Almost all statements about politics and the economy have contradictions. Progressives support anything that increases the freedom of the individual, while also supporting the ability of government to enhance that freedom. This is a nuanced and admittedly ambivalent position.
Here is the most basic conservative message: All government involvement in the life of the individual is intrusive and wrong. However, with the exception of extreme libertarians, these same “conservatives” support massive military expenditures, corporate welfare, severe restrictions on “immoral” acts such as gay marriage and — most significantly — outright bans on a woman’s personal right to have an abortion.
Equivalencies do not exist between these messages. Progressives can and must live in a real world of difficult choices, while reactionaries (they are not true conservatives) are apparently quite willing to ignore the obvious contradictions in their language. Why do they do this? Perhaps it is because they want to maintain their “freedom” in a world where most people are not free. Or perhaps it is because they are desperate to maintain their own sense of innocence.
madnessatthegates 