Conservatism consists of exactly one proposition, to wit: There must be in-groups whom the law protects but does not bind, alongside out-groups whom the law binds but does not protect.
I read a book called The Reactionary Mind, by Robin.
It's thesis was that if you survey Western conservative writings from the French Revolution to today, the only consistent value is hierarchy. God, guns, small government, capitalism, and traditional family values may all be jettisoned, but never hierarchy.
I'll point out that this week, Trump pitted gun rights vs. enforcement of the out-group and the American Right shuddered.
He is also not the same Frank Wilhoit who wrote the Politics of Massive Resistance though the quote has been often misattributed to him. (Understandable given that one Frank Wilhoit was a political scinetist but the Frank Wilhoit who wrote the quote was a composer, though the quote was written far after the political scientists death and can be clearly attributed to the composer)
The quote is incredibly apt but your average conservative is too dumb to understand it. Maybe if they read it 4 or 5 times, but knowing them they'd give up halfway through the first try.
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