Volume CXXXII, Number 2 September 20, 2002 f

Bastards versus loons
GENEVIEVE CREEDON
COLUMNIST

I have read numerous times that students have very little faith in the government's power to create change. We like to invest ourselves in non-profits to fight hunger and poverty and human rights abuses, but we don't like to tackle our own government.

I like to think that I am in a good place when it comes to talking about politics. I come from a conservative family whose ideology I challenge often, but I am incapable of calling those on the right "fascist bastards," as certain people on this campus seem to think it is fair to do.

And I understand why we have lost faith in government, besides the point that few politicians inspire very much confidence. We can't trust each other.
While I dislike the general opinion towards political issues on this campus, which interacts with them on a level of distanced consent or vague acknowledgement, I find the alternative of name calling even worse. I don't see how calling a group of people "liberal loons" helps make the "fascist bastards'" point any stronger.

I also find it difficult to treat someone who says, "I'm right and they're wrong" with a good amount of respect. Sticking to an ideology poses a number of problems because it blocks out the possibility of a different side. We are here, after all, getting an education that teaches us to acknowledge the complexities in issues.

Our tagging system makes it infinitely worse, because we brand someone based on an idea. We like so-and-so, but regretfully she's too conservative. We enjoy John's company, but he's too liberal.

Disagreements can breed the best learning environments, but only when an opening for understanding is allowed. And that understanding is the backbone in a government that is lacking and that we are reluctant to push for, because it means fundamental change.

We talk about changing other people's mindsets, which is a Herculean task. Change only happens outwardly after it has happened inwardly. Trust is a difficult concept because it creates the grounds for disagreements. But it creates a field for intelligent discussion and debate around topics and matters that are essential and should be allowed to avoid the business of name-calling that politics has become.