Within this article Michael Walzer explains and talks about the neoconservatives, and how they are the voice behind the change in politics. The neoconservatives according to Steinfels and Schuster “express a neo-sense of crisis and loss.” They live with one basic dilemma and that is that “the institutions they wish to conserve are to no small extent the institutions that have made the task of conservation so necessary and so difficult.”
The crisis that Steinfels speaks on is the fall of authority in governments, armies, universities, corporations, and churches. The head officers in charge of these establishments cannot command obedience or respect because the trust and deference have broken down. The neoconservatives are scholars and intellectuals, and people read there documented options’ because they have a different view on things than any other politics group. These groups of people are getting looked at more and more and people are taking them more seriously over time. Steinfels states that “this intelligent conservatism that America has lacked, and who’s absence has been roundly lamented by the American Left. “
The neo conservatives are liberal but they don’t have as strong of believe as a full blown out liberal. They think that no one person should be set on thinking one way because of a group that they are in. They believe that it set people free of religious and ethnic community; it abolishes control and agencies of control. They believe that it will generate free men and women and also radical individualism and then a radical competition among self seeking individuals. The reason why this liberalism didn’t work in the past was because people were still living in the past and was stuck on the old rules and ways of life.
Equality is another factor that makes the liberals nervous. They want all to be equal with the affirmative action, and the woman rights movement and the civil right movement it was a great step forward. They want to give merit to these minorities but to help them come up and try to put everything on a equal playing field but they don’t think that they would make it because the elite old men are the ones that carry the power and make all the money.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
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Seeing as this article was written 30 years ago, it makes a whole lot more sense when we can see a direct result of the policies undertaken by our government and leaders at that time. During the 1960's and 70's, our country was in a state of turmoil after the end of the Vietnam War. During this time many people were questioning our government leaders and policies. So were these neo-concervatives the answer to our country's problems?
ReplyDeleteWalzer described these neo-conservatives as "eminent scholars and intellectuals". Well I sure as shit would hope that anyone trying to influence/control the policies of our country would be in such "high" regard. As Seinfels further claims that they "have created at last that 'serious and intelligent conservatism that America has lacked..'"
It's my question as to if it was these neo-conservatives that have continued to selfishly exploit the American people as they selfishly turned profit and folded to capitalist regime. The ones that led us to pointless wars, wasted our resources and drove our economy into shambles.
The post clearly characterizes the efforts of the author in establishing where neo conservatives stands on the political landscape. It would be good however to provide a little of the critical arguments presented in the article regarding the neo conservatives. For instance there is discussion at the end of the article regarding the neo conservatives failure in examining the "faultlines" present in liberal capitalism and the failure to propose a means of regaining a "healthy moral culture".
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