Daniel Juster, Th. D., Restoration from Zion
The term progressive conservative envisions moving society to a greater righteous and just order on the basis of conservative principles. The principles do not change but applications to new situations requires change. We seek progress toward a conservative vision of a just order. The left has used the term progressive for themselves, but it is really a regressive movement that seeks to bring back the overwhelming control by government that the founding Fathers of the United States rejected. Liberalism is regressivism and conservatives are the true progressives. We need to capture the language and say this over and over. Conservatives are not fixated in the past, but have principles that can move us all forward to greater justice.
The Definition of Justice and Righteousness.
In liberal and leftist philosophies, justice is never defined. Movements form the left depend on a vague emotional appeal based in the world justice without every defining justice. Generally, however, the word as they use it means equality. The full movement to this full equality leads to a communist or fully socialist order and a huge overarching state to enforce this equality. We reject the idea that disparities in wealth is unjust. Such disparities are an essential aspect of freedom and produce a dynamic that potentially can life the prosperity of all people.
The classical western understanding of justice was from Biblical influence. It was an order of society where every person and group could fulfill their God intended good destiny. Because talents, gifts and callings are greatly varied, there is no enforcement of equal incomes or equal status in society. The idea of the classical idea is that opportunity is to be maximized. By dong so, the musician, the entrepreneur and the employee, the farmer and the craftsmen can all find a fulfilling life. For a non Theist a person of no religion or even atheism could chose to be a progressive conservative on the basis of providing the maximum potential for human fulfillment according to a persons gifts, talents and desires for life fulfillment.
However, this requires limiting the oppression that can come from the wealthy whereby others are used as a mere means to maintain the wealthy class. Rather, the wealthy are caused to bless with their wealth.
Justice does include equality before the courts and for crimes, but does not mean that we have equal income or equal material wealth. Justice does seek an order where all who are willing to work have very adequate income, food, shelter, education and retirement.
Progressive Conservativism therefore seeks to incentivize the rich through tax policy that fosters investment that expands employment and greater opportunity for the general population. Tax shelter investments should be high taxed and economic expansion investment should be lower taxed. Training employees, potential employees and expanding opportunity will be favored. One can gain great wealth in a progressive conservative order but must use that wealth for the common good. We think especially of the late Rep. Jack Kemp and his enterprise zones in poor areas of the city etc.
Progressive Conservatives measure progress on the basis of more and more people being able to provide well for themselves and be free of government welfare.
Progressive Conservatives seek to limit the control by the super rich of our political system. As such we support a new system of political action committees. They can give to parties and candidates. They can give unlimited sums, but they are limited to receiving small donations thereby democratizing politics. People can still give limited sums to parties and candidates. Those who build PACs with large numbers of people will be the most influential in the political system.
Medical Care: The development of high teach medicine with its high expense but life saving potential requires new ways of thinking. Competition between hospitals, doctors, insurance companies etc. should bring down costs. However, unbeknownst to many, the medical industry has functioned as semi-monopolies and has produced by far the highest costs in the western world.
We support seeing that all are covered with basic insurance. Vouchers will be provided in sliding scale amounts so all can buy insurance. In addition, alternative medical systems and doctors that have their own credible accrediting agencies will be accepted for care as well. The government will broadly accept credible medical methods. Our goal is broad coverage, strong competition, accessible medical information on the results and ratings from doctors and hospitals and more.
Religious Freedom and the Roots of Western Civilization: The religious foundation of ethics and morals in western civilization is Judeo-Christian. We recognize that other religious traditions have overlapping values. One of the most important values is traditional marriage and family. Fostering the stability of traditional marriage and family should be the policy of the government. This is the bedrock of our civilization without which society as a whole will deteriorate and the quality of life will be greatly diminished. However, people are free to personally choose alternative life styles, gay, lesbian and transgender etc.
Those who make such choices have basic civil rights, to work, public education and public accommodation. However, religious people also have a right to reject such lifestyles and to teach that from their point of view such choices are immoral. This will not be considered hate speech, but simply traditional moral teaching. As such those who foster traditional morality who run private small business will not be required to be involved in gay weddings and events where their conscience in compromised by participation in fostering immorality.
In addition, bathrooms and showers will protect the privacy of all. This means that opposite sex bodily nudity will not be foisted on those who have traditional values. This means that no showers will be for mixed body sexes no matter the self-definition of a person. The government may foster accommodation to transgender people, but the one’s bodily sexuality, having a male of female body, will determine dressing rooms, shower rooms and bathrooms without stalls.
The military has great interest in cohesive units. They therefore will not be a place to seek to integrate people who choose unusual non-traditional identifications of sexuality.
Immigration: Immigration has been a great help to the nation. We believe in a legal immigration system for qualified people at rates whereby such people can be assimilated into the country. While seeking compassion for otherwise law abiding people who are illegal immigrants, that have been here for a long time, we from here on will strictly enforce the law for newcomers. Furthermore, those who made the decision as adults to come illegally may be given residency, but will never be given citizenship. Their children will be considered for citizenship. They will not be rewarded by chain migration whereby they can bring their extended family..
Education: Progressive Conservatives believe that government should not control education. There should be vouchers so parents can choose education. There can as well be vouchers for qualified students for technical training post high school and for other colleges to help those with good records acquire practical training. Such vouchers will only be given to schools that teach basic reading, writing and math skills plus the constitutional government of the United States. Other than this, competition should lower costs. There can be many kinds of schooling to fit the desires to the people. Many of today’s schools are centers of bad education and inflated beuracracies. Streamlining and real completion is essential for good education. They are hot beds of liberal indoctrination.
General public education must push the values of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence and will not undercut the moral and values of the people who send their children to these schools. Alternative lifestyle teaching will not be fostered. This can be fostered in private and voucher supported schools for people who desire this.
Under no circumstances should schools for children be used to indoctrinate them to embrace alternative lifestyles as equally moral to traditional marriage and family.
The Military and Defense: A strong modernized military is crucial for national defense. Also shared defense with freedom embracing nations is our first priority beyond our own defense. Lastly we will ally with nations that serve our national interest, but not with regimes that kill large numbers of their won innocent civilians.
With regard to genocide, we will be guided by the Proverb, “Rescue those being led away to death.” When the United States can use its air power and at little danger to itself, can stop genocide, it will do so. We failed to do so in the holocaust (bombing the trains leading to the camps), in Ruanda, and recently in Syria. It should be the policy that those with power must quickly and strongly respond to genocide.
The United Nations: We need an alternative to the United Nations where nations ruled by tyrants vote again and again to undercut Israel and the free world. The U. N. needs to become a forum without power while the power should be vested in a new organization of nations that practice human rights according to the U. N. Declaration of Universal Rights.
Nation Building and Free Societies: We will give ourselves to help nations to transition to freedom, but not with the foolishness of expecting immediate change in authoritarian societies, as if by a war and regime change we can bring freedom. Rather, free societies are a product of generations of education and the acceptance of such values that foster free societies. We will seek incremental progress by involvement with regimes that are open to progress. We recognize that freedom can be lost if its principles and values are not taught and fostered in each generation.
A Republic and a Democracy. The United States is not a democracy where the vote can determine all things. This would lead to the tyranny of the majority. Rather, the vote of an educated public (and the education part is crucial), is one part of checks and balances along with the Constitution, and balancing powers in the larger society. We are a Constitutional Republic, not a Democracy. The idea of this Republic is to see the greatest amount of government as possible closest to the people in towns, villages, counties, and states.
The goal of Progressive Conservatives is thus the prosperity of the greatest number of people without seeking equality in results.
