National Conservatism vs. Americanism

In this episode of New Ideal Live, Elan Journo and Nikos Sotirakopoulos discuss the Statement of Principles recently released by leaders of the “National Conservatism” movement outlining the ideas they think are necessary for “recovering and maintaining our freedom, security, and prosperity.” Journo and Sotirakopoulos discuss the “principles” the statement advocates, how they relate to America’s founding principles and the philosophic ideas behind this movement.

Among the topics covered:

“National Conservatism” as a movement to redefine conservatism to exclude individualism;
Why “national conservatives” regard the family and the nation as the units of society and oppose claims to know universal truths;
Why “national conservatives” think governments must promote religious ideas;
The authoritarian implications of the “national conservative” view that government should promote the family and prevent immorality;
The “national conservatives’” un-American view that rights are conditional and originate from group consensus;
Why we must oppose both the “woke” religious phenomenon on the left and the religion of the “national conservatives.”

Mentioned in this podcast are Ayn Rand’s essay “Conservatism: An Obituary” from the book Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, Leonard Peikoff’s essay “Religion Versus America” from the book The Voice of Reason, Journo’s articles “Meet the Conservative Authoritarians” and “The Vice of Nationalism,” and the New Ideal Live episode “The Threat of National Conservatism.”

The podcast was recorded on August 24, 2022. Listen to the discussion below. Listen and subscribe from your mobile device on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or Stitcher. Watch archived podcasts here.