Tough Love! College Students Instruct the GOP on How to Capture Their Support
“If you are twenty and conservative, you don’t have a heart. If you are 40 and liberal, you don’t have a brain!”
This quote is tied to Winston Churchill and raises debate on both sides of the aisle regarding its validity and accuracy. Many on the left are offended by their views being conveyed as juvenile and underdeveloped, whereas the right would argue that it should not be so uncommon to see young conservatives. No matter what your perspective is on this opinion, it shines light on a great truth in our modern society: it is less likely to find young people that are conservatives–especially on college campuses. This is not because these young people do not exist, but due to small numbers, remain hidden in small clubs like the College Republicans, or in Student Government cliques where they find a sort of safe haven from the scourging of college liberals. Since the results of last month’s presidential election, the predominant political question has been: What is wrong with the GOP?
A good place to begin to answer that question may be by looking at why the GOP lacks any presence on college campuses. A reason for this has to do with the failure of the party and conservative movement to message their ideas clearly and open up lines of communication with college-aged Americans.
Mitt Romney and Barack Obama at Hofstra Debate in October (AP Photo)
Personally I have had great liberal colleagues, acquaintances, and friends from my university, The College of Charleston (Charleston, SC) with whom I have had healthy discussions, debates, and co-opt projects. Even as a staunch conservative, I have had great experiences and learned a lot from my liberal colleagues. That being said, we have also had many Facebook arguments with some harsh language directed both ways. Through this all though, we have come back to important “come to Jesus moments,” in which we reaffirm our respect for one another and look to find the common ground, an example our politicians could learn from. Many of colleagues their views are shared here.
It has been generally accepted since the 1960s that the majority of university students and professors are liberal, and outnumber their moderate and conservative colleagues by a large margin. A study by the Students For Academic Freedom shows that margin to be 5 to 1. During my time at the College of Charleston, conservative professors, unlike their liberal colleagues, hid their views out of concern for repercussions from students and other faculty. When those views ever came out, they were met by progressives in abrasive and aggressive manners. As a student, it would be impossible to count all the times I was scourged for bringing up my conservative views and defending Christianity as secularists pounded against the religion out of ignorance and a sort of unsolicited offense. For observations like these, many college conservatives sit back, reserve their views, and refuse to fan any flame of disagreement, knowing it quickly bursts into a blaze.
UNDERSTANDING THE RESERVATIONS OF COLLEGE CONSERVATIVESLooking at how Christianity is viewed among non-christian 16-29 year olds can also be used to help understand how ollege conservatives may believe they are viewed by their peers, and in turn why they often keep quiet about their political leanings. Gabe Lyons, founder of “Q: Ideas for the Common Good” and coauthor of UnChristian, has authored a new book entitled The Next Christians: Seven Ways You Can Live The Gospel and Restore The World. His social polling produced quite alarming results at how the young adult unchristian world views Christians:
91% Anti-homosexual
87% Judgmental
85 % Hypocritical
75% Too Political
72% Out of Touch with Reality
78% Old Fashioned
70% Insensitive to Others
68% Boring
What’s amazing is that these are some of the same judgments you hear made about young conservatives and their politics. Of course these are not true for the majority of humble, pious, loving Christians, just as they are not so for most down-to-earth, caring and compassionate conservatives. Yet it is undeniable that these are the perceptions which exist, regardless of their validity.
My experience shows some conservatives may truly be homophobic, judgmental, insular, sheltered, and insensitive. But many are quite humble, compromising and respectful, and are only categorized as ill-minded and out of touch because of a few bad apples. Seeing how they are unfairly perceived, many college conservatives react by cowering away; they write their research papers, have conversations with other conservatives and hunker down at their local chapter of the College Republicans or Federalist Society. While this goes on, liberal students are engaging in social justice affairs, helping advise on university policies, assisting their liberal professors, and campaigning against qood-quality fast food restaurants. Advocacy for green initiatives flourish while pro-life campaigns struggle to get off the ground.
Why is there so much more momentum behind Democrats and progressives on college campuses?
Lets look through the eyes of those who are in the know on this subject. Not only have I just graduated from the College of Charleston, but I was integrally involved in various areas of political involvement around the campus, including majoring in Political Science and focusing on Faith in Politics- as well as contributing heavily to the Student Government Association, forums on politics, and many discussions between college students regarding issues facing our nation and our generation specifically. To contribute to this analysis I have also brought together the perspectives of my former colleagues from the College of Charleston who represent a wide range of political and social thought.
1) Why do college students align themselves with the Democratic Party over the GOP?
