Political Science

Political ideology refers to a set of beliefs, perceptions and thoughts about political affairs held by a significant proportion of the population in a society.  A political ideology is a set of ideals and ideals that dictates ones goals, course of action and the level of expectations in regards to a certain aspect of politics the society.  There exist a number of political ideologies with each containing its own distinct ideas and ideals.

Liberalism has emerged as one of the most important political ideology in the modern world and has been hailed by most philosophers and scholars. It is premised on the dogma of individual liberty.  In the words of Marcus and George (1997), liberalism refers to the idea of a polity administered with a regard to equal rights and equal freedom of speech, and the idea of a kingly government which respects most of all the freedom of the governed. Liberalists pursue for the enactment of policies that affirm individual liberty and that are aimed towards the toleration of other peoples beliefs and the different ideas held across the populace.

Conservatism on the other hand is an ideology that insists on the maintenance of the status quo.  It is a political stance that pursues traditional policies that maintains stability and allows continuity. While liberalists push for individual freedoms, conservatives on the other hand abhor any policies that may result to drastic changes in the society. They advocate for religious, environmental and cultural conservation while denouncing policies that legalize abortion and homosexuality for instance (Randall 1991).

Libertarianism on the other hand holds viewpoints that are closely related to liberalists in that they both advocate for individual freedoms and liberties. While liberalists believe in the reduced role of the state, libertarians on the other hand go to an extent of demanding for the abolishment of the state.  Libertarians stand dialectically opposite to the conservatives, pushing for the radical eradication of any political and cultural norms and structures that hamper the right to life and liberty. To libertarians, rights to abortion and homosexuality are fundamental rights that solely lie at the discretion of an individual and not the state (Randall 1991).

Indeed, the liberal, conservative and libertarian ideologies, though widely held in the society are radically different from each other. Although the liberal and libertarian ideology may hold closely related ideals, they differ in the sense that liberalists pursue for toleration of other peoples beliefs while libertarianism advocates for the radical eradication of structures and authorities that impede on the right to life and liberty. Conservatives on the other hand advocate for the status quo and stability.