The Bush/Cheney neocons sure don't have much in common with the values that real conservatives have always espoused. It is amazing that they are even allowed to call themselves conservatives.
I remember when conservatives honored the Constitution and resisted any efforts by the government to violate it. They believed in the Bill of Rights. Bush's neocons don't care much for the Constitution when it comes to getting what they want. They are perfectly willing, even eager, to violate basic rights.
I remember when conservatives believed in staying out of the affairs of another country. Bush's neocons don't believe any country has the right to disagree with us, and don't mind staging an unnecessary "pre-emptive" war if that country won't give us what we want (oil, etc.).
I remember when conservatives believed in small government and balanced budgets. Bush's neocon administration has radically expanded government and spent more money (in adjusted dollars) than ANY previous administration (even liberal administrations).
I also remember when conservatives were absolutely against any kind of national ID card. That also seems to have changed. Bush and the Republican Congress passed a REAL ID law in 2005. Now his lackey at Homeland Security is ready to start pressing the states to fall in line with the new law.
This law basically turns our state-issued driver's license into a national ID card. The states must over the next six years, start to follow new Federal guidelines when issuing the licenses, including keeping pictures on file of even those turned down for a license. They must also institute new security measures that would make the cards harder to forge.
But perhaps the most intrusive part of the new rules is that the state must check against federal and state records before issuing the card. They will also be required to share this information with other government entities. This, in effect, makes the state driver's license (or ID card) really a national ID card.
In fact, soon you will not be able to enter a federal building or get on an airplane without showing this card. Who knows what it will be a requirement for after that?
As a liberal, I never thought I'd hear myself say this, but I miss the real old-time conservatives. The ones who believed in constitutional rights and opposed government intrusion into the lives of its citizens.
These new neocons are not conservatives -- just fascists in disguise.
