THE YOUNG AND THE HEARTLESS (via Mike Daley)

Right young things: A youthquake that is helping George Bush (The Economist, Jul 24th 2003)

Why this upturn in conservatism? One reason is a healthy desire to tweak the noses of people in authority. America's academic establishment is so solidly liberal that Naderites easily outnumber Republicans. The leftists who seized control of the universities in the 1960s have imposed their world-view on the young with awesome enthusiasm, bowdlerising text-books of anything that might be considered sexist or racist, imposing draconian speech codes and inventing pseudo-subjects such as women's studies. What better way of revolting against such illiberal claptrap than emulating the character in Mr Allen's film?

Another reason is September 11th, which not only produced a surge of patriotism but also widened the gap between students (who tended to see the attacks as examples of evil) and Vietnam-era professors (who agonised about what America must have done wrong). The Harvard Institute of Politics found two-thirds of students supporting the war in Iraq. Pro-war groups sprouted in such liberal campuses as Brandeis, Yale and Columbia. At Amherst College many students were noisily furious when 40 teachers paraded into the dining hall with anti-war slogans.

A third reason is that American conservatives devote a lot of energy to recruiting the young. The Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the Young America's Foundation and the Federalist Society are out organising. Conservative foundations finance conservative newspapers and provide scholarships for right young things (one conservative impresario compares funding young conservatives to building a wine collection). The Heritage Foundation provides internships for 100 students a year.

In 2000, the Republicans discovered that they could no longer rely on their air superiority (ie, paid television advertising) to win elections. They needed troops on the ground. In 2002 College Republicans (together with gun activists) played the same sort of role in the party that trade unionists and blacks have long played in the Democratic Party. They boosted turn-out and harassed opponents. Norm Coleman, the new senator for Minnesota, attributes his victory to College Republicans.

These footsoldiers also represent the future of the Republican Party. One reason why Britain's Conservative Party is in such a sorry state is that the average age of its members is almost 70. The young conservatives who crowded into Washington this week suggest a sprightlier future for the Republicans.

NPR had an unintentionally hilarious moment on Friday, as Noah Adams discussed NYC's reaction to the blackout with a CUNY professor on Talk of the Nation. At one point, the professor said: "Well, I am analyzing this from a Marxist perspective." Mr. Adams, to his great credit, guffawed and said how rather few people took that perspective anymore. The exception, of course, is the professoriat. Posted by Orrin Judd at August 18, 2003 10:38 AM