Freedom is not enough, says Tom Klingenstein. He’s right.
Freedom is central to the American tradition: Don’t tread on me! Live free or die! But our freedom is nurtured, sustained, and protected by our way of life. If we don’t preserve that way of life in its fullness, we’ll lose our freedoms—even as we sing hymns to liberty and venerate the Bill of Rights.
More than 50 years ago, National Review editor Frank Meyer theorized “fusionism.” He sought to explain the postwar alliance of hardline anti-Communists, proponents of free enterprise, and social conservatives. By his reckoning, all three strands shared a commitment to individual freedom. In contrast, postwar liberals emphasized government-led solutions to social problems, which is to say “collectivism.”
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