of building a large border across the U.S.-Mexican border when in reality, we need to protect our country from potential threats.

Both of the ideologies want the best for the United States, but how they determine and execute their beliefs is quite different. We shouldn't fuse the conservative and libertarian ideologies as far-right because you're stepping into dangerous territory when you just assume a person's political ideology without getting to know them. You don't know how that person was raised and their beliefs might be like yours but with a little variation. Just because two groups share the same ideas doesn't mean that they belong to the same classification.

Deva Dotson
Deva Dotson Jan 14, 2019
At The State University of New York at Stony Brook

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Customer Service Expert, Gary Brewster of Oneida Provides Tips for Displaying Appreciation to Your Customers

By taking a more direct and proactive approach to managing your customers, you can open up a new avenue of success for your business.

Pauljohnson7782
Pauljohnson7782 Jan 16, 2019
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Customer relationships are a core part of your business success. Many businesses that outperform their competitors are just more responsive in this area. By taking a more direct and proactive approach to managing your customers, you can open up a new avenue of success for your business. How can you display genuine appreciation to them? Here are tips and practices from customer service expert and accomplished entrepreneur, Gary Brewster in Oneida, Tennessee that you can adopt.

Event Sponsorship

There are many small signs of appreciation you can show to customers, but hosting an event provides significant evidence to customers that your business genuinely acknowledges and cares for their support. With these events, you can treat customers as guests - which can be a great way to elevate your relationship with them. After these events, you can follow-up with your customers, build upon that relationship, and gain additional insights into their expectations.

Customized Products and Services

Customers will be pleasantly surprised to see products specifically catered to their preferences. This shows that you do respond to their feedback and are appreciative of the information they provide. Also, you are reinforcing the fact that your business firmly puts a priority on their needs and is committed to elevating their experience. You can personalize your products through a couple of means, including offering them in certain colors, modifications, labels, and more.

Use Handwritten Notes

A handwritten note is one of the best ways to convey authenticity in your messages. When you use this medium for sending messages of appreciation to your customers, it generates a more positive response. In a world saturated with emails, social media messages, and mobile text, a handwritten letter can stand out. You can work with your team in organizing a schedule where customers are sent handwritten notes. These can especially work great for the holiday season as customers are more receptive to goodwill messages during this time.

Develop a Loyalty Program

While your business benefits form loyalty programs, they also make the customer feel more appreciated. For your most consistent customers, you are sending the message to them that their loyalty has not gone unnoticed and that you are truly grateful. When repeat business is rewarded, the long-term benefits will be valuable. Instead of merely creating a loyalty program from scratch, consider doing research and recognize specific purchasing patterns within your customer base. You can then highlight certain products they favor and make that the focal point of your loyalty program.

When it comes to maintaining a high standard of customer service, communication and goodwill are valuable. Showing appreciation to your customers is more than simply communicating with them, but also conveying a general sense of commitment to their needs. Your business stands to gain immensely by developing this unique approach to customer service. Consider adding more of these elements as you build your customer service strategy with your team.


About Gary Brewster:

Gary Brewster in Oneida, Tennessee is an entrepreneur and commercial roofing expert. Driven by building excellent relationships, he takes pride in providing the best customer service possible. As a business owner, his goals include delivering exceptional service, solving complex problems, and giving back to the community. Outside of the office, Gary enjoys spending time on his family farm with his wife, children, and grandchildren.


Pauljohnson7782
Pauljohnson7782 Jan 16, 2019

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To The Generation That Might Not Care, A Green New Deal Is Crucial

Take care of our planet and our future.

Lauren Raiford
Lauren Raiford Feb 21, 2019
850
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The reality of climate change and method to address the issue has been a source of contention in the United States for far too long. While Republicans trail behind Democrats a great deal in the percentage who believe long-term, irreversible climate change is a real problem, an equally if not more important gap to acknowledge is that between generations.

A universally taught science concept in elementary school is the difference between weather and climate. Weather is the day-to-day condition of the atmosphere — rainy, sunny, etc. Climate is the weather of a particular geographic location over a long period of time. The weather in an area may be snowy on a particular January day but might overall have a warm climate (Trump has yet to learn this concept).

The gap between generational support for not only believing in the reality of climate change but if the government should take steps to prevent further harm on our planet is apparent. A few reasons that older generations may not support aggressive climate change policies are that many are not going to see the lasting impact of their harmful actions, may not want to acknowledge that their way of life for a majority of their life was detrimental to the environment, or that they simply do not think it is the government's role to further regulate current practices and lifestyles in the name of the environment (an argument supported by many conservatives).

Data For Progress

The "Green New Deal," proposed earlier this month by Rep. Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Edward Markey is mainly a list of ideas and goals rather than a carefully laid-out plan, though aims to eliminate greenhouse emissions through the creation of millions of jobs in the renewable energy industry, moving toward public ownership (a major source of disagreement among Republicans and Democrats), and much more. This plan is a comprehensive overview of many sources of environmental degradation that our nation has not addressed, despite the majority of the nation believing the climate change is a real issue.

There will undoubtedly be a major shift in the operations of many companies due to aggressive climate change policies, which could have been avoided at a drastic level if our nation had chosen to make climate change prevention a priority. Unfortunately, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, global temperatures will rise to an irreversible level in 12 years if the United States and other countries that greatly contribute to rising temperatures do not take action. A sense of urgency has been lacking for far too long is crucial.

Written into the recently proposed Green New Deal is a section detailing how it will attempt to remedy the inequality of those most directly impacted by climate change. Vulnerable communities, particularly communities of color, are not seeing an equitable distribution in disaster funding to prevent damage inflicted by the increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters that have resulted as an increase in rising global temperatures — Which, regardless of your age, should be a glaring flaw in our current system.

I personally doubt that the entirety of the recently proposed Green New Deal will be enacted, however, I believe that anyone who values the quality of human life, clean air, clean water, food sources, for not just those in the United States, but around the world, should be supportive of a Green New Deal.

Lauren Raiford
Lauren Raiford Feb 21, 2019
At University of South Carolina

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