Home | Virginia
Politics		 | National
Politics
Menu

Make a New Account

Username:

Password:



Forget your username or password?

Poll
How Enthused Are You About Tim Kaine for Senate?
Wildly Enthused, I LOVE Tim Kaine!
Strongly Enthused, I like Kaine a lot, Allen sux
Moderately enthused: Kaine's fine, Allen sux
Not enthused about Kaine, but Allen sux
Not at all enthused about this race
I'm voting for George Allen

Results

Weather

Search




Advanced Search

Blog Roll
Virginia Blogs
All Politics is Local
Augusta Free Press
Bacon's Rebellion
Coarse Cracked Corn
Crew of 42
DemRulz
Dixie Pig
Equality Loudoun
The Fix (WaPo)
Greater Greater Washington
The Green Miles
Leaving My Marc
Leesburg Tomorrow
Loudoun Progress
Moonhowlings
New Dominion Project
Not Larry Sabato
Off K Street
Old Dominion Blogs
Ox Road South Blog
Renaissance Ruminations
Richmonder
Richmond Sunlight
RTD VA Politics blog
Roanoke Times blog
Shad Plank
SlantBlog
Too Conservative
True Adventures of the Doorbell Queen
VB Dems
Virginia Education Report
WaPo - Virginia Politics Blog
Waldo Jaquith
Waldo's VA Political Blogroll

Progressive Legal Directory www.criminallawyervirginia.net
www.virginia-duilawyers.com
www.virginia-personalinjurylawyer.com
www.recklessdrivinglawyer.net
www.helpdisabilitylawyer.com
www.criminallawdc.com
www.duilawsdc.com

ADT Home Security in Virginia

A Generation Lost

by: Progressive86

Tue Nov 29, 2011 at 15:09:28 PM EST


In 2008, the U.S. witnessed a blitz of young people involved in the political process, a demographic which by and large catapulted President Obama into the Oval Office. As many posts on Blue Virginia have either implicitly or explicitly touched upon, some (if not a lot) of this voter enthusiasm has dissipated among the "youth generations." This is in part a result of the politics of pragmatism, a political strategy that left the Obama vision of "Change" and "Hope" behind for a pragmatic assertion of "it's the best we could do." There are, of course, a multitude of disparate reasons that could be cited.

The end result has, however, been unequivocal: a comprehensive sense of apathy, disillusionment, and frustration on the part of the youth generations (those under 30). When political conversations are initiated in my own circle of friends (rare as it might be), a pervasive sense of negativity and frustration becomes readily apparent, with blame being directed in all directions of the political sphere.

The Democratic Party, then, had an opportunity to retain an entire demographic. Instead, like a corporation that has lost the confidence and loyalty of its one-time faithful customers, the Democratic Party will have to spend a good deal of political, economic, and individual capital to bring this segment of the US population back into the fold.  
Progressive86 :: A Generation Lost
I cannot help but feel, however, that a large chunk of the youth generation has been turned off to politics indefinitely. Maybe a renewed "political sense" will grow with age, but maybe not. Especially among those first-time voters who were energized by President Obama and the Democratic Party and then subsequently let down in the years that followed, there is a sense of hopelessness about the ability of individuals to make a substantive difference in Washington, D.C. But this sub-group of the youth generations is certainly not alone in feeling helpless and frustrated.  

If the youth generations have generally become a cohort of political invalids, what does this signal for the future of U.S. politics in particular, and U.S. society in general? If the youth generations have generally become completely turned off to the political sphere, how will this affect future generations of republican citizens? These and related questions need to be asked now because among the youth generations, what it means to be a citizen in a republic has never fully been articulated with the adequacy necessary to foster this most valuable piece of our societal puzzle. Once this exercise in political theory is finished, maybe then we can begin to regain the confidence and energy of the youth generations that has been lost.  
Tags: , , , , (All Tags)
Print Friendly View Send As Email

A Generation Lost | 32 comments
Economy (0.00 / 0)
I personally feel that much of the disillusionment on the part of young people can be credited to graduation from college and high school and facing a dismal job market, one that has resulted in a higher unemployment rate for those without job experience. I can't fault President Obama with that situation. When he has tried to address unemployment, he has faced a GOP Congress that has stymied his every attempt.

No one knew the extent of the economic mess in 2008, neither the young voters or Barack Obama.

I agree. (0.00 / 0)
Unfortunately, most of the young people I've talked with don't take such politiclaly enlightened views and among those who do acknowledge the do-nothing nature of our Congress, they also still blame President Obama, to a greater or lesser degree, for the economic mess we're in.  

Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Actually, Obama's policies have helped a great deal, (0.00 / 0)
according to pretty much every neutral economist (including the Congressional Budget Office) that's looked at them. True, Obama's policies have not helped as much as they would have without Republican obstructionism/watering things down/etc. Still, my counter to young people, or anyone "frustrated with Obama," would be: 1) ok, then get even MORE involved; 2) fine, then work even harder to change the system (!); 3) ok, then press for progressive change at every level and at every opportunity;  4) ok, then do not EVER give up or become cynical (if you do, the corporations and their mostly Republican allies win); and 5) ok, then make damn sure you reelect Obama in 2012, if for no other reason (although there ARE many positive reasons) than that Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, etc. will make matters much much worse for you and your friends. That latter point, by the way, is not fear mongering, it's a simple statement of fact, based on the regressive and downright disastrous policies these people would implement. Don't believe me? Well, then, review your history of the Reagan/Bush years and see if that made matters better or worse for young people.  

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
Responsible Citizen (4.00 / 1)
I think this comes back to the point about how little the duties of a republican citizen are emphasized in our own time. I can, of course, only speak for myself and my own experiences.

History?! What is that! I'm being facetious to draw out the point that a)history has become a forgotten discipline about the young. Also, I know a lot of young people who, even in the face of the evidence you point to Lowell, would throw up their hands and claim with all seriousness, "what does it matter who's president? They'll all bums."

To my mind, it comes down to Elaine's point (and many others) in an earlier post about messaging, something the Democratic Party has not done a good enough job at (in particular the DPVA). The DP needs, in particular, to make it cool to get involved in politics, not some endeavor of a previous generation that generated few if any tangible fruits.    

Progressive86

[ Parent ]
Correction: **among the young.** (0.00 / 0)


Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Perhaps, but the bottom line is (0.00 / 0)
we can only control our own actions. We can NOT control what "they" - the Democratic Party, the president, the media, whoever - do. What we CAN do is to work hard, day in/day out, to build political power in various ways in order to exert pressure to achieve our ends. Perhaps not glamorous or "exciting," but that's the way to get s*** done - hard work, slog slog slog, 5 yards and a cloud of dust, all that stuff.  Also, to reiterate another cliche, 90% of life is just showing up. Oh, and also don't forget the 90% perspiration/10% inspiration cliche, or the 80/20 (or is it 90/10) rule, whereby 10% do 90% of the work.  So many cliches, so little time!  LOL

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
The other thing, honestly, and it probably pisses people off (4.00 / 1)
to hear it, but I think that generally we should focus the overwhelming majority of our energy on fighting the real "bad guys" (e.g., the Teapublicans, the Koch brothers, the truly heinous corporations like ExxonMobil) rather than forming circular firing squads. That is NOT to say that we shouldn't push for how we want the Democratic Party to be. We absolutely should do that!  All I'm saying is that we should do so in a way that simultaneously helps beat the truly bad guys. And no, Obama/Pelosi/Reid/etc. are NOT the truly bad guys - not by a million miles.

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
Great points, (0.00 / 0)
but do you think that focusing on the bad guys will create a long-term constituency of loyal Democrats? I agree that we focus on the Democratic Party exclusively at our peril. My question is, what's the appropriate balance between focusing on the bad guys and what we feel the Democratic Party should be as well as the appropriate proportion of negative to positive messaging? Is one or the other the best method to use to ensure long-term Democratic Party loyalty? That is, how appropriate is each method to creating long-term party ties?
I think about the climate change debate in particular. It appears that the "negative messaging" has not had the lasting effect it was originally hoped for.
Perhaps, however, you didn't mean to espouse this dichotomy...

Progressive86
[ Parent ]
I think the balance shifts. (0.00 / 0)
There are times when we REALLY need to be focused almost exclusively on defeating the truly "bad guys." Like, for instance, once the presidential cycle really kicks in, after the Republicans choose their nominee. Other times, such as after presidential elections, we should focus a lot of our energies on pushing the Democratic Party to be the best it can be. And by "best," I mean most pro-environment, most pro-clean energy, most pro-equality, most pro-rule-of-law, most pro-worker, etc. But again, it's not that we should EVER stop our efforts to organize, build effective political power, and pressure our party to be as progressive as it can be. I'm just saying, let's not lose sight of the main battle, and thus lose the war. That's generally what Republicans are great at, and Democrats...not so much. By the way, if you haven't seen it, I strongly recommend that you rent Boogie Man: The Lee Atwater Story. It's both highly entertaining and also extremely informative about American politics, specifically how Republicans operate. Check it out!

