I have read that conservatives prioritize fairness over compassion. They are both good values. But that makes them more sensitive to issues like welfare or affirmative action.
They tend to be more frightened by difference. That has been found in a number of studies. They are less open, less adventurous, less interested in others outside their own group. Purity is a a value that resonates for them. So that is rife for exploitation by racists.
When I was growing up, conservatives were against intervention in foreign wars, which was something I can get behind. They were more "Don't fuck with me and I won't fuck with you," something I can get behind as well.
The eighties and later Moral Majority conservatives who tried to impose their own standards and values on others -- those folks were NOT like the conservatives I grew up with.
The reason conservatism became so extreme was because white male privilege has come under attack since the sixties. So to fight back, they grabbed onto ideology -- Christian, racist, misogynistic ideology, which alienated a lot of otherwise conservative folks. That's what whites did when their privilege came under attack after the Civil War. They emphasized and elaborated on racist ideologies to justify Jim Crow laws and other restrictions on the freedoms of African Americans.
When I was young, conservatives weren't all that pro anything. They were more libertarian.
|