Cara Brock, a self-described “conservative republican” and Junior studying Political Science at the University of South Carolina, answers this way:
“The college life is its own unique universe, wherein students have heightened freedom with fewer consequences. They have no dependents and are typically only financially responsible for themselves. College-aged students are idealistic about the changing world, yet they are too focused on fairness as end goal. Students want to help those less-fortunate, yet they don’t have the means to do it on their own, so they are willing to allow others to do it ‘for them’. They haven’t lived in the career world to see how capitalism truly works, so they don’t see the burden placed on citizens who are forced to support others beyond their own familial unit.
Socially, they argue that if an issue doesn’t directly affect them, then they might as well support it, so that others may do what they want. This applies to topics such as gay marriage, abortion, gun control, and marijuana legalization. It has now become the idea that an apathetic opinion leads to a supportive vote, rather than voting based on actual research.”
Sean Bath, a personal friend with who I have won team debates with and done research alongside, describes himself as “somewhere between leaning liberal and liberal” and is quite partial to environmental issues, seeing as he is working to complete his Master of Science in Environmental Studies, sees this issue like so:
“In regards issue alignment, the actual substance of academic study aligns more with liberal positions than conservative positions. So if students ranked issues by importance and disregarded actual conclusions or solutions, it would match better with a ranking created by liberal politicians than one done by conservative politicians. Students might be learning about the environment, science, the arts, and global culture. Then they encounter a Republican Party that disregards these issues in the public discourse and cuts federal and state funding for pertinent legislation.”
David Lappin, another friend and fellow conservative who believes in fiscal responsibility answers quite concisely, something we all appreciate, by simply stating:
“College students align with the Democratic party due to a lack of understanding of economics, and the liberal stance on social issues.”
Colin Kerr, a passionate campus minister at the College of Charleston, purveyor of philosophy and politics, and “liberal independent with libertarian sympathies, believes:
“College students align themselves with Democratic Party primarily out of their distaste for the Republican Party. I see very little loyalty to Democratic Party, but rather an identification with particular liberal causes and a rejection of Republican Party. I believe this explains why so many college students I know also vote or support Libertarian candidates.”
There is much truth in all of these statements regarding how students think, truth that the Republican Party leadership needs to come to terms with. One, conservatives firm in their beliefs hold strong to all the values of Republicanism, namely fiscal responsibility, the capacity and need of a human being to make it without government assistance, and a firm adherence to ideas of free enterprise (arguably more a libertarian value than republican). Two, in these responses, and those not included, liberally inclined students express an outright distaste with Republican views.
Is this because those views are outright horrid and anti-human? NO! It is because Republicans in power lack the capacity and intelligence to communicate their messages effectively. Democrats get away with banning foods because they spin an argument effectively. Abortion, for example, is now seen as an issue of choice rather than one of life and death because Republicans are not adequate enough to even formulate a logical, emotionally gripping argument to support the idea that a baby should live. How incredibly ridiculous!
2) What are some reasons, from your experience, the Republican Party suffers from not being able to grasp the youth vote? Is the approach wrong? Is it the message? Is it just cool to be Liberal, or at least is it perceived that way?
Dan Mackin, a Catholic young man sharing my love for history and politics, and a Republican flirting with Libertarianism, acknowledges:
“There’s certainly a disconnect between those people who are ‘cool,’ and those who are ‘conservative.’ There aren’t many conservatives out there in the public arena, other than politicians and cranky old men (Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity)… so when Cory Booker and Barack Obama curst onto the stage, they can’t help but draw a crowd of supporters and admirers. The Republican Party certainly has an image problem… all the cool, hip, young people (Paul Ryan, Marco Rubio) still appear so old-fashioned and stodgy. Ron Paul certainly tried to tap into something vibrant, but got naysayed and poo-poo’ed every time by the mainline GOP. As much as they claim they aren’t our grandfather’s GOP… the GOP is very much still stuck in the 1950s…”
Colin Kerr,a liberal sympathizer to libertarianism, shares similar thoughts:
“The Republican party suffers from some huge image issues. It’s the party of old, intolerant, white guys with the token woman or minority thrown up on stage–which feels akin to putting lipstick on a corpse. There also tends to be an obsession with flag-waving (‘Merika!), fear-based arguments and policies on gays, Mexicans or socialists, and warmongering mixed with American exceptionalism (when it’s politically expedient). As someone who once worked for both Republican and conservative causes as a college student, I came to see the whole conservative Republican complex as intellectually bankrupt and purely ideologically driven. This did not drive me to Democratic party in the least bit, since any party is susceptible to similar tunnel-vision and specious arguments, but I don’t think I could ever be a Republican given how the Republican Party looks, talks, and votes.”
