Conservative, liberal battle more than it appears to be

There is a liberal bias in the media, say the conservatives (Fox News notwithstanding). Well, maybe. The Metropolitan does, most certainly, have a liberal bias. The Advocate does, too, and so does The Community News-all of our Auraria publications. Why is that?

Because, say the conservatives, there is a liberal bias in our colleges and universities. Now I have to hand it to them there. No doubt about it: there is indeed a liberal bias running rampant through our higher education system, and the Auraria campus is no exception.

It makes sense that there would be though, doesn't it? Liberal, as in liberated, as in freed from repressive confines. Liberal thought is, by its very nature, progressive thought. And if there were ever a place where forward, progressive thinking should be encouraged, then the halls of academia are it.

We liberal academics have been feeling anxious lately. One can only speculate what sort of strange politics will ensue should hardliner conservative Samuel Alito be confirmed to the Supreme Court. He stood (or sat, actually) in support of a law requiring a married woman to ask her husband's permission before seeking an abortion, for example. That says a little something about Alito's character.

But what does it really say? Well that's debatable. Liberals see it as a harkening back to the not-so-long-ago days when women were considered to be the property of their husbands or fathers. Conservatives see it as a harkening back to the good old days.

Do I have to make it clear that I'm not speaking about all conservatives and all liberals? Can I just get on with my rant?

I've been trying to figure out conservatives for quite a long time. None of the ones I talk with seem to like to be associated with their most popular fanatic fringe-the fundamentalist Christians. Yet, I think they do all bear a striking commonality: They believe they are our moral superiors. Talk about irony; we liberals think we're their moral superiors. No wonder our nation is so polarized.

The conservative idea of morality is denying people certain liberties. Come to think of it-damn the paradox-that's the liberal idea of morality, also. The only difference is which type of liberties the two groups want to put a stop to. Liberals-and I'm not talking about Democrats, I'm talking about real liberals-want to deny people the liberty of turning profits at the expense of others' welfare. While conservatives want to deny homosexuals the right to be recognized, and poor people access to the basic amenities.

Yes, with the impending confirmation of Alito, it's easy to think our nation is taking a step backward. I, for one, am trying to maintain my optimism, however. I see what is looming as the regressive backlash of an overall progression-something like Paula Abdul's two steps forward and one step back (from long before her "American Idol" days, for those who don't recognize).

There will be progression. It is inevitable, no matter how the conservatives may try to stifle it. And oh, how they do try.

My father-in-law, who turned conservative in his older age, likes to say: A young conservative has no heart; an old liberal has no brain. I see it more like this: A young conservative has no heart; an old conservative has no heart.

But there's more to it than that. It's a matter of individualism versus egalitarianism. Conservatives like to tout the ideal of the rugged individualist. This is an appealing image: the man who answers to no one but himself; the woman who answers to no one but ... well, let's not get carried away.

We liberals, on the other hand, tend to advocate egalitarianism. Let the individual strive, yes. Hell, let the individual enjoy the spoils even-we're not communists (not all of us, anyway). But, let the individual remember the greater community; for the individual does not succeed but for the sweat and blood of the people.

"Hypocrites!" say the conservatives. Liberals are big talkers, who don't practice what they preach. Well, damn. They nailed us again. It's oftentimes true, I'm afraid, what they say. I know liberals whose grand ideals crumble in the face of reality. I have been one of those starry-eyed idealists myself.

But I gotta tell you: I would rather be a progressive thinker, struggling with my hypocrisy, than a backward-thinking and blatantly callous quasi-moralist.

Besides, the conservatives are the bigger hypocrites. After all, everybody knows Jesus was a liberal.