Move over Sarah Palin, Bobby Jindal, Rush Limbaugh, and Michael Steele. You’ve been replaced by a smaller, faster, much cuter model of Terminator.
See below for video of Jonathan Krohn, the (just-turned) 14 year-old Wunderkind of the Republican Party, rocking the house at the recent CPAC conference, the main shindig for discussing the Conservative and Republican movements in our country. This kid may be the genetically-engineered love child of Karl Rove and Rain Man, but he’s cute as hell and one thing he gets very right is that our principles—our core beliefs about human nature and human society—govern whatever perceptions we hold to and whatever actions we engage in. Check it:


This is one place where trickle-down theory actually holds true: If you want to understand why people act the way they act, you need to understand what views are behind those actions. And if you want to change your actions, you need to shift your view (that’s why we meditate boys and girls!). And if you want to understand other people’s actions, you need to listen to their views.
So let’s examine the four main principles of Conservatism that Jonathan proposes, and see how well Republican actions actually line up with good conservative ideology.
Respect for the Constitution
That’s a great organizing principle. But if we all obeyed it, Gay Marriage would be immediately legal at the federal level, thanks to our Freedom of Religion and the Equal Protection clause in that document he respects so much.
Respect for Life
What a wonderful principle, at the heart of all Buddhist teachings, and what a clear statement of the total cognitive dissonance in right-wing thought. Is this kid for real? If anyone can name even one policy enacted by our last American conservative government which actually carries this principle into action, I’ll buy you a copy of this kid’s book. Is he talking about non-aborted fetuses? Because I’m really stumped here. No joke. There are a lot of dead Iraqis and a whole dying planet that want to know what the hell this kid is talking about.
Small Government
As a basic principle, this is simply neither here nor there. From a dharmic perspective, government is a means, and hopefully a skillful means, to the functioning of society. If small government is the most skillful means in a given circumstance, then the government should be small, or even nonexistent. But if large government is the most skillful—demonstrably true during times of economic crisis—then government should be large and pro-active to set productive priorities. Any skillful means should shift to fit the situation. Small government as a guiding principle in and of itself is silly. Saying you believe in small government no matter what is like saying you use the same tool no matter what tool is called for, whether you are buttering bread or chopping down trees. Good luck chopping firewood with a butter-knife, kid.
Personal Responsibility
On this point, you can call me 100% conservative. Honestly, I’ve become an Emotional Republican when it comes to seeing the power of not spewing my garbage onto others. The last few years of my own life have shown me that I need to take responsibility for whatever happens in my life, and the problems that arise when I don’t. It’s also shown me the problems with simply accommodating other people’s insecurities and immaturity too much, being too much of a caretaker and enabler of others, and how doing so is not helpful to anyone involved, no matter how much I love the person. However, what conservative ideology seems to miss—and miss BIGTIME—is that you can’t really take personal responsibility in a system stacked against you. You can only take  responsibility for your actions in a safe and nurturing environment (yes that is a “bleeding heart” statement, but that’s what the heart DOES – it bleeds!). If you feel like interdependent causes and conditions never even gave you a chance to grow up and do for yourself, you’d have no reason to EVER “Drive all blames into one.” If conservative policies cut the legs out from under the majority of the population by underfunding education and healthcare and engendering a cycle of systemic poverty and a whole lotta samsaric “isms,” how can conservatives ever instill this principle of taking responsibility in people’s minds as a code of conduct? As Obama said during the campaign, when President Bush talked about his mythical “ownership society,” what he was really saying through his actions was “You are on your OWN.” And that just makes people want to lay down, not stand up.
So what are the guiding principals of the Interdependence Party, party people?
Oh, and here’s Jonathan getting interviewed at the conference the next day: