Darwinism and Conservatism: Friends or Foes?

Click here to watch the video.Click here for to listen to the audio.

There is a growing debate among conservative thinkers and pundits about whether Darwinian theory helps or harms conservatism and its public policy agenda. Some have argued forcefully that Darwin’s theory provides support for conservative positions on family life, economics, bioethics, and other issues, while others have countered that the effort to justify conservative policy positions on Darwinian grounds is fundamentally flawed. Does Darwin’s theory help defend or undermine traditional morality and family life? Does it encourage or discredit economic freedom? Is it a spur or a brake to utopian schemes to re-engineer human nature?

Speakers:
Larry Arnhart, Northern Illinois University
John Derbyshire, National Review
George Gilder, Discovery Institute
John West, Discovery Institute

Moderator:
Steven F. Hayward, AEI