David Lappin, in his concise form hits his party strong stating:
“The reason is the message. The Republican party conveys that it us the party of rich white men and this needs to change. The Republican party must convey the message that it is inclusive.”
Sean Bath also acknowledges “it is primarily the message” yet also shows that “young adults also tend to have a higher acceptance of diversity…” and that the youth as a whole, regardless of political identification “want individual social liberty…
WHAT’S TRENDING? WHAT ARE THE ISSUES THE REPUBLICANS FACE ON CAPTURING THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF THE YOUTH?
What we see is ultimately a realignment of ideologies among the youth. Many are classifying themselves as independents under the realization that party politics really do not coincide with their views. Moreover, as students like Sean and Dan mentioned, there are those who identify as liberal or conservatice who really admit to being libertarians who lean left or right. And even that leaning is simply based on how the two parties communicate. Democrats have captured this movement in strong ways by speaking directly to the increased liberalization of college students and young adults whereas the Republicans have simply failed to capture the hearts and minds of those with immense energy and passion. Democrats have learned to speak to the social concerns young adults are only beginning to realize exist. This does not make the Democratic way correct, but a young, ignorant, unformed, malleable mind will certainly call it truth because…well, the Republicans are too stupid, to even put forth a logical, reasonable argument for their stands on abortion, immigration, welfare, etc.
Republicans, like the statistics regarding Christians seen earlier, come across as homophobic, insensitive, and ignorant. Todd Akin said the most ignorant statement on record regarding rape, the female anatomy, and abortion. Conservatives agree it was dumb, but now Republicans are roped into the Akin category of insanity. So what can Republicans and conservatives do to counter all of this? Find better messengers.
Archbishop Fulton Sheen (AP Photo)
Painting of Nathan Hale at the moment he uttered his famous quote: “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” (Facebook Photo)
Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense and American Crisis (Photo credit of Wikipedia).
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, Billy Graham, Ronald Reagan, Samuel Adams, Nathan Hale, Paul Revere, and Thomas Paine were all men who shared values of republicanism and deeply cared about various social issues. What do they have in common? Well, they all knew how to communicate.
Samuel Adams was revered by Thomas Jefferson as the most informed and passionate about liberty. Thomas Paine rallied the troops in December of 1776 when all seemed lost amidst a dreary winter of hopelessness and dread. These messengers are unfortunately quite rare today. To college-age Americans, Republicans today lack voices of reason, passion, humor, and love. Romney is an extremely intelligent and talented man and communicated great amounts of facts and statistics, as did his colleague Paul Ryan, in this past election, but there was no gusto; not even his followers were convinced of his conviction. In this case the GOP must understand that how you speak is often much more important than what you say.
Nobody recognizes that more than the Democrats, who took wisdom straight from Benjamin Franklin’s wisdom ( From Franklin’s letter “Rules for Making Oneself a Disagreeable Companion”). One, they talked a lot, especially about themselves. Two, if they could find nothing else to hang their opponents on they would deny its validity, then criticize little things like one’s grammar. Three, if all else fails, simply interrupt your opponent profusely.
Republicans need passionate, young conservatives with a sense of ferocity who can communicate complicated messages in simple ways. And those people are there, thus the GOP must support and form them. There are many routes to fix this problem, but none is more important than communication.
Is There Hope?
Republicans today are not too far gone from our founding views of Republicanism. Yet they fail day in and out to stand for the timeless principles of liberty, civic duty, the vilification of corruption, unalienable rights, and sovereignty – all based on the understanding that humans are made in the image of God and are thus highly capable. These values and principles were the foundation of thought for the American Revolution and educated our heroes like George Washington, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and Thomas Paine, who almost single-handedly saved the Revolution December 23rd, 1776 when many of the troops and colonists were ready to surrender out of a weary spirit and need for inspiration.
House Speaker John Boehner (AP Photo)
Let’s take a look at what the college students and recent graduates we talked to had to say, on if the Republican Party willsurvive and win back the next generation:
Sean Bath: “The party can promote its own solutions to the problems students care about. Issues are not mutually exclusive. Issues can be solved by many different tools. The party should use palatable market-based tools (such as cap and trade) to address issues like climate change. For example, the party could write comprehensive market-based climate change policy in a package with economic deregulation where regulations aren’t needed.
To reap the benefits, the Republican Party needs to make this compromise legislation legitimate. Students need to know they can trust what the party gives. This was not true during the Bush Administration, when legislation like the “Clear Skies Initiative” superficially disguised a pro-coal purpose. If the party consistently reaches out, it will definitely win supporters.”
