Conservatives versus Libertarians
W. James Antle III has piece entitled The Conservative-Libertarian Clash: Values and the Free Society. Here is a taste:
- Just as conservatives must remember the limits of government, libertarians must understand the importance of virtue. A free society rests in part on shared values, including a common understanding of the intrinsic value of each individual and the obligation to respect others’ rights. It is not inconsistent with a regime of minimal government to judge, shun and exclude certain conduct while to affirming, upholding and exhorting certain other conduct. In fact, under this regime the power of real community becomes even more important. A belief in individualism does not mean ignoring the reality that human beings are relational creatures, who live together and form their understandings of the world around them together rather than in total isolation from one another. It is thus important how they live together. The ability to live peacefully together is vital to a free society and may be supported by the moral and cultural framework of that society.
But the relationship between liberty and virtue is much more complicated than this. John Stuart Mill presents the real challenge to conservatives on this issue. His argument that the cultivation of virtue requires liberty has never recieved an adequate answer.