What I propose to do here is something a bit different—to take Burke’s core ideas and set them out in a frame many of my readers will recognize at once. The foundation of Burkean conservatism is the recognition that human beings aren’t half as smart as they like to think they are. The first question to ask is whether government has any business getting involved in the issue at all. So the term “Burkean conservative” comes from the Anglo-Irish MP Edmund Burke (1729-1797), who is remarkable for opposing the French Revolution for its disregard for tradition and religion. In this case, that standard was not met, as there are no Purple Hearts issued for being butthurt. Burke was utilitarian and empirical in his arguments while Joseph de Maistre, a fellow conservative from the Continent, was more providentialist and sociological and deployed a more confrontational tone in his arguments. The Irish-born politician started as a fiery Whig, a voice for American independence and for Dissenters and radicals at home in Great Britain. Burke is generally considered to be the “founding father” of modern conservatism. In today’s world, secularism is becoming increasingly topical as religion, especially the Christian religion in the Western World, begins to fall out of favour as a majority religion. This was the conviction, also all but universal among the philosophes, that history moved inevitably in the direction they wanted: from superstition to reason, from tyranny to liberty, from privilege to equality, and so on. We dump pesticides into the biosphere, carbon dioxide into the air, and inadequately tested drugs into our bodies, and then figure out from the results what kind of harm they’re going to cause. My readers may have noticed that, given the arrangements just outlined, nobody in the debate over same-sex marriages would get everything they want. So, that is why I am a “Burkean conservative”. The first was the conviction, all but universal among the philosophes whose ideas guided the revolution, that human nature is entirely a product of the social order. The Burkean Conservative. No actual harm has been demonstrated by those opposed to granting that right, and no compelling interest prevents government from granting that right. The foundation of Burkean conservatism is the recognition that human beings aren’t half as smart as they like to think they are. Robin Tilbrook claims that the extension to Article 50, which maintains the United Kingdom's membership of the EU until the 31st of October is illegal and thus the United…, The Institute for Government argues that there is no decisive route to blocking No Deal and they won’t be able to use the same tactics as the last time to stop No Deal.…, Anniversaries of major events live the 75th anniversary of D-Day enable us to draw important lessons. Mixed-race marriages were legalized, a lot of mixed-race couples got married, none of the horrible consequences imagined by the opposition ever got around to happening, and that was that. That would let same-sex couples take their business elsewhere; it would also let people who support the right of same-sex marriage know which businesses to boycott, just as it would let conservative Christians support their co-religionists. So all conservatives owe some of their philosophy to Burke: the opposition to destructive change and a belief in individual liberty upheld by the rule of law. Burke believed that a Christian government maintained a sense of moral direction, and that Christianity served as a guiding force for all forms of civil management. Immoral actions, they believed, were damaging to society, and if allowed to propagate, would erode the rights (and liberties!) Required fields are marked *. with Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Dr. …