Cara Brock: “Students have a heightened radar for post-graduation life. They want financial security and the promise of a job. Though these are already key platforms of the Republican message, conservative political figures are still not breaking through. A large-scale take back of the media might just be required in order reach new supporters. The media bombards college students throughout each day. Students are always tuned in. If the conservatives could find a way to appeal to the young people in a way that doesn’t portray all of them as ‘rich, middle-aged, white men,’ perhaps they may gain some leverage. Moreover, encouraging students to think for themselves rather than falling under the shield of conformity should be the key goal of the broadening conservative media base.”
David Lappin: “The Republican party, if it wants to survive, needs to take the pro-life and gay rights issues out of the platform. Not only college aged women, but most women will not vote for a candidate who does not support their right to choose. Roe v. Wade is never going to be overturned and the Republicans need to understand that. Secondly, the Republican party needs to be inclusive of everyone, including gays, and should make gay-right a non-issue.”
Colin Kerr: “The Republican Party’s only hope on college campuses is to embrace the more libertarian wing of the party, not just in occasional rhetoric, but in actual practice. And it needs to be on the two big social issues first–gay marriage and the drug war. That will win the trust of college students and open them up to other liberty-minded and market-driven policies.”
So John Boehner, Paul Ryan, Eric Cantor, Kevin McCarthy and Tom Price, there you have it. Conservatives and liberals have given you a path to save your butts, to put it nicely. Work on your image, not by changing who you are, but by listening and communicating effectively the goodness of your economic plans, pro-life stances, and respect for the capacity of the human being. Gather the youth by supporting them. Run them in local and state races. Show that you care about the issues they face and advocate for, and they will come to you. Promote higher education and help intelligent conservatives get into teaching positions. Make a new name for yourself. Don’t let the negative perceptions determine your destiny. Stop being offended, but instead be provoked to do good with your deeds and words. Focus on local and State issues, for it is truly where all the change happens. Humble yourselves, be nice rather than rude, garish, and insensitive, and take the advice of those who see these issues in front of them, first hand, every day.
And do not forget the wisdom of Abraham Lincoln: “The philosophy of the classroom today will be the philosophy of the government tomorrow.”
Statistics on Exit Polls from the 2012 Presidential election to keep in mind:
Youth: The youngest age group supported Obama over Romney by 60 to 37%. Young people were not quite as enthusiastic as they were in 2008, when two-thirds of them voted for Obama.
Some college/associate degree is one of the education categories on the exit poll ballot. This group has an excellent track record of voting for the winner in presidential contests. The group is large (29% of the electorate in 2012). This year, they voted 49% for Obama and 48% for Romney.
Those with less than a high school degree (a declining share of all voters, 3% in 2012) usually vote for Democratic presidential candidates, while those with a post-graduate degree (18%) have voted for Democratic candidates by substantial margins in recent contests. In 2012, they voted 55% for Obama and 42% for Romney. College grads (29% of all voters) split 51% for Romney, 47% for Obama.
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Chromo200
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 11:58pmI have a problem with the article .. So I have to give up my principle to appease a bunch of children that have no idea of critical thinking. To have a dialogue both sides have to have an open mind, in this case I’m labeled as anti gay without knowing anything about my background or what I think about gays just because I am a Christian. I have to accept the principles of income redistribution by a bunch of young people who have no money. they live off their parents, or society.
A party of No. No to be free, no to keep what you earn, no to have freedom of thought and speech without being called names.
Being anti abortion is a good thing. If you keep telling people that the baby is a blob from when you are a kid, then when you grow up that is all you believe. When you are told you have control over your health and own body and abortion is OK, no matter what I say will make no difference.
I’d rather be a conservative with principles and not win elections than be a liberal that has no principles. I’d rather give my money to a person or group that are actually helping people than to a liberal organization that skims most of the money for them selves.
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Bob Barney-The Plain Truth
Posted on December 31, 2012 at 8:50amagreed! Great post!!
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 1:39am“Socially, they argue that if an issue doesn’t directly affect them, then they might as well support it, …rather than voting based on actual research.”
Really? You patronizing piece of ****–are you so stupid you can’t conceive of the fact that MAYBE Leftists are just like you and have REASONS for holding their beliefs? Even if you don’t AGREE with their reasoning for holding those beliefs, it’s asinine to suggest they somehow fundamentally differ from you in the way they come to their beliefs.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 1:23am“David Lappin: “The Republican party, if it wants to survive, needs to take the pro-life and gay rights issues out of the platform. Not only college aged women, but most women will not vote for a candidate who does not support their right to choose. Roe v. Wade is never going to be overturned and the Republicans need to understand that. Secondly, the Republican party needs to be inclusive of everyone, including gays, and should make gay-right a non-issue.”
Yeah, current conservatives are going to LOVE that.
