Moral and ethical principles stemming from liberalism and the Enlightenment (democracy, free speech, equal treatment, the elevation of reason and empiricism, individual sovereignty and basic human rights, etc.) are not merely "opinions" on morality and ethics (as many people who believe in moral relativism would like to believe). Fundamentally, they are actually evolved forms of conflict resolution between people and governments and their effectiveness is demonstrable.

The progress of human civilization can be measured in many ways. One way is how effectively we are able to resolve conflict between individuals as well as between people and governments. Without a means to resolve conflict effectively in a way that most people agree upon, societies become volatile and prone to collapse due to regime change and revolution. Stable societies that persist into the future are the ones with a means of resolving conflict (of all kinds) better than others.