An Open Letter to the New Students for a Democratic Society

Dear Students,

After the media accounts of your early March campus protests, I couldn’t help but feel deeply moved. But with misleading headlines like “Students Protest Tuition Hikes” and “A Day of Protests Over Education Budget Cuts,” I felt a sense of sympathy for you at the media’s failure to transmit your true vision for this country. I think it’s important to express to the world how you really feel, and to more acutely define your objectives.

Having watched videos of the protests, I have a much clearer picture of your intentions than those expressed by the mainstream media. In fact, I think the student you chose to speak on your behalf at the Detroit protest best articulated your points of view.

First, I like how he attempted to educate the crowd, saying: “There’s a lot of misinformation out there about socialism, and, uh, anarchism, and different, you know, isms.” I couldn’t agree more, although I would not have paired socialism with its near polar opposite of anarchism. I hate it when people misinform others about “isms.”

He continued his lesson, explaining that you “believe in a free university degree … and it’s up to the government to give (you) this free university degree.” He also explained that you believe that you have a human right to a job that would secure you in the middle class. His logic followed that there too exists a right to food and a right to a home, and presumably the government must give you these things as well.

Although I enjoyed his speech, I do have a critique that I hope will help you out in the future. First, the aforementioned student and many others of your group have praised the former Soviet Union. You may want to note that, in general, freedom-loving Americans don’t look at Communist Russia as an example toward which we should strive. Your lack of knowledge on this issue is probably not your fault — there must have been university budget cuts for the history classes that could have taught you what life in the Soviet Union was actually like. However, you may want to look up information about the food shortages, the government seizure of all private property, and the mass executions as a few examples of Communist Russia that don’t excite most Americans.

Although I hate to nitpick, you probably shouldn’t give a megaphone to a guy who doesn’t believe he’s bright enough to secure his own job in the middle class, but needs it as a handout from the government.  Forgive me, but it’s difficult for me to believe in what you are saying when what you are saying is that you don’t believe in yourself.

Moreover, I know being a sort of “green” socialist is the cool thing for kids these days, but as you mature you’ll realize that freedom is more valuable than your mojo. One day, you will regret attempting to recycle the Constitution into your own personal political toilet paper through the perversion of the word “right.”  Yes, you have a right to pursue a higher education, but you do not have a right to other people’s property (i.e., taxpayers’ dollars) to provide you with one. It’s similar to the right of gun ownership — you have a right to own a gun, but I’ve never seen a .38 revolver government handout program.

Instead, I’d suggest getting a job and saving for your education like so many have done in the generations preceding yours. It’s tough to understand, but most people who worked and sacrificed to earn their educations aren’t jumping for joy at the prospect of now having to work and sacrifice to pay for yours. Part of your college experience is the transition towards being self-supporting. It’s not supposed to be induction into the lifelong welfare state.

However, I do see why you resist having to pay for school. After all, who wants to pay tens of thousands of dollars to be propagandized by liberty-hating left-wing radical sociopaths? But there is good news on that front. The people you worked with on Rock the Vote are lobbying for the legalization and regulation of marijuana, with taxes going toward higher education tuition. This idea certainly has some merit. You will be the ones paying for your own educations, since you’ll probably be the ones buying the marijuana. Maybe drug reform laws are something you can start working on, instead of focusing all your energy on destroying everything that Americans hold near and dear. I am not sure how much knowledge you will retain after four years of being high, but if it’s free, who cares?

Sincerely,

Sarah Durand