The Wisdom of Frank Meyer
Monday, July 28th, 2008 By Marc Kilmer
Frank S. Meyer is a somewhat forgotten figure in the conservative movement today (compared to, say, William F. Buckley or Barry Goldwater). But he was an important conservative philosopher who did his best to unite the libertarian and traditionalist wings of the conservative movement by showing how a belief in God and a respect for human liberty come from the same source and cannot be separated.
I’m reading his book The Conservative Mainstream right now. There are nuggets of wisdom on every page and I’d urge everyone to find a copy and read it closely. In lieu of that, I feel obliged to share these two quotes with readers of this blog because they seem especially relevant to the present political debate, although they were written decades ago. The first, written in 1965, seems a perfect prediction of what has happened to the GOP under the Bush Administration and the recent leadership in Congress:
If the [conservative movement] allows fascination with methods and techniques to become primary in its thinking, it will inevitably succumb to the temptation of gaining power for the sake of gaining power. If it wins, those who achieve power will be the prisoners of their methods, little different in essentials from the men who hold power today. Concentration on method without the greater emphasis on transforming popular consciousness can only lead to rivaly with the Liberals in appealing to the baser instincts of the people. The conservative movement has a more difficult task: to appeal to the higher instincts and beliefs that survive, half smothered, in the American people. This is the only foundation for a victory worth winning.
The second quote, written in 1957, is relevant to all voters of the conservatives and libertarians persuasion:
When, year after year, the money, the energy, the enthusiasm of American conservatives is devoted to the success of the political fortunes off Liberals who happen to be somewhat to the right of other Liberals — a Wilkie, a Dewey, an Eisenhower — it follows that conservative consciousness will be conditioned to delight int he virtues of a $77 billion budget as over against an $80 billion budget; in a federal education loan program as over against more direct federal interference in education; in the steady extension of the social-security system, slow only by comparison with the demands of a Reuther or a Humphrey — to delight, in short, in creeping socialism because it creeps instead of leaps.
The names may be dated, but astute political observers can surely fill in the blanks with appropriate politicians.
Tags: conservative, Liberty, Politics, Republicans
July 28th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
It creeps instead of leaps — love it.