Why Women are Turning to Conservatism

In trying to win arguments with liberals, it soon becomes apparent that we are looking at things from different sides of the fence, different reference frames if you will. Women shade to the liberal side for reasons that are as old has humanity.



According to liberal language crafter, George Lakoff, liberals are the “nurturing parents” while conservatives are the “strict fathers”. There is some truth in that. A more accurate characterization may be that liberals are the “permissive parents” while Conservatives are the “disciplining parents”. His theory is that decisions about politics are based on decisions about families.



When you consider issues and philosophies, you can easily see there is a lot of truth in the permissive vs discipline frames. For instance, Liberals want to spend, spend, spend. The mean-old-strict-dad Conservatives, who take a long view of consequences, insist on restraint. For Liberals there is never enough for all their programs. The need for more is generated by the need to expand the satisfaction created by the prior programs. Nor is there a limit on their thirst for more money from the Conservatives, who have exercised enough discipline in their lives, to earn large incomes. Conservatives who resist are fair game. They are shamed and called greedy. They are accused of buying elections. See the Koch Brothers. Every modest vice or maleficence is amplified a thousand times with fanciful conspiracy theories; while Liberals get quick passes on more severe charges: see Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Jesse Jackson, or Al Sharpton. The basic philosophy of Liberals is “to each according to his needs”. And in words of five year old, they want the state, run by Liberals, “to be the boss of that”. Once upon a time, women primarily took care of their families; “to each according to his needs” is the way resources were divided within a healthy family. It is natural that they apply this same philosophy to government -- making them lean to the Liberal side according to Lakoff’s theory.



The beginning of the current Liberal generation of baby boomers is rooted in the prosperity this nation experienced after WWII and spurred by Dr. Benjamin Spock’s Baby & Child Care. Parents were taught that discipline would destroy the creativity of their darling little bundles of joy. It was better to nurture their creativity so they could grow to their full potential. Bad behavior was tolerated so sacred creativity would not be stifled. Thus a largely self-indulgent generation was born and has become self-replicating in the Generation-X and the Millennials. As each generation had received little discipline and they had little to give.



There is an offbeat theory as to why women are more Liberal today. It involves the birth control pill. The pill works by making the woman “pregnant enough” for the egg not to attach to the wall of the uterus. According to research, while on the pill women are more attracted to sensitive, attentive guys than they are to the macho, take-no-prisoners, ambitious guys. Being pregnant or “semi-pregnant” they are looking for a guy who will nest with her. Unpregnant, she is looking for the more ambitious provider: the Conservative.



Conservatives descended from our hunter-warrior past. Discipline and skills were necessary for survival. You had to learn to hunt. A cracked twig could end a day’s hunt with empty game bags for all. It also takes discipline to be successful in the modern hunt, to learn work skills: how to be a butcher or a baker or software developer. You have to give up carnal pleasures and money today to reap a generous income stream later. It takes discipline, and real belief in your abilities to succeed.



Discipline is even more important in the military. A disobeyed order or an unnecessary risk can mean instant death not only to the violator, but also to fellow soldiers. The military is Conservative.



In times of increased danger, when she feels her immediate or her greater family threatened, it is only natural that she turns her allegiance toward the warrior-hunter-disciplined conservative as her surrogate spouse government instead of the sympathetic-permissive surrogate government. There is a real uneasiness even among the crowd that watches "The View" that America is headed in the wrong direction. Numerous concerns about unresolved scandals, the messes in the Middle East, Ebola in Texas and NY, and unrestricted flights from Ebola-stricken countries are beginning to bleed through. Even Russia is beginning to stir up some of that old cold war feelings that got Reagan elected over Carter. These concerns are beginning to outweigh their stoked-up concerns about the “war on women”.



When we win in November, we will owe a huge debt to the women who realized that at this point in our history, America needs more disciplined-conservative governance to steer a safe course through the challenges we currently face.

You can view CM Phillips work at his new blog at http://www.CMPhillips.com or email: cm@cmphillips.com