Two days ago, a student, who out of the little respect I can give him shall not be named,who represents the ASU College Republicans, penned a letter to every Democratic elected official in the state of Arizona outlining his absolute discontent with their existence in their offices, while pursuing a goal that is in no means conceivable other than to merely antagonize people of a different party affiliation. He began the letter in a pretty respectful tone, that gives the reader a kind of uneasy feeling, not knowing the intent behind this letter. Shortly, into his second paragraph, this student goes on the offensive, stating how he and his fellow Glen Beck fan club members worked tirelessly to ensure that these Democratic officials did not return to their respective offices after the November midterms.
The letter goes on into detail about how wrong these Democratic members are, and how they are supposedly the cause for the present negative state of things in the state (Note: Democrats are in the minority in both legislative chambers, as well as not having a single elected member of their party at the statewide executive-level). Serving as a Page for the Democratic caucus, I greatly admire the many State Senators that I serve, regardless of party, but it truly bothers me when someone who just in their higher-position in a respected organization at the same university that I attend so rudely offends these elected officials, I feel almost guilty by association. Even though I in not a single way was involved with or even knows anybody who knows anybody involved with the writing of this letter, I still feel as if I needed to apologize to the Senators--ensuring them of the obvious, that ofcourse this one student does not represent ASU students as a whole.
To the student that wrote the letter I say this: Good luck getting into politics if you're already starting out your career by burning bridges.
I read about this in the State Press. My understanding is that this student was removed from his ASU Club? Regardless, reckless behavior like this makes ASU look bad. I appreciated that the ASU club responded to the letter by making it clear that this one member did not represent their views.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you. People should try to understand our leaders and respect their work regardless of party affiliation. In my opinion, having such mentality only creates more conflicts but I do understand that for some people it might be a hard thing to do.
ReplyDeleteI am always surprised when things like these happen on school campuses. One would think that students would be more open-minded then those that haven't obtain any education. It's great we can speak our mind, but sometimes we take things to far. The individual has no justification to have acted like that and his actions should not represent entire ASU, for he is an individual.
ReplyDeleteThe state of civil discourse in the United States has declined significantly over the years. Americans use to be able to disagree without being disagreeable. No two people ever agree completely on everything, so it stands to reason that people from different political parties will disagree with each other. That is probably why the belong to different political parties in the first place. There is no place for disrespect in public service. Anyone whom my fellow citizens chooses to place in a position of public trust is worthy of my respect, whether I voted for them or not. A blatant disrespect for public officials dishonors the office that the person disrespected holds, as well as the person being disrespectful to the public official.
ReplyDeleteIt is sad to see this how people think politics work in the United States, it is even sadder to see young people already stuck in such a negative mindset. Personally, the whole idea of political parties to me is idiotic and it only serves to separate a population. Dangerous thinking like this only furthers this seperation and leads to a country that gets nothing done.
ReplyDeleteAt one point our elected officials were known to gather all the liquor they could, lock themselves in a room, and would create bills. Now that may not work so well in today's world but at some point reaching across the aisle in a civil manner needs to happen.
I hope that aside from this issue, you had a great time as a page. I know that I was able to tour the Senate the other day, and the Rep. who gave us the tour spoke about how amazing Pages are. I wish you luck on all your finals
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