The Right 101 Lesson 1: What They Mean by "Small Government"

     I never considered myself a conservative but I knew plenty of them growing up. I did however at least think the Republican side had the better ideas especially in regards to the economy. Now however, I have changed my leaning.  Don't get me wrong, the Democrats don't always get it right either. The best way to establish your own beliefs and develop your own arguments is to understand what the other side thinks and what they stand for. So for those of you who want to get a basis of an understanding of Republicans, here is a short lesson on one part of their talking-points.
     the definition for "small government" is a government which minimizes its activities and influence over its constituency (the citizens). This seems to be an important issue republicans (especially the Tea Party libertarians) as they talk about it all the time. However, when they are referring to "small government" they are not using the textbook definition. 
    The Republicans keep pushing for less regulations over financial aspects (i.e. less government enforcement) but in the same hand they push for refusing the marriage between same sex individuals and trans-vaginal ultrasounds before abortions in various states. These actions make is sound like they are advocating for larger government. This hypocrisy confuses most people. What you have to understand is that they (the Republicans) are not calling for a generally smaller government. What they want is a laissez-faire economy paired with a return to "old American values".
     Lassez-faire, for those of you who don't know, is a economic system that allows for transactions between parties to be free from any government regulation, taxes or intervention. It stems from a phrase given by a French Businessman, Le Gendre, who when asked how the government of France could be of use to business he replied "laissez-mous faire" or "Let us be". The term was later popularized by the French intendant of commerce Vincent de Gournay. This is commonly referred to as "Free Market Capitalism". So, in English, the Republicans want the government to stay out of economics.
   The return to "old American values" means they want the values of the golden days to return, where a man and woman marry and the man works, in a good Christian family style. I do not mean this in an insulting way, if you look at the trend of comments and legislation from the Republican side, you see a trend in that direction. Examples are the continued opposition to gay marriage, the de-funding of programs that benefit women (Like Planned Parenthood in Paul Ryan's budget) and the trans-vaginal ultrasound I mentioned before that is required before a woman can get an abortion.
    To sum it up, when they say small government, they do not mean the whole thing. They want smaller government in respect to business but a stronger presence to enforce what they believe America should be. Again, if you have any comments, questions or disagreements post them below and I will do my best to respond to them.