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
I'm Inspired! :) (0.00 / 0)


Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Expanding upon my last point. (0.00 / 0)
It's my opinion that many young people view political involvement as a loveless endeavor with few rewards and a lot of uncomfortable personal/ethical situations. In sum, political involvement is stereotyped as a sphere of policy salespersons who often must compromise their individuality for few tangible benefits.

The dilemma is how to engage the youth generations in the political process and to retain that engagement. Since these younger generations almost undoubtedly have little patience and a more limited attention span than previous generations (not exactly a scientific statement but perhaps most would agree?), the key is getting this demographic to realize that the political process in the U.S. is, by construction, a slow one but that the eventual rewards are well worth the effort, and so on.

I agree, Lowell, in everything that you've said, but a lot of younger individuals that I know simply wont respond to the idea of getting more involved or to never giving up. At a fundamental level, these individuals do not feel like they can or will make a difference and the current headlines in the financial and political sectors only confirm this conclusion for many.

What were the keys to Obama's success with the youth generations? Has the subsequent disappointment, right or wrong, with President Obama, created a youth generation of political invalids? If so, how can we reenergize this group both in the short term and in the long term? These are the research questions that the Democratic Party must address.  

Progressive86

[ Parent ]
But from what direction are people opposing Obama? (0.00 / 0)
I think it's a stretch to say that a majority of the opposition comes from the left. Maybe a plurality opposes it from the right, but not a majority. I'd venture to think it's moreso an ill-informed "screw 'em all" opposition. There's really no solution for that. Some people just want to revel in that sort of ignorance, that they're "special" for not being a Dem or a Rep.

And sadly, a lot of these people end up falling into a selfish, ill-informed sort of libertarianism and end up not voting (better than voting for Ron Paul, I guess). Of course, my perspective is that of someone who's in this targeted demographic, but comes from a geographic region that doesn't reflect the demographic trends, so I'm shooting from the hip here.

Head in NOVA, Heart in SW

[ Parent ]
Yeah, "screw it all" and "they're all corrupt" (0.00 / 0)
or whatever is NOT - repeat, NOT!!! - helpful in the least bit. In fact, it's the exact opposite of helpful. It's also really, really lazy and really, really stupid. And yeah, I tend to agree, there are people who just like reveling in their ignorance, misery, cynicism, etc. My attitude's more: lead, follow, or get the f*** out of the way!

As for libertarianism, it's generally about as mature and intelligent as I was (hint: not very!!!) when I read Atlas Shrugged in my early 20s and initially was quite taken with it. Until, that is, I gave it a tiny bit of thought, then I realized it was completely bonkers.  

Follow me on Twitter.

[ Parent ]
I'd almost prefer the Ron Paul vote (he has no chance of winning) (0.00 / 0)
so that people can become acclimated towards the voting process, something that a number of my friends and acquaitances have not even taken the trouble of doing (i.e. no voting card!). Again, these are my own networks but I can't imagine I've had the misfortune of being around the only group of young individuals who do not even vote. Thus, I must assume this phenomenon extends beyound my own network of relationsips.

The opposition to Obama is certainly coming from all directions of the political spectrum and almost certainly the majority of this opposition is coming from the right. However, it is the young vote that put Obama into the White House and it is those on the left who have been disillusioned with President Obama in particular and the entire political process in general that I am concerned with. Who's to say that around this time next year a vigorous showing of young people wont again occur to support President Obama? If they do not, however, it seems a long shot for our president to regain another stint in the big seat.



Progressive86

[ Parent ]
So, the question is, how to deal with this situation? (0.00 / 0)
We already are well familiar with the diagnosis (e.g., young people have always voted in far lower numbers than older people, what else is new?), what's the cure? (I already have provided my suggestions, for what they're worth)

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
One Solution (0.00 / 0)
The Democratic Party needs to get behind (money wise, political support wise) young Democratic leaders who can speak with people of their own age and draw them out of their political stupor. Not only can young Democratic leaders speak in a similar language to those of a similar cohort, they also know how to reach them (i.e. through various forms of social media, in clubs, downtown hot spots, etc). This requires a deferrment by the "Old Guard" of the Democratic Party. For this problem, age and experience are not the determining factors to mission success.  

Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Right, but again, what's going to MAKE the DPVA (0.00 / 0)
or the national Dem Party do that? Answer: in this case, young people themselves. Organize, get involved, demand a response, and don't take "no" for an answer!

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
Bottom line: I'm going to keep coming back (0.00 / 0)
to people being active vs. passive, taking the initiative and working hard to achieve their goals vs. laying back and expecting it to just sort of happen somehow.  

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
Very much agreed. (0.00 / 0)


Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Ron Paul is a gateway drug, like pot (4.00 / 1)
He introduces free spirit types to the whole idea of abandoning government and regulation in favor of letting corporations and the rich run rampant. Once they've gotten high on that stuff, young people, New Agers and others are ready to get into the hard core drugs of, say, Gingrichism.

Very dangerous stuff -- tell everyone tempted by Ron Paul to just say no!

Impeachinelli! Now on Twitter.

[ Parent ]
He's also a conspiracy nut (0.00 / 0)
and an extremist in many ways. I've never seen the appeal.

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
Disillusionment, leadership and followership (4.00 / 1)
I think the disillusionment with President Obama has been particularly sharp because, to quote one OWS protester,
"The Bush Administration may have caused the recession, but the Obama Administration didn't do what it said it was going to do to end the recession (namely ending the wars, the Bush tax cuts, and the bailouts), and so we the Occupiers feel disenfranchised, with nowhere to turn but the streets."  (Saw this quote here:
http://www.erikjheels.com/3428...

There's a lot of truth to this.  President Obama was facing enormous problems when he took office, and could have tackled them in a different sequence and in different ways. There's plenty of room for criticism and debate on that.  On the other hand, he chose to make health care reform a priority, and to my surprise, got it passed, for which he deserves a lot of credit.  

Disillusioned or not, there was no excuse for the voters who voted him into office in November, 2008, not to have turned out and voted in support of his party and his policies in 2010.  That was foolish and short-sighted. What result did his supporters expect?  Since when does a President only get 18 months of support?  The only possible result was what we got: a President whose political legs were cut off, who could no longer get any of his own programs through Congress.  I don't hold anything that happened after the 2010 election against President Obama.

President Obama can be criticized for not providing enough passionate leadership at times.  However, his 2008 supporters who failed to stick by him can be criticized more for lack of commitment, and for poor followership.    

So, I hope everyone who voted in 2008 has watched and learned, and vows not to repeat the same mistake in 2012, or ever.  I hope they have learned, don't ever vote someone into office, unless you are going to give him or her your support while in that office as long as they are trying their best.  

   

[ Parent ]
Strongly agree. Anyone who stayed home in 2010 (0.00 / 0)
has nobody to blame but themselves. If they don't do everything they can in 2012, it will be even worse.

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
or stayed home in 2011 n/t (0.00 / 0)


There's nothing in the middle of the road except yellow stripes and dead armadillos (Jim Hightower). PS I'm on Twitter here.
[ Parent ]
It's about a lot more than Obama. (0.00 / 0)
It's about being taught good citizenship in school and at home.  We have generations of people who don't vote, never have, never will.  Those folks haven't taught their children the importance of citizenship.  I have always taken my kids with me when I go vote.  They've knocked doors during campaigns.  I've let them "pull the lever" so to speak so they know how important I believe it is to vote.  We talk about current events at home.  We watch the news and read papers.

It is about much more than a mere vote...it is about being involved in our communities....Working in the food pantry, volunteering at a shelter.  I recently worked on a campaign where one of our field staff's father is a Republican.  The Dad stopped by one day and told us a story about his son being a Democrat.  They are from NC which requires you to register by party and the son registered as a Dem.  When he got home, his father said so how did you register?  Son replied, as a Democrat.  Father says, "Why in the world would you do that?"  Son says, "You've been my Sunday school teacher and taught me about the Bible, I don't know how you could teach me about Jesus and what he believed and be a Republican."  Here's a Dad who taught his son to be involved, to think for himself, and is proud of him, even if he is a Democrat.

Little is taught in our homes or schools today about good citizenship.  If we want participation in the process then we need to educate our young people about why the process is important to them.  

Agree 100%. In fact, I'd say it's close to 0% about Obama. (0.00 / 0)
That's just a lazy excuse for being cynical, uninvolved, etc.  Lame. It also ignores a gazillion structural factors - economic, cultural, etc, etc. - at work that long predate Obama and will live on long after he's gone. Lame as well. Finally, I think a lot of people - of all ages, but certainly younger people - got REALLY excited in 2008, got their hopes WAY up, but then stopped working for change the minute the election ended. Heck, I made the same mistake in some ways, having foolishly (really, really dumb!!!) declared "mission accomplished" after the election in November 2008.  Did I mention how dumb that was?  Because guess what: the battle NEVER stops, the lobbyists and "bad guys" are relentless, and if we go to sleep, they will undo all the gains we thought we'd made while we go back to "our lives." Well, sorry, but "our lives" don't just include working, playing, etc. They ALSO include a civic life, being involved in our communities and the life of our nation. If we abdicate on the good citizenship part, then we really have failed, no matter what else we do. Why people don't realize that is beyond me, as it's glaringly obvious!

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
Political Sophistication (4.00 / 1)
I would point out, at the danger of sounding elitist, that those who are involved in this and other blogs throughout Virginia have a very high political IQ and are driven, for one reason or another, to get involved in the "messy" political process.
This is not to condone the disengagement of those folks who feel like voting or political participation is "a waste of time." It is however to point out that in a sense we (BV bloggers) are speaking a different language and thus seeing the world in a different way than they (i.e. those young people disengaged) are.

The solution to this political apathy does start with what it means to be a good citizen and that itself does indeed start with good parenting!  

Progressive86

[ Parent ]
Agreed. (0.00 / 0)
Although there's nothing stopping anyone from reading political blogs, learning more in a multitude of other ways, getting involved in the civic life of our nation, etc. In the end, I guess I'm just going to keep coming back to the fact that people need to ditch the immature and lazy cynicism, get off their butts, roll up their sleeves and get to work building the society/world they want. Nobody else is going to do it for them, life simply doesn't work that way.

Follow me on Twitter.
[ Parent ]
I hear you. (0.00 / 0)
I know I myself need to do more to promote this blog and other forms of political engagement. For better or for worse, we do need leaders to push people just hard enough for them to recognize the importance of getting off their behinds.  

Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Sense of Citizenship Largely Gone (0.00 / 0)
The sense of citizenship that I remember being pervasive during my childhood doesn't exist anymore. Why? Many reasons. I could list a few: the loss of the sense of national unity that existed during and after WWII, the loss of the neighborhoods in small towns and big cities as suburban sprawl produced a mobile population that went wherever the corporations sent them, families split apart, television and air conditioning keeping people inside their houses and limiting involvement with neighbors, the post-Vietnam-War sense that one's vote wouldn't change anything, plus pure social laziness.

We don't have a government that asks every citizen to share the burden of paying a fair share. We don't have a government that responds to the 99%, but rather one that is purchased by the 1%.

If only we could make the young Americans understand that  they can change the America that they will spend rest of their lives in. No one else will do that for them. I have been heartened by the fact that there appears to be an awakening beginning with the Occupy movement, but it remains to be seen if that movement will grow and become effective for social change.

[ Parent ]
Leadership? (0.00 / 0)
I fear that without some form of leadership and a more readily articulated social agenda with the symbols to boot, the Occupy movement will not be a movement with lasting impact.  

Progressive86
[ Parent ]
Readily articulated social agenda= (0.00 / 0)
social agenda that even the skeptics and naysayers can easily recognize instead of the usual lament of "where's the common message?"  

Progressive86
[ Parent ]
A Generation Lost | 32 comments
Advertising

Donate to Blue Virginia

About
The purpose of Blue Virginia is to cover Virginia politics from a progressive and Democratic perspective. This is a group blog and a community blog. We invite everyone to comment here, but please be aware that profanity, personal attacks, bigotry, insults, rudeness, frequent unsupported or off-point statements, and "trolling" (NOTE: that includes outright lies, whether about climate science, or what other people said, or whatever) are not permitted and, if continued, will lead to banning. For more on trolling, see the Daily Kos FAQs. Also note that diaries may be deleted if they do not contain at least 2 solid paragraphs of original text; if not, please use the comments section of a relevant diary. For more on writing diaries, click here. Thanks, and enjoy!

P.S. You can contact us at lowell@raisingkaine.com and you can subscribe to Lowell's Twitter feed here. If you'd like to subscribe to Miles Grant's Twitter feed, click here. For Teacherken, click here. For Kindler, click here.

P.P.S. To see the Blue Virginia archive, please click here. To see the Raising Kaine archive, please click here. To see the Blue Commonwealth archive, please click here.



RSS Feed

Subscribe to Blue Virginia - Front Page

Powered by: SoapBlox