My parents never talked about politics. One night in a bar, this somehow gave me validity as a Republican. The fact that my ideologies were neither a choice to mime my parent’s party politics, nor the cliché rebellion against everything they stand for, seemed to catch the tipsy brunette off guard. Her cheekbones rose as she squinted her eyes at me. I nearly expected her to cock her head and examine me sideways — how odd that I had chosen to be a Republican.
Republican minorities are like mystical creatures at UC Santa Barbara. No one really knows they exist and when they’re revealed, well, you should see the disbelievers’ faces. By far the most satisfying part of being a Republican on an excessively liberal campus is shocking the hell out of Democrats. “Wait… you are a college woman… and you want to pay for your own birth control? … But it’s free somewhere else.” True, it is “free” elsewhere. OR I could forgo a single burrito once a month to take responsibility for my own adult actions. Let’s see here, sacrifice two Starbucks coffees every 30 days or have a baby. Decisions, decisions. True, some people genuinely cannot afford it, and for that we have safety nets. But for you in the Lululemon yoga pants and the Tory Burch iPhone case: I think you can manage. And yes I just called out 75 percent of the Communication majors.
To the reader who clung to the phrase “safety net” just now, I preemptively counter your generalization that all Republicans are against government agencies. That’s actually a staunch Libertarian, by the way. “Common Sense Republicans” make up a majority of the Right, meaning people who believe in limited government but acknowledge the necessity for some government intervention and of course military defense.
Let’s take a minute to think of an alternative universe in which Liberals are the sexist ones. I would have rewritten this argument in my own words, but Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R- TX) just said it so eloquently:
“To say that there is a set of concerns that can be labeled ‘women’s issues’ is absolutely true. But to assume that we all feel the same way about them — or that we must feel the same way about them to represent our gender legitimately — is inherently sexist. Women are, in fact, more than our gender. We are entrepreneurs and executives who are concerned about a faltering economy and business-unfriendly regulation. We are homemakers and heads of households who worry what tax hikes will do to our family budgets. We are parents who want the best education possible for our children. We are recent graduates, entering the bleakest job market in decades.”
I’ve had enough of your presumptuous arguments reducing the discussion of women in politics to reproductive “rights,” thus subjugating the current economic crisis as a somehow less important issue for women. To make it clear — as it will soon be evident when we graduate in the next one to three years and have no jobs — an anemic economy hinders the opportunity for women (and ALL Americans) to succeed. So to your “Smart Women Vote Obama” button I say FORGET YOU. Not only would I bet 100 hundred dollars my GPA is higher than yours, but my brain is up by my eyes where I can see over my ovaries to the larger issues ruining this country, like out of control spending. The Left speaks of this “War on Women” like a Republican woman is an oxymoron. Or any minority for that matter. Though not a member of either club, I’d just like to point out that the Campus Democrats’ elected board consists of all white people. The Republicans, by comparison, have representatives in their club who are of African American and Jewish descent.
Perhaps I happen to believe that saving a little unborn baby is more important than saving a tree, am I now anti-woman? The Left is even satirized for its excessive use of euphemisms and there-there political correctness. This decade’s flavor is “pro-choice” meaning pro-abortion. If you are pro-choice, do you support the choice to own a gun? Do you support the choice to pick what health care provider you want? Answer yes and you can keep the euphemism. Answer no and you’re annoying and a hypocrite.
RAPID FIRE, GO!
Stop with the pity party: women are the majority in college enrollment, college graduation, professional occupations and in AP test taking.
Okay, the binders full of women thing was really funny.
Maybe I like making sandwiches. Because men can’t do anything right.
“Women” doesn’t have a “y” in it.
Dumbledore dies.
This author has requested to remain anonymous so you can’t add the sweet, sweet taste of elephant blood to your coffee. Looks like you’ll have to splurge 50 cents on soy instead.
Uh-oh, I think we’ve got a young Ann Coulter on our hands…
And to answer your question, I’m about as “pro-choice” as a pro-death penalty and pro-war Republican is “pro-life.” (By the way, before Roe v. Wade, “pro-life” exclusively meant anti-death penalty…)
Oh please. The reason people talk about a “War on Women” from the Republican party is less to do with wanting birth control paid for (or covered on their health policies more like) than it is to do with the Republicans putting forward serious presidential candidates like Rick Santorum who have said they want to ban birth control outright, which would be incredibly debilitating to gender equality. Similarly, Senate candidates like Todd Akin talking about “legitimate rape” doesn’t really help your case. Thank god your side lost.
