The heart and soul of the conservative is individual freedom and personal responsibility: “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.” The heart and soul of the liberal is compassion and social responsibility: “No man is an island; I am my brother’s keeper.” Both seek to ensure personal freedom– conservatives as it is defined within the law, liberals as it is defined within the heart. Conservatives tend to attempt to persuade by reason (right or wrong). Liberals tend to attempt to persuade by emotion and association (good or bad). Liberals tend to believe that the people should enact laws that will provide broad benefits to all the people and to cause the wealthy to share some of their wealth with the more needy, in the amount and direction determined by the majority. Conservatives tend to believe that the people should enact laws that will protect private property, provide individual freedom and permit people to share their wealth to the extent that each person chooses.
