Posted on 08/30/2005 11:29:57 AM PDT by raccoonradio
DURING THE 1980s, Ronald Reagan ushered in a new era of American conservatism that few can forget. But I don't remember one thing about it. Honestly, the first president who actually meant anything to me, besides being a fact in a book, was Bill Clinton. Like most of today's college students who were born during the Reagan administration, I grew up with the liberalism of the 1990s. So it only makes sense that those liberal values and ideas are considered ''normal" for most of my generation.
Indeed, there was a time when any twentysomething outside the realm of the left was considered an oddity and was ostracized for her political stance, particularly here in the Northeast. Consequently young conservatives tended to hide their opinions and go along, albeit silently, with the liberal stampede of their peers.
But with the rightward political tone of the country, many young conservatives finally feel safe to come out of the closet. And as students flock to campuses around Boston for a new year, they are coming out in droves.
(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...
>>After George W. Bush was elected to his first term, I remember one of my professors speaking about how the country had ''fallen into the hands of the dark side" -- and most of the students laughed in agreement. I had that same professor just two years later, and he made a similar comment, but this time along with the liberal snickers he got a few conservative boos.
The libs are starting a "Yellow Elephant" movement trying to get young Republicans who support the war to enlist. Typical despicable tactics.
>>As a college student who considers herself liberal, I've even noticed that some professors practice indoctrination instead of scholarship. With left-wing professors monopolizing many university campuses and with tenure making them a stationary face in the classroom, the changing student body has had little variety to choose from and ultimately nowhere to go.
You don't say! You don't say!
(Who was it? He didn't say, nyuck nyuck nyuck)
Shades of David Horowitz
Is there a chance this young lady might be Hannitized eventually, Sean? :)
>>But let's face it, many liberal students have lived a sheltered life while conservative students were publicly damned. With an increasingly strong conservative presence on campus, liberals can no longer get away with putting down conservatives. Indeed, they can learn from them.
A lib who actually GETS IT? But wait, no...
>>Strangely enough, conservative views have only reinforced my political stance as a liberal.
Hopefully she'll continue to think things out rather than follow the mindless lib masses.
I always find this discussion interesting because for the most part, people usually progress from liberal to conservative (with the notable exception of Arianna Huffington. I still don't get how a divorce changed her political views so sharply, but whatever). As a matter of fact, most of the "Neo-cons" are in fact old LBJ liberals that have "seen the light", so to speak. I wonder if there's been any studies done as to why this happens.
I think liberalism works well in the youth because experience hasn't shown them that life doesn't work as easy as the theories. They hear that if we spent more money on AIDS research we can end the disease, and without the experience to know that more money actually equals more government waste, they jump on that as a solution. Whereas, the experienced person would say, isn't the less wasteful solution telling people to be responsible in their decisions. Another example is the maxim that violence never solves anything. Well, I know of a lot of bullies in the playground that were solved by getting a good thumping. The theory is great, if only there was a world with no violence, but the reality is sometimes you need to lay wood to someone, especially if they are about to or in the process of attacking you.
Then again, what do I know, I've always been a moderate with libertarian tendencies.
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