Open source conservative

An open source conservative embraces the best of the public and openness, while rejecting traditional controls on discourse.

The censorability of an open source conservative (such as a Tea Partier) is lower than the censorability of a traditional conservative (such as Reagan Republican).

Examples of Open Source Conservatives

• Sarah Palin has made herself a relevant and influential voice for conservatism while eschewing the traditional gatekeepers. She has made it clear that she has little use for the liberal mainstream media, and has demonstrated that their approval is not needed through her savvy use of online communication.

• The Tea Party movement rejects the idea that a political movement needs to be governed by a handful of political elites; it is a movement driven by the Best of the Public which uses the Internet and other modern communication methods to organize and coordinate activities, rather than traditional top-down marching orders.

• Conservapedia embraces the "open source" approach to expanding and understanding conservative principles.

Advantages

There are several advantages to an "open source" approach with respect to the conservative movement:

• It anticipates and frustrates efforts by the liberal media to demonize, censor and smear conservatives. It is impossible to exclude the public from the public square.

• It is decentralized just as conservative values are.