Can someone explain to me the difference between Conservatives and Liberals?

[Tweak]

I can't seem to get a straight unbiased answer from people. I have done a little research and I think I understand a lot of the basic policies and ideas of each one but I get the feeling there is a lot I'm missing. For example, Liberalism seems like the vastly superior choice based on what I have read, but seeing as so many people seem to disagree I'm thinking it might be one of those "works on paper but not in practice" type of things.

[lollocoptor]

Conservatives believe in personal responsibility, limited government, free markets, individual liberty, traditional American values and a strong national defense. They believe the role of government should be to provide people the freedom necessary to pursue their own goals.

Liberals believe in governmental action to achieve equal opportunity and equality for all, and that it is the duty of the State to alleviate social ills and to protect civil liberties and individual and human rights. Believe the role of the government should be to guarantee that no one is in need. Liberal policies generally emphasize the need for the government to solve people's problems.

Both views have strong and weak points and choosing one definitive one to be the "right way" doesn't work. Nothing in life is so black and white. Depending on the individual, one of them will be more appealing, but you'll always find people who can argue against your points and beliefs.

Personally, I think that people spend too much time identifying with parties as a whole instead of trying to better relate to the individual issues, candidates, and political plans that are important for the present state of the country. So many people are just going to keep voting for their party regardless of whether or not it's what best for the country at the time. Whatever you decide, just try not to let your affiliations (either way) cloud your perspective on what's really important. Political views should be illuminating, not distorting.

[Zak]

conservatives are good americans who are usually republicans who support our military and don't believe in destroying our nuclear arsenal.liberals are stupid people who believe in anything there told and think america should be run by the government and they are usually democrats and they are also hippies

[Adam]

Conservatives:
Believe in less government
Want less taxes
Economically fiscal
Socially less tolerant (but not all)
Want people to make their own choices
Are usually for gun rights, pro-life, and against gay marriage along with more military

Liberals:
Believe in more government
Want the government to help all people
Want more taxes to pay for government programs
Socially more tolerant
Economically more likely to spend
Usually pro-choice, for gay marriage, and against gun rights along with less military

Remember there are liberal Republicans and conservative Democrats.

Remember not all liberals agree with the statements I posted as not all conservatives would agree with the statements because people can choose what they want to believe. Also most people are in between liberals and conservatives and are called moderates. America should really focus less on right and left and more on authoritarianism and libertarianism meaning either for more government control or for less government control.

[McKayla]

Well if a lot of people disagree, it could have to do with where you live. Some states are more "red" (conservative) than others. Essentially, you have two subjects that decide each: social and economic. With social liberals, you believe in such things as gay marriage rights, abortion, no war, things like that. The social conservatives believe in things like less gun control, no abortion, and they tend to be more religious. Then you have the economic standpoint. The liberals believe in higher taxes for government funded projects. A hot-button issue right now is healthcare. While liberals believe everyone is entitled to it for free, conservatives are concerned that this will diminish the quality of medical care. Therefore, in general, conservatives believe in what is called "laissez-faire" economics which basically means let the market run free, those who are meant to prosper will and the poor are where they are for a reason.

[Bridget D]

In my opinion the biggest difference between liberals and conservatives is in their personal convictions. Based on my observations over many decades, people who make decisions about issues that affect our country based on their moral convictions tend to be republican and lean toward conservative politics. People who make decisions that affect our country based on how they feel about the issues, tend to be democrats and lean toward liberal politics. When I was younger I thought I was a "liberal" because I agreed with many democrats who supported such things as equal opportunity and protecting the environment. As I became more experienced in life, I began to understand that, although I would like to think that that the laws and regulations we have in America insure that everyone is being treated fairly, has equal opportunity, and takes care of the planet, these are actually concepts that are based on moral values and can't effectively be governed by laws, rules and regulations. These concepts are held in the hearts and minds of the people who value the human race and the world we share. Unless these values are practiced, taught and modeled, the laws and regulations we mandate only give us a false sense of reality. For example, a liberal and a conservative will both profess to value freedom. However, a liberal might support a woman's right to have an abortion in the name of "freedom of cholce", whereas a conservative might value the right to human life over a woman's right to choose life or death for the unborn. That is not to say that a conservative does not support a woman's right to choose whether or not to have sex, use birth control, or parent a child. It sems that some people confuse their rights with their emotions and we are moving toward, what I hear referred to as, a "politically correct" society in which one person's negative emotional response to a sound, image, or action might be interpreted as a violation of their rights. The fact is, we do not have a constitutional right to not be offended. The question is, when should one person's freedom be considered over another's rights. When should protecting the environment be considered before the rights of the people who inhabit the earth

[captainspaldingiv]

Conservatives live in the real world.