To be conservative, then, is to prefer the familiar to the unknown, to prefer the tried… — Michael Oakeshott

To be conservative, then, is to prefer the familiar to the unknown, to prefer the tried to the untried, fact to mystery, the actual to the possible, the limited to the unbounded, the near to the distant, the sufficient to the superabundant, the convenient to the perfect, present laughter to utopian bliss.

On Being Conservative · 1962
★ 1.7
Other tags relating to this quote
Medium
Time
Provenance
Citation
Oakeshott, Michael. "On Being Conservative. " Rationalism in Politics and Other Essays. Methuen, 1962.