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Origins Of The Left–Right Split
- Burke and Paine both championed liberal ideals but from opposing starting points about tradition and reason.
- Their debate crystallized the early left-right divide by showing two enduring dispositions in liberal politics.
Tradition Versus Rational Rebuilding
- Burke prized generational continuity, gradual reform, and skepticism about human knowledge and power.
- Paine prized radical breaks and the application of reason to remake institutions from first principles.
Gardener Not Engineer
- Burke aligns with a Hayekian view: societies grow like gardens, not engineered French parterres.
- He advocates incremental improvements because complex institutions contain tacit knowledge we can't fully rationalize.