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Josina De Raadt is a senior History major at Dordt College looking forward to spending the spring 2013 semester in the Netherlands. Her childhood is filled with bright memories of making...
Where do young people come down on questions of faith, values, and public life? How do they relate their values to public policy issues including education, economic inequality, and the environment? These questions, critically important for the 2012 election, are at the center of a campus conversation being organized by the Berkley Center and Georgetown University. This blog features an ongoing conversation about these issues between students selected as Millennial Values Fellows through a national competition. You can read and comment on their blogs here.
To learn more about the project, visit the Campus Conversation on Values page.
OTHER POSTS
Millennials on Social Media and Politics
November 15, 2012
Millennials on Social Issues and Diversity
November 12, 2012
Hira Baig (Rice) on Why the Presidential Election Matters to Millennials
November 7, 2012
Millennials on Religion and Interfaith Work
November 7, 2012
Ryan Price (Drake) on E Pluribus Duo
November 6, 2012
Mohammad Usman (DePauw) on Unpredictable Millennials
November 5, 2012
Millennials on Affirmative Action Policy
November 3, 2012
Seth Warner (Vassar) on What Happens as the "God Gap" Widens
November 2, 2012
Josina De Raadt (Dordt) on How Social Media Is Like Wii Bowling
October 31, 2012
Zachary Yentzer (Arizona State) on the Next Greatest Generation
October 29, 2012
Brice Ezell (George Fox) on Post-Racial America? Race, Millennials, and the 2012 Election
October 25, 2012
Tyler Bishop (Vanderbilt) on a Future of Hashtags #whatitmeansforus
October 23, 2012
Brice Ezell (George Fox) on How the People Can Heal a “Divided,” Partisan Nation
October 4, 2012
Hira Baig (Rice) on Religion and American Democracy
October 4, 2012
Tyler Bishop (Vanderbilt) on How It’s All About Relatability: Voter Turnout
October 3, 2012
Mohammad Usman (DePauw) on the Internet Solution
October 1, 2012
>> more
AT THE CENTER
EVENTS (97)
PUBLICATIONS (78)
2008 Undergraduate Fellows Report: A Leap of Faith: Interreligious Marriage in America
December 31, 2008
December 31, 2008
INTERVIEWS (350)
A Discussion with Alexander Kedroff, Archdeacon, Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, Paris, France
June 17, 2012
June 17, 2012
LETTERS (293)
POSTS (104)
RELATED RESOURCES: CHRISTIAN
Josina De Raadt (Dordt) on Mistaking Politics for a Hollywood Blockbuster
October 2, 2012
The lights go down, the curtains go up, and the music begins. It’s the 2012 presidential campaign, and––if you’re a Republican––it’s playing out just like Disney’s The Lion King. Obama, this story’s Scar, has turned America into a wasteland and wants to take money from the hard-working Americans to feed those lazy hyenas on the welfare system. Hopefully we’ll get our happily-ever-after ending and Romney will take back the Pride Lands.
Now let’s flip that story around, à la Monsters, Inc. The Republicans can’t let go of the old ways, even when those ways are failing. Fortunately, there are some scrappy, intelligent, and caring Democrats to discover a brighter future––a place where laughter is more powerful than screams. After some dramatic fight scenes and touching moments, these Democrats will turn America around and, once again, everyone will live happily-ever-after.
Think I’m being a little bit overdramatic? Take a quick peek at your Facebook feed.
I’m a Republican woman who has grown up in a very conservative, Christian community. I know people who have actually compared Obama to the anti-Christ. On the other hand, I worked in Des Moines, IA, last summer and met people who truly believed that all Republicans hate women and beat up homosexuals on a regular basis. Both views are equally ridiculous. The key word here? Equally.
If we ever want to overcome the beast that is extreme partisanship we have to accept that neither side of the aisle is perfect. The 2012 Presidential campaign is not a Hollywood movie about the ultimate battle between good and evil. Republicans are not superheroes; Democrats are not super-villains, and vice versa.
Instead, we should try and find the common ground. Democrats and Republicans both want a strong America. It’s okay to disagree about how to accomplish that goal, but it’s not okay to demonize those with different political views. Let’s leave the over-the-top dramatics for Hollywood.
Think I’m being a little bit overdramatic? Take a quick peek at your Facebook feed.
I’m a Republican woman who has grown up in a very conservative, Christian community. I know people who have actually compared Obama to the anti-Christ. On the other hand, I worked in Des Moines, IA, last summer and met people who truly believed that all Republicans hate women and beat up homosexuals on a regular basis. Both views are equally ridiculous. The key word here? Equally.
If we ever want to overcome the beast that is extreme partisanship we have to accept that neither side of the aisle is perfect. The 2012 Presidential campaign is not a Hollywood movie about the ultimate battle between good and evil. Republicans are not superheroes; Democrats are not super-villains, and vice versa.
Instead, we should try and find the common ground. Democrats and Republicans both want a strong America. It’s okay to disagree about how to accomplish that goal, but it’s not okay to demonize those with different political views. Let’s leave the over-the-top dramatics for Hollywood.