After talking to my conservative friends, listening to conservative talk shows, and even looking at YouTube videos hosted by conservatives, I have been curious when we are so politically divided in this country. I have concluded that one of the most critical factors driving conservatives is they feel the world is changing too fast. It always hasn’t been that way. One of my grandmothers died early, but the other lived long enough to see the world change from horse and buggy to men landing on the moon. She saw the changes as making life better in many ways.
Change is essential another way. It’s not just the usual thing of oldsters grumping the things teenagers do and, worst of all, their music. Conservatives recognize that people of color are becoming the majority in this country. Their lifestyles, their preferred food, and many other things will become dominant. You could say they are racist, but it is more fundamental than that. Conservatives do not like change. That’s almost the best definition of being conservative. The changes they see around them drive even more conservative viewpoints, becoming reactionary. They usually define reactionary as being excessively conservative.
It might be helpful to look at the dictionary definition of conservative from the American Heritage Dictionary of the English language fifth edition.
Conservative
kən-sûr′və-tĭv
adjective
- Favoring traditional views and values; tending to oppose change.
- Traditional or restrained in style.
- Moderate; cautious.
We can do nothing to change the flow of advancement, including things we dislike. Even I get grumpy when things change. Sitting at this computer and writing this blog, I am reminded how much I hate Microsoft’s new update to Windows 11. I know I’ll never be able to convince my ultra-conservative friends to be more moderate. They hate change! Unfortunately, that hatred is transferred to anyone who is considered liberal. We can’t change them, but I have hope that my conservative friends will remain friends.
