A Voice in the Wilderness In Defense of "Mere Conservatism"

The Plumb Line: An Introduction

A new feature here at A Voice in the Wilderness begins today, and I have to admit that I'm pretty pumped about it.  We're calling it "The Plumb Line" and the basic idea behind it is this: a deeper inquiry into the facts and factors involved with some of the most important issues of our time.  It's nearly impossible to do or write anything without any trace of bias and presupposition, but we're hoping to tackle some relevant topics from a bevvy of angles and opinions so that you, the reader, can wrestle with them and come to more informed positions. We'll have guest contributors and hopefully spark some lively dialogue in the "Comments" section of each post.

The first contributor I'm happy to present is our friend Caitlin Doemner.  She wrote the introduction below, and tomorrow I'll posting her first piece (on Immigration).

Hey, I’m Caitlin and RJ has been nice enough to let me guest write for his blog. Coming from a background of English, philosophy, art and business, politics is a new foray for me and so I’ve decided to tackle it with as few presumptions as possible. The Project, as I tend to think of it, entails looking at particular issues in the public forum in four-part series.

First, I want to research a matter recently in the media and examine its historical and wider ideological context. I fear these articles might be rather dry, since my goal is mortal objectivity. Second, I want to construct the best liberal arguments I can find relating to the issue. I hate it when people attack sound bites; they almost inevitably end up employing strawmen fallacies. Third, I plan on responding with the best conservative arguments. And last, I will attempt to assimilate everything I’ve researched and share my own meager thoughts on the matter. DISCLAIMER: My opinions are admittedly fluid and I should not be held responsible for them after the date of publishing. I reserve the right to change my mind in light of new data, better logic, and the occasional supernatural intervention.

I am continually scouting for new topics, fresh perspectives, useful resources, and interesting conversations, so please send me your feedback.

Caitlin Cogan Doemner

We're excited to have Caitlin on-board and look forward to welcoming other contributors in coming weeks and months.