“Colin Kerr: “The Republican Party’s only hope on college campuses is to embrace the more libertarian wing of the party, not just in occasional rhetoric, but in actual practice. And it needs to be on the two big social issues first–gay marriage and the drug war. That will win the trust of college students and open them up to other liberty-minded and market-driven policies.”
Yeah, actually, if conservatives were to drop the anti-gay marriage, anti-abortion, and anti-marijuana planks of their platform I’d be genuinely impressed. It wouldn’t turn ME conservative, but for the first time in MY lifetime they’d have impressed me–I’d have to completely rethink how I viewed Republican policies. It would be very very strange to see them…trying.
” Promote higher education ”
Oh now THAT would be a welcome change–stop supporting Young Earth Creationism and get behind, you know, SCIENCE.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 12:30amYeah, sorry, Thomas Paine–NOT a conservative. Not by a long shot. Not now, and CERTAINLY not by the standards then. Why don’t you actually go read some of his literature.
“Romney is an extremely intelligent and talented man and communicated great amounts of facts and statistics”
AHA HA HA HA HAH AH AH AH AHAH AHA HA HAHA HAHA HAHA–wow, just…wow. Did you type that with a straight face?
“Two, if they could find nothing else to hang their opponents on they would deny its validity,”
Yeah–there’s such a thing as a logically invalid argument.
“then criticize little things like one’s grammar.”
(1) Yeah you’d know a lot about that–it certainly doesn’t HELP your credibility when you are constantly complaining about how conservatives’ problems are only that they have dumb Republican leadership, and the Democrats aren’t smart just deceptive, and then go on to make, what are we at, four?, obvious and embarrassing mistakes.
“Three, if all else fails, simply interrupt your opponent profusely.”
Yeah, Romney didn’t do ANY of that…oh wait, maybe you should go watch the Presidential debates.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 12:11am“And even that leaning is simply based on how the two parties communicate.”
Then they are idiots who haven’t put thorough thought to what they believe and why–that’s not true of all Leftists, just as it’s not true of all conservatives.
“Democrats have learned to speak to the social concerns young adults are only beginning to realize exist. This does not make the Democratic way correct, but a young, ignorant, unformed, malleable mind will certainly call it truth because…well, the Republicans are too stupid, to even put forth a logical, reasonable argument for their stands on abortion, immigration, welfare, etc.”
Wow. And you wonder why conservatives are stereotyped as pretentious arrogant elitist douches who have such an undeserved smugness with their own ideology that their dead is too far up their own ass to contemplate that they might actually be WRONG about something. Seriously, how can be such a shallow simplistic ass that you mistake the exact same childish idiotic stereotypes about young people that prevent conservatives from being taken seriously by them, as “analysis?”
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 10:52pm“As much as they claim they aren’t our grandfather’s GOP… the GOP is very much still stuck in the 1950s…”
Probably because the last good Republican president was Eisenhower.
“The reason is the message. The Republican party conveys that it us the party of rich white men and this needs to change. The Republican party must convey the message that it is inclusive.”
I’m going to assume you friend DIDN’T say “the Republican party conveys that it ‘us’ the party…” and that you incorrectly transcribed what should have been an ‘is.’ That’s number three…at least. This is just getting sad.
“…there are those who identify as liberal or conservatice…”
That’s number four (that I’ve counted, and I’m not searching for them, just being bumped rudely into by them) and it’s the name of your OWN ideology…now you HAVE to commit ritual suicide to reclaim your honor.
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TheGrtDcptn
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 9:54pm‘They don’t have the means to do it on their own’…
‘They haven’t lived in the career world’…
‘They don’t see the burden placed on citizens who are forced to support others’…
Which is why their opinion is irrelevant…they are CLUELESS…!!
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 9:52pm“Abortion, for example, is now seen as an issue of choice rather than one of life and death because Republicans are not adequate enough to even formulate a logical, emotionally gripping argument to support the idea that a baby should live. How incredibly ridiculous!”
That’s because a fetus is NOT a baby, and is NOT alive in the same sense as a baby or adult human being is. It is physically no different than bacteria in terms of consciousness for the overwhelming, if not ALL, the time it is inside the womb. It is an independent “human” with rights as much as a lock of your **** is an independent human with rights.
Abortion is not accepted “just ‘cuz Republicans are too stupid right now”–abortion is accepted because you have no logical ground to stand upon save ill-thought emotionally reactionary misplaced sentimentalism. And I’m sorry if that’s just not enough to justify abandonment of the far more important REAL tangible interests served by the availability and use of abortion.
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TheGrtDcptn
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 11:50pmYou are repulsive, keep wallowing in the depths of your filth…
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 1:35amWhat a thoughtful response.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 9:41pm“College students align with the Democratic party due to a lack of understanding of economics, and the liberal stance on social issues.”
