I present a problem for a prominent kind of conservatism, viz., the combination of traditional moral & religious values, patriotic nationalism, and libertarian capitalism. The problem is that these elements sometimes conflict. In particular, I show how libertarian capitalism and patriotic nationalism conflict via a scenario in which the thing that libertarian capitalists love – unregulated market activity – threatens what American patriots love – a strong, independent America. Unrestricted libertarian rights to buy and sell land would permit the sale (...) of all American territory by private individuals to foreign powers. Patriotic nationalists regard this as outrageous, but libertarian capitalists cannot refuse it. (shrink)

While contemporary readers may find what appear to be appealing streaks of liberalism in Montaigne's 'Essays', I argue that a more careful analysis suggests that Montaigne's overall stance is quietistic and conservative. To help support this claim I offer a close reading of 'Essays' III.11 ("Of Cripples"), where Montaigne offers his famous critique of the witch trials of early modern Europe. Once Montaigne's objections to the witch trials are properly understood, we see that Montaigne did not seriously or consistently dispute (...) the church's authority in political matters, though certain undeveloped seeds of liberalism do leave an unresolved tension in his writings. (shrink)

Despite commitments to claims about the welfare-enhancing superiority of art-interested ways of life implicit in much of their work, aestheticians have shown little interest in explicitly bringing their discipline to bear on issues at the intersection of ethics, aesthetics, and politics. Roger Scruton’s work on culture bucks that trend, but few have contributed to the discussion he initiated. After an extended treatment of one of many possible examples showing that aesthetics-related matters can and do bear significantly on social and political (...) issues, I present key components of Scruton’s brand of cultural conservatism and explore one way of working out some of the details, in an attempt to show that the kinds of off-putting unwieldiness and putative sociopolitical dubiousness from which ambivalence toward issues at the intersection stems might be satisfactorily dealt with. (shrink)