But the distinction between a free and an unfree society is that such advice remains just that, and the adult individual remains free to accept or reject it without legal sanction. Conservatives wrap themselves in the mantle of American tradition, but on this key point they have trouble making it fit. Kristol and Wolfson are struggling, not just against the principles on which America was founded, but against the modern world. It is capitalism that has given us moderns so many choices. That's why capitalism is not in the long run compatible with political repression or governmental restrictions on freedom.
Freedom is also necessary for the development of strong moral character.
People do not develop prudence, self-reliance, thrift, and temperance when their choices are imposed by force. Welfare-state liberals undermine moral character when they subsidize indulgence in destructive choices. Big-government conservatives undermine character when they deny people the right to shape their own characters through their choices. Conservatives seem to have a surprising amount of difficulty distinguishing between coercive, government-imposed restrictions on choice and the kinds of voluntary social institutions that, after we consent to participate in them, limit our choices. There's a confusion here about the meaning of freedom.