Libertarianism and Conservatism...

 I am woefully uneducated in the concept of libertarianism (to the point of having a hard time even spelling it correctly.)  My learned buddy Mark, over at Ordered Liberty, has been recommending reading to bring me up to speed - and I thank him.


This recent post of his,   The Western Confucian: Libertarianism and Social Conservatism,  takes issue with a post over at The Western Confucian concerning an alliance between social conservatism and libertarianism.  In no uncertain terms he disagrees and in the process earns the coveted:

Quote of the Day

While conservatism is based on a positive conception of freedom rooted in a vision of the true, the good and the beautiful, libertarianism is based on a negative conception of freedom that simply seeks freedom from rules and authority, from social order and the rights of community.  Devoid of any concern for anything beyond the self, libertarianism wallows in a degenerate license that undermines the very idea of civilization itself.  It is the antithesis of everything that conservatism stands for -- of the very things that make conservatism what it is.

 Packs a big punch in one paragraph, no?