It should be no surprise that I support Barack Obama for president. I am a college educated white 25-year-old male from Minneapolis, Minn. You could say that I am part of the wide demographic that most political pundits say that Barack Obama dominates. And while I have heard them say that - I think it is important for me to explain why I think my generation is so drawn to Obama.
1) The world view of the United States is tainted. From the war in Iraq to Guantanamo Bay to greed - Barack Obama understands that ending attacks on our country means that we must a good neighbor. And the as the economy turns more and more global, this could not be any more important to our future. To understand in greater detail what I am talking about, view this video by Lee Lessig. Exactly 20 minutes into it, Lessig explains in greater detail the need to reach out to foreign nations.
2) Barack Obama has the power to inspire our nation to work harder. In our lifetime we have never seen a politican do this. We have heard that Kennedy and Reagan had this power, but we unfortunatly have never had the opportunity to hear them speak. Alternativly, McCain seems to lack this ability. To view an example of Obama’s ability to inspire and tell us what we need to hear, look no further than his Father’s day speech.
3) We do not care that he is black. We were lucky enough to grow up in a culture and school system that allowed us to judge people not the color of their skin, but by their merits and their actions.
4) Obama is all about giving opportunity and helping those who want to work for it. We love his plan to offer grants for college age students willing to serve their country.
5) We do not want special interests groups influencing politics. We want to influence politics and we want politicians working to better our future.
6) Obama backs free speech and net neutrality. He is by far the most advanced candidate when it come to understanding the internet and the importance of free speech. The days of the media as a watchdog are pretty much over. Especially after so called “legitimate” news sources like Fox News hire political reporters like Mike Huckabee. Tim Russert must be rolling in his grave.
Hey Bro,
I this these are extremely interesting points, but I have a rather different perspective on the current political scene, and a bit of confusion about our demographic’s general viewpoint that I would like to put up for discussion. Please allow me to question your comments in the interest of conversation.
I will begin by establishing that I am a 23 year old white male web designer from the twin cities of Minnesota. I consider our “Gen-Y” demographic to be generally hard working, politically savvy, caring little about race, valuing freedom, and possessing a global perspective, as you describe. That being said, I’m confused about the success of the current crop of political leaders.
I see Mr. Obama’s economic and political view as one of extremely Marxist philosophies that I would not expect our generation to agree with. The economics of heavy government control and reduced freedom of personal property have historically never been sustainable, and it surprises me that, as both major political parties slide increasingly left, our generation has not proven more fond of freedom and personal accountability.
Additionally, I believe our generation to be intelligent and savvy; from a marketing standpoint we are difficult to sell to because typically we can smell a sales pitch a mile away. However, this does not seem to hold true when it comes to our politics. Barack Obama is an extremely gifted speaker, but when I hear him speak or debate, he seems to dance around his actual plans for our nation, and merely delivers carefully formulated hypothetical tidbits that we want to hear. The generation that was raised on the internet should be able to hold our political candidates to a much higher level of scrutiny.
Finally, I agree with most of your points, but vastly disagree that the current Democratic party as a whole values the elements of our demographic that you describe. (I should point out that I do not think the current Republican party is very much better in this regard. Because we are discussing Obama, I will leave my presidential candidate of choice out of this conversation, but will say that it is neither Obama nor McCain.)
You describe Obama’s ability to inspire people to work hard, but I see a party that subsidizes not working and literally penalizes success in order to gain the vote of the poor uneducated. You mention the value we put on having opportunity, but I see a candidate that seeks the Marxist idea of absolute equality over the freedom to succeed. You speak of our intolerance of special interest groups affecting national policies, but I see a congress that caters severely to many special interests, particularly in the environmental and agricultural fields. Finally, you describe the value we place on free speech, and I agree that we can no longer trust the media to do any more than sit in the laps of their politician or special interest of choice, but I see a party that cannot tolerate disagreement and feels compelled to squash any expression that they do not agree with.
Again, I do very much agree with your analysis of our generation’s general personality, but I disagree that Obama accurately represents these ideals. I certainly do not hope to offend with my alternate perspective, but do believe that a healthy discussion is needed.
Thanks for the post!