There's a lot of talk this election season about the underlying
philosophies of liberals and conservatives. Maybe that's true of all
election seasons, but this one seems especially pronounced. I imagine
it's because of how polarized our nation has become. Tuning into the
news for half an hour will prompt any thinking person to wonder, how
exactly did we get to this point?
For me, it brings to mind the famous saying (often attributed to
Winston Churchill): "If you're not liberal at 20 you have no heart; if
you're not conservative at 40 you have no brain."
This quote has always fascinated me, and lately I’ve been thinking
about it more. My fascination stems from the fact that, frankly, it’s
hard to fathom ever identifying with the conservative people I’m exposed
to these days, let alone becoming one of them in 20 years. But
according to Churchill, I am par for the course.
If there’s truth to the quote (and there must be some, or else people
wouldn’t quote it), does that mean some middle-aged conservatives I
meet were more liberal in their youth? And if so, what changed them?
I decided to suspend disbelief for a moment and look ahead into my
hypothetical future. Putting myself into Churchillian shoes, I dreamed
up what events might take place in my life to slowly chip away at my
liberal heart, and mold it into a conservative brain.
I started by thinking about where I’m at now: five years out of
college and a working professional ever since. That’s enough time to
know what the “real world” is like (paying rent, starting a 401k, paying
taxes) but not long enough to forget all the opportunities I was given
to succeed along the way (a safe neighborhood to grow up in, plenty of
food, a quality education, parents who supported my hobbies and helped
me through college). It’s also easy to remember that not all my peers
were lucky enough to have those same opportunities.
On top of that, there’s my friend circle. I have friends who work at
corporations, at schools, at banks, at publications and non-profits, and
a sibling who works 90-hour weeks in a hospital. I’m constantly
reminded that important work is not always lucrative—and vice versa. So
all in all, my 20-something life seems perfectly conducive to having a
liberal heart.
Now let’s look into the future.
Sometime over the next five years, perhaps I’ll get a fancy
promotion. And that promotion will be the result of all my hard work.
Now a decade out of college, all those opportunities I was given to get
to where I am are a more distant memory. I’m busy— and all I remember is
that I busted my hump, did a great job, and finally gained some
hard-earned recognition. Go me!
Now fast forward five more years. Maybe I’m married and have a bun in
the oven. So my husband and I take the nice lump sum from my promotion
and raise (and perhaps his, too), and start looking for a place to buy a
home. That place will have to have good schools, so my kids can enjoy
opportunities like I had. If I can’t find good enough schools (which is
possible, since state budgets have been chipped away for many years),
then I might have to spend that money on a private school. Whether
public or private, this high-achieving school will surely be filled with
high-achieving people. As my kid spends more time there, and starts to
achieve, I may start thinking: “Hmm, why can’t all those other kids in
other schools just work harder like my kid, and achieve all these great
things?”
Around this time, perhaps I’ll get another promotion at work. By now,
I’ve worked so long and hard, I’ll start thinking similar thoughts
about the people I interview for jobs. I’ll want impressive candidates
with impressive backgrounds. And if they’re not so impressive, I may
start to think, “Well, they must not have worked hard enough. I did it.
Why can’t they?”
And so my hypothetical transition from liberal heart to conservative
brain begins. I’m sure there are a million more ways it could happen.
But the good news is, from where I sit now, it seems like there’s an
obvious way to prevent this rightward shift: constant reminders of all
the outside factors that had a hand in my success.
I look at my parents, who are well over 40, and see two bleeding
heart liberals. And I think about the most important values they’ve
instilled in me, and the one that readily comes to mind is the
importance of always saying “thank you.”
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