The illusion of left & right

It occurs to me that the political philosophies that have guided party politics in America for more than 200 years have become so confused by the tendencies of statism and authoritarianism that have crept into our institutions of government, that the names ascribed to them have grown less useful and more misleading with time. The "liberal" of today's political universe could hardly be recognized by those that have traditionally assumed that mantle for the principles and philosophy for which it was named. The same can surely be said of today's "conservatives". The current debate on Social Security offers a prime example. The very notion of a program that seeks to redistribute wealth by coercion would be an anathema to classical liberals who would not only take exception with the state assuming for itself an obligation to the private welfare of sovereign individuals, but also the compulsion by the state to surrender privately earned means to the achievement of that end. Today's "liberal" party has not only made peace with this common violation of the legitimate role of federal power, but also seeks to maintain, unchanged, this system in spite of its coercive nature. The maintenance of the status quo has traditionally been considered "conservativism", but is now co-opted by the left. It is the modern "conservatives" that seek sweeping changes to the system, a position rightly described as liberal. Hence the logical consistency of the parties core principles must be called into question. If the maintenance of liberty is at the root of the American left, then it is logically inconsistent to use the power of the state to that end. For liberty and statism are opposing and conflicting political objectives. The same inconsistency dogs the American right. How can a party stand for Locke on property and Smith on capital and, at the same time, ignore there intellectual counterparts on matters of personal liberty? The answer, I think, lies in a truth more fundamental than any structure of cultural or political organization, human ambition. The principles of left and right have simply crumbled in the face of the corrupting influence of power. For it is the desire for, and pretensions of, political power that drive those that wish to exercise personal control over the mechanisms of government rather then any principled philosophy. In this reality lies the historical tendency of the state to grow larger and more oppressive with time. The Democrats are then compromised by their desire to socialize and regulate just as the Republicans are compromised by a desire to moralize and traditionalize. Both see the mechanisms of the state as the means to achieve their ends and whatever coercion is brought to bear for any end, liberty is the inevitable victim. Philosophical inconsistency undermines the credibility of those that choose to lead, eroding public trust and making coercion more necessary to the achievement of political goals. Hence the cycle perpetuates and accelerates the growing power of the state and, at the same time, the oppression of the individual. The cycle has, traditionally, only been ended by revolution (usually bloody) and the dissolution of the state. A new weaker state then emerges and the process begins anew. Jefferson certainly understood this and fretted that the republic would need to be renewed by blood every twenty years. The fact that our union has endured for over 200 years is a testament to the wisdom of those men that sought to form a more perfect union. But now, I fear and hope, the time has grown short as the whims of man's ambition have continued to subvert the interests of liberty and our shackles have tightened around our necks. It is no longer a question of if, but rather when, the desire to live free will outweigh the hope of security at any cost. I submit to you that believing that being shackled to the Democratic or Republican party will imbue one with a righteousness of cause has overlooked the fatal flaw and dangerous conceit of party politics. Both parties have their hands on the rudder and are steering the ship of state into oblivion. None will be spared the wreckage of liberty lost.