That’s as ignorant and sweeping a generalization as saying “conservatives are conservatives because they are stupid cognitively deficient human beings.”
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 9:29pm““The college life is its own unique universe, wherein students have heightened freedom with fewer consequences. They have no dependents and are typically only financially responsible for themselves.”
Where did YOU go to school (rhetorical question)? PLENTY of students at my undergrad were parents.
“…yet they are too focused on fairness as end goal.”
So conservatives are admitting they don’t give a **** about meritocracy now are they? Whatever happened to “equality of opportunity”?
“They haven’t lived in the career world to see how capitalism truly works…”
(1) Also a lot (most even) of students at my undergrad had jobs. Having a “career” doesn’t suddenly change that–most peoples’ careers AREN’T as capitalists and when one has a full-time career, one is generally MORE financially comfortable, and consequently flexible, than with a simple “job.”
(2) No, I think they do–and conservative confusion of what exactly IS capitalism notwithstanding, it ISN’T terribly complicated or difficult to understand. Capitalism is a system wherein money, currency, capital, is in and of itself capable of reproducing, reaping more money (as opposed to making money alternatively through labor). At first, in small principles, the marginal efficiency of capital wealth generation compared to labor wealth generation is low–in significant enough principles, it FAR AND AWAY outstrips the wealth generating potential of labor. An economy so structured is a capitalist
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 9:42pmsocioeconomy–that’s capitalism, the private ownership of capital goods for private personal profit.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 8:58pm“What’s amazing is that these are some of the same judgments you hear made about young conservatives and their politics”
That’s not amazing–conservatives are ALSO the most faithful to the ACTUAL theological doctrine of Christianity and the bible. Which isn’t to say they are even (most of them at least) anywhere close to 100% in line–you COULDN’T be as the bible asserts contradictory (as well as impossible–vis-a-vis the thought-crime of “lusting”) moral imperatives.
“qood-quality fast food restaurants”
(1) I’m not going to rip you for this one, because it’s not entirely clear that it isn’t some kind of strange error in however you originally created this article was transcribed onto this website, but “good” is showing up as “qood”–I’m going to assume you meant “good.”
(2) I don’t mind fast-food–I enjoy it every once and awhile. But “good-quality fast food” is an oxymoron. I’m sorry–you’re being an obnoxious and disingenuously obsequious to the fast-food industry by asserting as much. You don’t go to fast-food for quality, you go because it’s cheap and it’s palatable. And sometimes, that’s perfectly fine–you don’t need to kiss the fast-food industries ass by saying **** that’s just patently false in order to by supportive, or enjoy, the fast-food industry. Likewise, just because you oppose SOME of the business practices and results of the fast-food industry doesn’t necessarily mean you are categorically opposed to their entire
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 8:34pm“78% Old Fashioned”
Your theology is, ostensibly, based upon a thousands year old book. A dictionary synonym for “conservative” is “old-fashioned.” I’m sorry if this is an insult for you–it couldn’t be more descriptively accurate.
“70% Insensitive to Others”
Now that’s just plainly FALSE–Christian theology is all ABOUT prying into the personal goings-on of others and trying to regulate and control their behavior and society writ large. Which, to be fair to it, isn’t any different than any meme–it exists to propagate itself and implies an assumption of its general applicability. But what IS a problem is when these edicts aren’t shown to be based upon empirical fact and to be beneficial to the people one is attempting to get to adopt them/impose them upon (not necessarily in the obvious, physically violent way, although there has also been plenty of THAT from religion–as you yourself note, there are other forms of coercion, social coercion, EVERY BIT, arguably more, effective at gaining compliance).
“68% Boring”
Well, when your theology’s ‘moral’ code is about controlling every minute aspect of peoples’ behavior from their sexuality (who with, how much, how often, what’s acceptable to enjoy, etc.), to their dress and grooming habits (although modern Christians seem to have no problem ignoring the Jewish Mosaic laws that Jesus explicitly stated he did NOT come to abolish…), to drinking and socializing–yeah, I’d call that boring. Fascist
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 8:59pm*Fascist too.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 8:17pm“His social polling produced quite alarming results at how the young adult unchristian world views Christians:
91% Anti-homosexual”
You ARE anti-homosexual. Or at least, if you don’t deviate from your religion you are. Christianity is PRETTY explicit that homosexuality is a sin, and that homosexuals should be/deserve to be (spin it how you like) stoned to death for it. The theological stance of Christianity on non-heterosexuality is ABUNDANTLY clear, however you want to whitewash it for 21st century (superior) moral sensibilities.
