Conservatives have experienced remarkable political and economic success over the last thirty years, but despite that success they’re still angry and outraged. In fact they’re madder than ever. It seems strange until you realize that what conservatives want to do is to revive the American culture, but their political success has failed to achieve that. The ironic thing is that their economic success is actually a major contributor to cultural decline.
Conservatives believe wholeheartedly in the “free market.” They believe that free, unregulated markets will produce the greatest level of prosperity for a society. But beyond that they believe that free markets produce social benefits. This is what Adam Smith referred to as the “unseen hand.” Commercial interchanges benefit individuals, but the unseen hand guides the market to produce social benefits.
Here’s the thing, there’s no market more free than the marketplace of the American culture. Our debased culture is the product of nothing but the desires of the consuming public: no government control, no outside oversight. The only driving force is the desire to make money, which according to Adam Smith’s theory of the free market, should benefit society as a whole. There’s a demand, and someone creates a supply. Whether it’s hard core pornography, misogynistic music, moronic movies, a “liberal” news media, or a television culture disdainful of religion, tradition, morality, and family values, all of these exist because of the demands of the American people. The culture is a perfect free market. And it’s a sewer.
The American culture is a perfect free market, and it’s a sewer.
Let me be clear, the free market didn’t debase the American culture. All the free market did was give Americans the choice. And they chose. Take music as one example. Every type of music under the sun is available on iTunes, from alternative to Zydeco, and literally everything in between. Opera? check. Classical? Absolutely. Bluegrass? Yep. Contemporary Christian, smooth jazz? You name it, it’s all there. But what’s at the top? Schlock, nonsense pop, and thuggish and misogynistic rap. The free market gave the American people the choice, and they chose the music, the television, the movies, in a word the culture, that we have today. Make no mistake, that which conservatives most revere—the free market—has produced that which conservatives most disdain—the American culture.
The unseen hand, which is supposed to guide free exchange based on supply, demand, and the profit motive to produce socially beneficial outcomes, has instead slapped us in the face.
The Unseen Hand has Slapped us in the Face.
Most conservatives don’t make this connection directly, but there’s no doubt they feel it in their bones. They are closer than ever to the Government takeover they envisioned in the 1950’s, but their political and economic success has only made things worse. When they win, they lose. Something seems wrong, but they can’t quite identify it. And it’s making them frantic.
A rational, disinterested observer (admittedly not me) might suggest that their underlying theory is flawed. Perhaps unregulated markets aren’t inherently socially beneficial. But conservatives are unwilling to engage in critical self-analysis and unable to question their theories of government, economics, and society. In their view the theory can’t be wrong, it must be something else. The most obvious target is their political opponents. And so we have Fox News and talk radio calling liberals treasonous, and conservative politicians accusing President Obama of attempting to destroy the nation. Or as Newt Gingrich once said: “no grotesquery is too extreme.”
But this tactic hasn’t succeeded because they’re attacking the wrong target. It’s not liberal politicians who are debasing the culture, it’s the free market. But rather than re-assess, they just get madder, and look for other targets. Now they purge the impure; witness Tea Party candidates challenging moderated Republicans in the last few primary elections. And now they abandon establishment candidates and flock in frustration to Donald Trump.
Conservatives are now turning on themselves, like Soviet commissars casting about for blame for the failure of the latest five year plan. The theory must be sound; the problem lies in the implementation. And so each group within the conservative coalition blames the others, and Donald Trump emerges from the chaos.
The problem is that conservatives are like drowning swimmers thrashing about, desperate for something to grab onto. The real danger is that they will pull us all down with them.