I'm curious what you mean by self-righteousness.
I just know a few liberals that think they have all the answers, but realistically, they're just whining about the current crop in administration at present. I am a person that does entertain the conspiracy theories to the degree that too many facts line up that don't get adequate answers. For example, the blast cut looking steel in some 9/11 photos. I discussed the steel itself and just went and found a picture of an image to discuss. I was then ridiculed for where the image came from and the topic degraded to namecalling on some peoeple's parts from there. When it degraded to name calling, that's when I consider the arguers self righteous.
The overall difference to me is that while conservatives tend to propose solutions based on the fact that the real world is a nasty, gritty, brutish place where there are indeed bad guys who wish to kill you out there, liberals propose utopian solutions based on a reality that never existed and never will.
Well put, and this is a distinct difference between myself and some of my more liberal friends. They tend to argue in idealistic utopian terms, I tend to argue in realistic terms. This creates some long discussions. I just had one a few night ago with a liberal leaning friend and he seem somehow convinced the entire world operates on a somewhat fair basis, or should, Idealistically anyhow. It doesn't, never has, and this is where it quickly segways to this....
I've had physics related arguements with folks who don't know anything about physics degrade to namecalling all based upon the first law of thermodynamics.
I also tend to lack good arguement skills in regards to politics myself and often "step in it" by choosing my words improperly or not doing adequate homework first. But, as all things internet, I tend to think people are a little overboard on forums compared to when you meet them out in the world.
"Conservatism is, at best, a partial philosophy of life."
----Jonah Goldberg
I not only agree with JG on the above point, I think it is one of the things that keeps conservatives (in all their flavors) in America from getting utopian in (political) outlook and keeps them more flexible in their (political) alliances.*
I also think the left is much more invested in their ideology as a total philosophy, with the repercussions that entails.
One example of the difference in attitudes would be Christopher Hitchens. Truly, a man of the left over the years and not friendly to tradition, social conservatism, or the like (He wrote a hatchet bio of Mother Teresa and one of the recent god & Christian-despising athiest books, for the love of Pete). Yet, when he strayed off the path of leftist orthodoxy with regard to the war on militant Islam, he was excoriated and effectively excommunicated from the left. He still hates God, religion, pro-lifers, and all...but because of his break with orthodoxy on one topic, he is no longer welcome in lefty circles.
One of the reasons for the growth of conservative philosophy and action in the last few decades is because the left has been active on so many fronts. Even if you do not think that some topics ought to be politicized, conservatives have had to organize and develop counter-arguments for the damnedest of things folks would not have considered political, just to keep living life without some lefty social-engineer bending you over and giving it to you up the poop chute.
It is my opinion that total political philosophies and belief in the plastic/perfectibility of human nature are the prerequisites of totalitarian societies, as we have seen since the French Revolution. Political philosophies that are partial and leave room for spheres without political content as well as a belief that human nature is immutable & imperfect are much less likely to lead to mass-murder and agents of the state crawling over the citizenry.
* You see some brittleness, lately, as some of the members of the fusionist conservative movement have gotten more doctrinaire the past few years. This is most apparent on (but not confined to) the libertarian side of the tent, as libertarians have drifted into utopian territory.
