Jonah Goldberg: On Federalism and the Future of Media

Author's note: Jonah Goldberg did multiple events at the TPPF conference this week; this piece covers all of them.

Federalism is the best system created for maximizing human happiness.

There era were moving into, in terms of openly partisan media, is much more in tune with American history than the mass media era we're exiting.

Where did conservative media go wrong in 2012?!?

• "I would rather see five more conservatives on the faculty at Harvard than five more Hillsdale Colleges."
• You cannot create new 'old' institutions

Conservatism "has to be about persuading people who disagree with you."

"Young people are an iphone generation voting for a post office political party."

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We haven't had a liberalism this unapologetic about its core assumptions since at least the 1930's.

• Liberals dogmatically believe they're right because they're liberals.

One of the reasons we shouldn't lose heart is because a lot of politics IS personalities and moments.

Federalism:

• If you push issues to the most local level, then the people who pass the laws have to look the people who have to live under those laws in the eye.
• Conservatives have been moving too much of our vision for government to Washington in the first place.
• People are more interested in good stewardship at the state level.

Update: Looks like TPPF FINALLY uploaded the first event to YouTube: