Left from Right: Part 3 - Conservative Counter-Balance

As the peak of the last economic rise came around, so came with it a rise of conservative groups & parties. Following a number of elections ending the last decade the pre-dominance of social democracy in the western world was comprehensively broken. In this third and final part of the series we will look at how the right figures into the left-right dynamic in British politics.

In the UK and Canada since their respective elections, conservative groups have provided a counter-balance to student, union & anti-capitalist outcries. But what is this conservatism? Well conservatives practice the politics of preservation, maintenance and stability; conservative groups seek often the preservation of traditional standards, ways, values & deferences. The things preserved by conservatives are often aligned with groups such as the ruling class, ruling elite, the 'natural' order, the church and other entities that make up the political right (Fulcher & Scott, 2003).

In the UK Mr Cameron's Conservative Party have been hard at work promoting their family policies since their time in opposition, aimed at 'restoring' a central role in society for parenting and the two-parent married couple household (Prince, 2010). This stands as an example of maintaining traditional standards and state elites such as the church.

In Canada it is Big Business that has been on the receiving end of Conservative favour through corporate tax cuts rolled out, with more likely should Mr Harper's administration be re-elected (Argitis, 2009). These can certainly be classed as a boon to the so called capitalist class and the property and resources that they possess.

Similar elites look to gain from conservative policies in the US where Republicans ended last year's 'lame-duck session' just prior to retaking control of the House of Representatives by securing the continuance of their tax cuts for the super-rich (Montgomery et al, 2010).

This conservative focus upon ensuring the continued dominance of a system of order that focusses on the elites over the demands of people certainly has a precedent. The balance of power policies of two centuries ago whose dominance was ensured at the Congress of Vienna by the machinations of Prince Klemens von Metternich, sought to allow for stability and dominance amongst the great powers. This was however aimed not merely against external enemies but also against the clamour for reform within their own borders.

It is strange to see governments of the twenty-first century still seeking to manage the world through Metternich's policies. From the uni-lateral interventionist foreign policies some western powers have followed, to the domestic centralisation of power and wealth; conservatism seems an extension of the balance of power, the efforts of conservatives directed towards peace and stability by trying to keep the rest of the world 'orderly' and 'under control'.

But conservative administrations risk falling foul of the old adage, that reform delayed, is revolution begun. In Britain, polls are starting to suggest the return of conservatism might be a short term matter (UK Polling Report, 2011), while in Canada they have already forced the resignation of their Conservative Prime Minister, the dissolution of parliament and the calling of an election (Galloway, 2011). With continuing protests, increasing union organisation and the Labour Party's UK polls recovery it is certainly not out of the realm of possibility that this conservative revival may not last very long.

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References:
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+ James Fulcher & John Scott's 'Sociology [2nd Edition]'; Oxford University Press, 2003;

- For some if the theorists behind Elite Theory;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elite_theory

+ Rosa Prince's 'David Cameron: family matters to children more than income'; January 2010;

+ Theophilos Argitis' 'Harper Plans Campaign to Promote Corporate Tax Cuts'; January 2011;

+ Lori Montgomery, Shailagh Murray & William Branigin's 'Obama signs bill to extend Bush-era tax cuts for two more years'; December, 2010;

- For Balance of Power policy, Metternich & the Congress of Vienna:
Adam Palmer's 'Metternich: Councillor of Europe', 2010;
Prince Klemens von Metternich's 'Metternich: The Autobiography, 1773-1815,' 2004;
Adam Zamoyski's Rites of Peace: The Fall of Napoleon and the Congress of Vienna; 2008;
Balance of power in international relations, Wikipedia

+ George Dawson, discussed in 'Ian Hislop's Age of the Do-gooders'; BBC, 2010;

+ Anthony Well's UK Polling Report; 2011;

+ Gloria Galloway's 'Harper government falls in historic Commons showdown'; March 2011;