The Parable of the Liberal and the Conservative

The Parable of the Liberal and the Conservative

AKA The Parable of the Wall

One fine day a white Conservative man and a Liberal of indeterminable age, race, ethnicity and gender were out walking together. The sun was shining, a gentle breeze blew the clouds and the grass. The pair talked of the sky and of the shape of rocks, of the different shades of colour and of nothing much in particular. They walked and talked all day, walking further and further across the broad fields.  Then in the distance a wall slowly came into view, the wall was high, with no way to get across. When the Liberal saw the wall they were angry.

"What kind of fool builds a wall in a field!"

The Conservative listened as the Liberal continued.

"This is unfair, what possible good could this do?"

The Conservative replied

"The real question is why is the wall here?"

"I know why the wall is here!" Exclaimed the Liberal "The wall was built to keep people apart and that's wrong"

"You don't know that" the Conservative answered "all you or I know is that the wall exists, neither of us knows who built it or why, it may have been built for a very good reason"

This did not help the Liberals disposition "Your mad! How can you defend the monsters who built this wall!"

"It should be torn down and you should tear it down."

Confused the Conservative asks "Hold on! How did a wall I didn't build become my problem? And why am I responsible for tearing it down?"

Back and forth this went for quite some time, with neither willing to back down. But in time they calmed.

The Liberal said "Look, all I'm saying is that there are probably people on the other side of that wall, maybe my best friend lives there and I don't know it because I've never met them."

The Conservative said "And all I'm saying is that we have no idea what is beyond that wall, it could be monsters or streets paved with gold, but shouldn't we find out first?"

To which the Liberal replied "Why wait! We should tear it down now."

Now it was the Conservatives turn to exclaim "Why wait! Because tearing down the wall will have consequences and we don't know how bad they will be."

Airily the Liberal dismissed that thought with "Consequences, there won't be any consequences and if there are they'll be good."

Annoyed the Conservative tried to explain "You do know, no consequences and good consequences are not the same thing don't you?"

But the Liberal did not reply as they were already dreaming of a world without walls and the Conservative was left to wonder how someone of such an indeterminable age could ever be so naive.





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