“87% Judgmental”
Again, following your own bible, it’s CHALK FULL of arbitrary moral judgments–judgments which many Christians, maybe not you, are MORE THAN HAPPY to adopt themselves unthinkingly. Now I know, you can make some apologetic about “oh it’s only God that supposed to judge”–BUT YOU AGREE WITH THAT *******. So yeah, I’d say to be a Christian in concordance with your theological doctrine you kind of DO have to be judgmental–maybe by proxy, but judgmental all the same.
“75% Too Political”
That’s not really a problem–the problem is basing public policy on unproven bald assertions; assertions that a substantial minority find grossly objectionable.
“72% Out of Touch with Reality”
When you believe something for no logical reason, you ARE out of touch with reality.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 7:56pm” Christianity as secularists pounded against the religion out of ignorance and a sort of unsolicited offense.”
(1) Secularists don’t attack Christianity. I know you conservatives enjoy conflating the terms “secularist” (or secular) and “irreligious” or “atheist” or “antitheist” as if they were synonyms but they are different words FOR REASONS. SECULARISTS include many, albeit almost universally liberal, theists–ALL the term means is neutrality with respect to religion. The irreligious, by contrast, are those lacking a religious belief. Atheists, by contrast, are those lacking a belief in God, gods, or goddesses in the conventional senses that those words have been defined/used. Antitheists, by contrast, are those who believe there is probably (or absolutely) not a God, gods, or goddesses, again in the conventional senses that those words have been defined/used. The irreligious and atheists might attack religion–antitheists almost certainly would. Get it straight.
(2) Religion IS offensive. It is offensive to reason, it is offensive to morality, and it is offensive to the public welfare.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 7:45pm“When those views ever came out, they were met by progressives in abrasive and aggressive manners.”
…were met by progressives in AN abrasive and aggressive manner.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 7:42pm“Through this all though, we have come back to important “come to Jesus moments,” ”
Ah, so you cite one of the most divisive institutions in human history, religion, as a grounds for consensus building…do go on. And I understand WHY you do this–~70-80% of Americans (depending upon who’s defining “Christian”) fall under this moniker of “Christian” (which apparently the Pope O’Reilly has decided isn’t a religion anymore, so now all conservatives are obligated to repeat that–LOL) and so you find it safe to assume it as common ground. Here’s the problem with that: (1) ~20% (or so) of America ISN’T a small number–that’s 1 in 5. So 1 in 5 people AREN’T going to share that with you, and because of the NATURE of religion, there’s a good chance it will have the OPPOSITE effect of that intended and alienate them, making them hate you more; (2) Religion is controversial because it attempts to answer fundamental questions about existence–people tend to have strong feelings about it and using it to attempt to establish common ground is like playing Russian Roulette; and (3) There are plenty of BETTER, less divisive and more universal sources of common ground. Like, for instance, the fact that we all want our families and communities to be safe, prosperous, healthy, and happy places to live.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 7:37pm“This is not because these young people do not exist, but due to small numbers, remain hidden in small clubs like the College Republicans, or in Student Government cliques where they find a sort of safe haven from the scourging of college liberals”
You missed either a personal pronoun or conjunction immediately following the second comma–LOL, maybe there AREN’T any conservatives in colleges.
Also “scourging college liberals”–LOL. Now there’s a funny image.
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The Third Archon
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 5:45pm““If you are twenty and conservative, you don’t have a heart. If you are 40 and liberal, you don’t have a brain!””
And if you choose your political positions based upon simplistic rhetorical platitudes, you’re a moron.
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jojopier
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 2:29pmCollege is too late to start worrying about why people are more liberal than conservative. A good upbringing is what individuals need. Then, though they may flirt with liberalism for a time, they will have a good chance of developing into a fine human being. Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it (Prov. 22:6 KJV).
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ranepowel
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 1:44pmPut a bunch of teenagers in a place where for many it will be the longest stay away from their parents they’ve ever experienced. Throw in alcohol, drugs and sex. Introduce them to roommates who are gay, muslim, hindu, and atheist.
They’ll party with everyone and not judge any of them out of the need to be accepted and liked. Everything the modern youth do is posted on facebook and twitter and “liked” and “favorited,” and people are judged and called out if they post things that are exclusive — including most Christian/religious ideas that go against the ideas of loving everyone equally and being accepting.
Now, take all these kids who are sleeping with each other and partying with each other, and put them into majors that require no economic classes and only one political history class, and have the rest of them put into liberal arts and soft science classes, where the teachers are most likely the people in life who want to mold and shape the minds of people, rather than do anything they can to get ahead and make a profit.
