Failed Conservative Values: Barack Obama on Status Quo versus Change

Edwin:  How would you compare Progressive values with Conservative values?

Mary Jacobs:  it’s really hard to get into that kind of thinking, because I don’t consider them very respectful of other people’s opinion.  I think they respect their opinions, those of the status quo, respect money, power, influence, and the more money they have, the more they expect to be respected.  I got divorced from that.  He wasn’t even a conservative.  There was that element of people saying, well, you should respect this person, because they did this, and made this much money.  And you can’t help being caught up in it.  But it’s more like envy.  I don’t think they really respect people, maybe people of their own blood.  It’s much more tribal with them. 

And I think the conservatives are much more insular than progressives.  Like my dad, [progressives] kind of look out at the bigger picture that all of us are a big family, rather than “Mine – don’t touch it!”

Failed Conservative Values: Kevin Fish on Fear of Change

Kevin Fish: Progressive means change for the better.  The conservative attitude is we don’t change.   Conservatives stay the same, regardless.  They are very insensitive, heartless, very naïve and in denial.  Some conserving is good, but you can’t go too far.  And the conservatives go too far.

They’re afraid of progressives.  They’re afraid of change for the better.  There is some kind of a fear.  It’s hard to explain, whether it’s paranoia or fear.  They figure let’s keep things the same regardless.  They are not being very realistic.  And so they think progressives are – we are going to be in danger if we change

Failed Conservative Values: Henry Hall  the Status Quo

 Henry Hall: In my mindset and experience as an individual.. the conservative individual is more for the status quo. They're not interested in change.  They're more willing to see things slow, slow down.. A progressive is in more than a hurry.  Progressive would like to see things move along at a faster clip. They have a longer range term concept.. They have a longer vision and concept. They can visualize how change is going to impact positive  change in the community.

Conservative is more concerned with tradition, looking back to see how things were done in the past. Where the progressive is more willing to experiment and take a risk. Whereas the conservative wants to stay away from the concept of risk or change itself.
 

Failed Conservative Values: Tony Hale on Fear of Change

Tony Hale:  Not having conservative values myself, I have to project on them why I think they have their values the way they do.  I think that conservative values are based on a belief that the past, the way things happened in the past, are better than the way things will be in the future.  Conservative could be termed conserving the environment, you could have that argument, that it’s a conservative viewpoint, but it’s not.  Conservative values are values that wish to limit things, because they are afraid of change, accepting everyone into their sphere of acceptability, afraid of accepting everyone into society.  They’d like to keep people out of the inner circle of acceptability.

To me that’s a kind of Balkanization, a mind that wants to separate people, to marginalize individuals; it’s to me a conservative perspective.

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