I would just like to point out that the current president of Campus Democrats at UCSB is a Woman. Additionally, they have officers in the club who self identify as Asian, Latino, Middle Eastern, and Jewish. If we further choose to compare demographics of membership in Campus Democrats and Republicans at UCSB, well, let’s just say the author has no idea what she is talking about. I guess this is just one dumb college student who never learned the importance of facts or evidence. She also seems to be sexist, but it’s okay because I love sandwiches; bring me a… Read more »
I’d like to commend this writer for her incredible honesty and transparency. It takes a strong woman to stand on a figurative soapbox and triumphantly say, “I’m an idiot.” But this isn’t about her abundant self-awareness. First, pick a new opener because opening mid-scene doesn’t work in print, and it better have a point when it’s attempted. The second and third paragraphs are where it gets fun and hopeless at the same time. It doesn’t take a democrat to be offended by the expression, “Common sense Republican.” The delusion of commonality has been a dissonant one for that party. After… Read more »
a communication major? Enjoy your job as a barista at Dunkin Donuts.
Birth control is so damn expensive amirite? $10 for 100 condoms on amazon? $15 a month for the pill?
i will never understand the nastiness of so many within the democratic party. it truly blows my mind how much hate liberals have towards people with alternative political philosophy.
I’m a conservative and I oppose the death penalty, abortion, and bans on birth control.
Bashing advocates for life as hard-ass backwards crazies who want to relegate women to the 19th century is totally unfair and lazy.
Republicans don’t support a “war on women.” IF anything, it is the democrats who continue to exploit women’s rights as a vehicle to villify conservatives. The fact is democrats have spent many years painting republicans as anti-women.
Respect to you! It’s funny to realize that most of the little chic liberals running around campus will open their eyes to the conservative realities once they start working in the private job market.
Yes, that’s probably true. Once we’re out there working in the private sector, unable to find jobs because they’ve all been shipped to China, and we find ourselves working in some corporate shithole like Walmart for minimum wage while our boss goes sailing on his private cruiseliner with cocktails and a harem of girls… we might all be a little more open to facing the reality of movement conservatism. Either that or we’ll become smart like you guys, and realize that teh gays are really at fault.
Your reply is so typical of a liberal sitting on his/her pedestal looking down on anyone with differing views. First of all, you must realize that the jobs you are talking about being outsourced to China most likely wouldn’t be worked by you anyways. Secondly, the current culture in this country among liberals with respect to corporations is quite sad. Apparently success is no longer a good thing. This country was made what it is by immigrants who came to follow the “American Dream” and look to make something for their families. If you think all the 2.2 million Walmart… Read more »
Your reply is so typical of misinformed conservatives. People do and always have worked at manufacturing jobs in America. In this day and age, a lot of people would be very happy with any job at all. But yes, you’re right that no American would work in a sweatshop. You see, we demand minimum wage and safety standards, and corporations don’t have to do that for the people in China. Now, I am so DAMN sick of people equating money with success in America. Mitt Romney spent his entire campaign bragging about his “success.” I guess poor people are failures… Read more »
Bro, minimum wage is awesome…except for those who get cut out of the workforce because they don’t have the skill sets to demand a minimum wage jobs (which includes many young teenagers just looking for a foot in the door). And success does not necessarily equate money. Yes, Mitt made a boat load of cash, but he also has a strong marriage and has shown himself to be a strong family man, which is my I respect him :)(Just look to how much money he gives to his church and other charities). Unions aren’t being busted as much as they… Read more »
I don’t doubt that Mitt Romney’s a good man in his personal life, but I’m very glad he’s not the leader of the free world. (Although giving money to an enormous homophobic church with strange beliefs and a shady history of racism and polygamy isn’t my idea of honorable.) As for minimum wage, numerous studies have shown that raising the minimum wage wouldn’t hurt job creation. (For alternative conservative facts you can always go to the Heritage Foundation and see what the Koch brothers have to say.)
Unfortunately, while this article did have potential to possibly make good points, it is filled with a huge array of unchecked privilege and un-inclusivity that would be necessary in making an argument on behalf of an entire demographic of this school. She obviously disregarded a lot of the weight that comes with purchases of birth control, including that 60% of its use is actually for controlling hormones and other medical issues that come with being a woman. Furthermore, the need for access to free birth control is a way more complex issue than just needing a couple “safety nets”, especially… Read more »