I used to love politics. I used to find screaming pundits on TV to be great entertainment. I once even considered rocking a bow tie like Tucker Carlson. But when I got to Dartmouth and saw how partisan the political atmosphere was, and how political debate functioned here, I found my love for politics somewhat diminished. (Now, I am only pretty sure I still love politics.)
My dismay with Dartmouth politics is certainly not due to a lack of political outlets on campus. Dartmouth is rife with some of the most politically active students in the world. When I got to Dartmouth, I was turned off to politics and experienced what I call my "political hangover" in reaction to how Dartmouth students express their political views. With unwavering convictions, Dartmouth students debate themselves to exhaustion. Who knew a 20-year-old college kid could be so passionate about our tax code?
The underlying problem I find here is that many college students forget that they are, in fact, students. At this point in our lives, we should constantly be questioning all of our previously held beliefs. We should be challenging, not incessantly spewing out, the political ideologies we brought with us to Dartmouth.
Yet the current structure of Dartmouth politics and political debate is preventing this from happening. How many members of the College Democrats or College Republicans can honestly say they have stopped to completely rethink all that they believe to be "true"?
The problem I see here is that political debate programs like, for example, the Dartmouth Political Union, are fueling partisanship on campus. The Political Union is no doubt a fantastic opportunity for students interested in politics to hear experts speak about issues, but in debating such issues, students are acting like political experts -- which they are not. By dividing themselves along party lines and spewing out partisan talking points, these students are mimicking the pundits I used to watch on TV for entertainment.
The point of any debate program on a college campus should be to challenge preconceived ideas and develop understanding for different points of view. Discovering different viewpoints is one reason why we chose to come to college in the first place. Students cannot challenge their convictions by imitating political pundits who are paid to be disagreeable -- nor can understanding develop when students feign political expertise.
College students should never stop questioning their political opinions. As college students, we not only have the unique opportunity to challenge our viewpoints with guest experts and brilliant professors, we also have the opportunity to talk politics with other students who have developed a contrary ideology. We should not be quick to assume that our way of thinking about politics is the "right" way. Nor should we be so quick to identify ourselves with a political party. Our duty as students is to question any and all beliefs. This means, most importantly, challenging the political views that we brought to Dartmouth.
In the spirit of practicing what I preach, I would like to propose to the heads of political groups on campus -- groups such as the College Democrats, College Republicans, PoliTalk and the Dartmouth Political Union -- a simple suggestion: At your respective meetings, force students to debate from the points of view that they are the opposite of those they profess. Discuss why your party's views may be completely wrong. Have Republicans, for example, debate for the estate tax, and have Democrats debate against it.
Some immature students may use this as an opportunity to ridicule the other side's point of view. But the aim of this exercise should be to help students challenge their preconceived ideologies, with the goal of making our politically active campus less partisan. The opportunity for political expression, after all, is what I expected these groups to deliver upon my arrival at Dartmouth.
