Young and Restless

I'm always encouraged when my generation, the millennials, does something to prove that we are not actually the X-Box generation, but actually doing things and facing the issues of our time. Perhaps one reason politicians in Washington can't get anything done is because they're too old and stuck in the past, maybe Generation Y can bring some fresh ideas and vigor to a stagnant system.

With that in mind, I was encouraged though unsurprised by this article on the political leanings of my generation. I've said time and time again that the social battles we are currently fighting have already been won in the future. We will one day be curious to understand the bigotry that currently exists around gay marriage and the unbelievable reasoning that leads some to conclude that a woman should not have control over her own body. It frustrates me that we have to fight these battles, but we do so knowing that we have already won.

But that wasn't really news. What was a bit surprising was the revelation that most people under 30 see the government as a force for good. I don't see why this should surprise us. Government is often inefficient, sometimes corrupt, and certainly not always right, but I've always been amused by the contention that we shouldn't trust the government. "That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed." For a group of people who worship the founders, Republicans seem to have forgotten that those very people conceived of government as a force for good, and throughout the history of our country the government's record - tarnished indeed - has still been pretty solid, and it is undeniable that while certain government institutions needs improving, they still provide valuable services to the American people.

But I'm not here today to make the case for government. We can evaluate the government's track record and draw our own conclusions. I am here to be encouraged by the fact that my generation is engaged and shares my belief that America will be better and stronger when government plays an active role: building infrastructure; offering a social safety net for the needy; collaborating with private entrepreneurs to create favorable business climates that allow for innovation; and smartly regulating those business initiatives.

Republicans view government as a way to pay for the military - another important service provided by Uncle Sam - but nothing else. They ignore for example, that government spending on the arts contributes to American culture and that government spending on research and science has unleashed waves of private innovation. Could we make the government more efficient? Absolutely, but we shouldn't forget that America works best when the public and private sectors work together, not in opposition to the other. Strangely, one of the primary Republican arguments for not cutting defense funding is that it will lead to job loss, but weaponized Keynesianism is as far as Republican logic will go. The cognitive dissonance around recognizing that, but not understanding how it applies to scientific research is really staggering.

Perhaps because my generation is probably the best-educated and most fortunate group of people to ever inhabit the planet we recognize these things. But being young and fortunate isn't quite enough, we need to be restless too. Recognizing the way forward is an encouraging start. Getting there is going to take some elbow grease. Let's get moving.