Monday, 23 January 2006
Last Samurai
« Quote of the Day | Main | Cindy Sheehan Takes Her Protests Out of the Country »I watched the movie "The Last Samurai" last night. I was struck by the conservative nature of the film. It spent most of its time allowing us to take a peak into the ancient and noble traditions of the samurai. But at the end of the day, they die fighting for their traditions. They are no match for the modern world of warfare. After the samurai fall, the Japanese emperor realized much to his chagrin his mistake in eliminating this ancient tradition of his culture. He had pushed for modernity at the expense of his history. Only then did he understand the loss he suffered if only too late. But it was a valuable lesson learned.
This lesson is at the heart of the conservatism. A conservative wants to embrace and preserve the tradition and roots of his culture, even as technology and society moves forward. This preservation should not be confused with a desire to never move forward. In fact the conservative craves the modern world, he just doesn't want to forget how he arrived here. Our history and our culture are important. And we should never abandon it just for the sake of change. For then we will lose our way, lose our identity, and fail as a people.