Meaning, the teachers that are going to be instructing this teenagers and young adults are going to be the ones who WANT to teach and share their opinions, more than they want to be successful business men and women. Teachers at universities are interested in telling and sharing their stories and opinions with others, and are not so much interested in making a lot of money.
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kdshell1
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 11:26amIt’s not surprising that most college students hold progressive or liberal views and values when they are for the most part surrounded by and indoctrinated by progressive or liberal faculty who fill their minds with foolishness and wishology unrelated to their actual subject matter and denigrate true conservative ideas. Fill someone’s mind with foolishness and what else are they to think?
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StandingOnMyHead
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 10:37am“Republicans in power lack the capacity and intelligence to communicate their messages effectively…Republicans are not adequate enough to even formulate a logical, emotionally gripping argument”, so now conservatives are the party of ignorance, that notion will get the youth on board for sure! It sounds like because conservatives tend to lack the hostility of the progressives you assume they are ignorant in their arguments.
Providing college campuses even allow conservatives to speak to the students, their message is really very simple. It boils down to simple economics and getting the majority of students to understand what that means to them and their reason for attending college initially. Once they realize that the free market is a conservative principle and the only way to initiate their ideas for their humanitarian cause for success, only then will they understand the bigger picture. Most just don’t know how to connect the dots because of the notion of redistribution that has been drilled in their heads. Econ. 101 should be a mandatory class just as arts & humanities are.
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Locked
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 9:47amWhew, quite a long essay but I made it through. Some thoughts:
1. Even among the “conservative” people who were interviewed, opinions varied greatly. For example, Cara Crock focused on fiscal issues and ignored the social conservative platform the GOP ran upon (or at least the author did not mention her views if she did talk about it). Meanwhile others pointed out (both conservative and liberal) that it wasn’t agreement with the Dems, but rejection of the GOP social platform, that lost the youth vote so overwhelmingly.
2. “The Party of No” and exclusivity: Another point was that was flirted around but was not make was that the Dems have become the “big tent” that Reagan strived for in the 1980s. The GOP, meanwhile, excludes many groups… no moreso than ever. Many people say “Romney wasn’t conservative enough!” and they mean socially conservative. But he was: he said he’d sign into law any anti-abortion bill, would keep Bibles on bases, and would promote socially conservative SCotUS justices. So what if he wasn’t the “right” kind of personally conservative person – for the fundamentalist Christian base of the GOP, it’s their way or the highway. Fiscal conservatives aren’t wanted. Libertarians? Definitely not. Non-Christians? No way. Is there any pro-choice Republican Congressman these days? How a non-Christian, or unequivocally believes in evolution, or global warming?
The Democrats do have those people. The GOP needs them.
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Locked
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 10:08amCara Brock*
Sorry for the error.
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Chromo200
Posted on December 14, 2012 at 11:41pmThe fundamental Christians opposition to Romney was because he was a Mormon.
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ares338
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 7:39amLiberalism is a disease more of the young than the older American. About the time most youth had to be on their own and support a family…..their diseased liberal brain fell out and they smelled the coffee but sadly now most are clinging to the politically perpetual gimme state.
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Nlitend1
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 2:00pmYou must be a doctor. I would love to know where you went to school…do they allow homeschooling for doctors in your part of Mississippi?
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hillbillyinny
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 2:48amI’m having a tough time with the premise of this article. To me, it just seems exactly what I view in youth today, many “want their cake and to eat it too”!
They want us to stand for something, but don’t stand too strongly. THEY don’t understand economics (from the article), so WE’re wrong. . . If young people weren’t taking so many courses in “global warming” and “basket weaving” and would take some courses from instructors who actually worked in business, maybe they would understand how our economy works and when it doesn’t work.
I was employed at a large east coast university for a number of years. Both before and after working there (in one of the academic departments), I worked in and for actual businesses and organizations who delivered services and goods. As office manager in the department where I work I juggled a work load for seventeen professors for myself, an assistant, four student assistants and two graduate assistants. I was taking courses at the same time in the evening college, some towards a minor in education.
My main observation is encapsulated in the old statement, “Them that can’t, teach”! In other words, must of the individuals with whom I interacted “knew” how it was “supposed to be,” but didn’t have a CLUE has it really was!!! Evening classes with others who were teaching at the time, proved much of what we learned as theory only!
Today is based on all of that, let’s get real and deal with facts.
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StandingOnMyHead
Posted on December 13, 2012 at 11:00amAgreed, but to clarify, “global warming” is FORCED on all new incoming students and if you don’t regurgitate what they tell you and if they don’t hear what they want from you, then they penalize you with a bad grade regardless of how well researched and formulated your argument is for the other side. They want to indoctrinate freshmen from the start, I speak from personal experience.
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