Social conservatism
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William F. Buckley, Jr.
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Social conservatism is a belief in traditional or natural law-based morality and social mores and the desire to preserve these in present day society, often through civil law or regulation. Social change is generally regarded as suspect, while social values based on tradition are generally regarded as tried, tested and true. Its opponents commonly associate it with conservative religious groups, militarism and nationalism.
Opponents of social conservatism argue that tradition is not necessarily a source of wisdom. Many views and values, for instance, which were at one time viewed as "traditional" are now viewed as outdated or unacceptable. Proponents of social conservatism counter that many "modern" values are also vapid and corrupt, often pointing to the deterioration of the traditional nuclear family over the past century as a result of increased social acceptance of divorce, promiscuity, and homosexuality.
The meaning of social conservatism may vary between locations, depending on the social, religious and nationalistic traditions of a particular locale. It may be, for instance, socially conservative to promote "traditional" marriage in a Protestant, mainstream Mormon, or Catholic community, but socially conservative to promote polygamy in a devoutly Muslim or fundamentalist Mormon community. What is considered to be socially conservative is therefore very much dependent on what is considered traditional. Though most common in American Conservatism—indeed, international observers often wrongly believe it to be the whole of the US Conservative movement—it does have its counterparts outside the United States—in the UK, it is evinced in the work of writers like Peter Hitchens and Alexander Deane, and in publications like the Salisbury Review.
