Capitalism and Conservatism

Sam Tanenhaus has a good, provocative piece out at TNR. People more up on the intricacies and history of partisan politics in America will surely be chiming in during the coming days. Me, I’m more interested in the philosophical/ideological debates. Luckily Tanenhaus’s article delivers there too.

I’ve not read any Whittaker Chambers, for example:

In 1958, Chambers had declared (following Disraeli): “Conservatism is alien to the very nature of capitalism whose love of life and growth is perpetual change. We are living in one of its periods of breathless acceleration of change.”

Reminded me of a post I wrote last year, which garnered a lightly sneering response from Matt Frost over at The American Scene. Reminded me I need to do more thinking and writing on this subject, as I never did get together a response to Matt’s arguments…