Darwinian Conservatism

A well-argued book proposing that conservatives need the Darwinian insight that human beings have a 'natural moral sense that supports ordered liberty as secured by the social order of family life, the economic order of private property and the political order of limited government.' This in turn is related to the right considering human beings as naturally imperfect and limited in virtue in contrast with the leftist vision of human perfectibility (and the consequent emphasis on rational planning). Arnhart concentrates on five thinkers - Edmund Burke, Friedrich Hayek, Russell Kirk and James Q. Wilson - and focuses on five propositions and five objections to his position, which structure the book. Or special interest to Network readers will be his discussion of Darwinism and religion with respect to morality, ID and biotechnology.