NO. 001 June 21, 2001Cover and Original Photos: Mika Watchaa

Content contentLetter from editorThe event-meet the teamEcho boom paradigm:how we will roll when we’re in power.The interview: Joshua Kahn RussellDon’t hate me because i’m beautiful:americans choosing style over substanceMedia: The Young Cons

One nation under GaGa:our need for a political popstarLa rencontre: Lenka AndrysovaExtreme makeover:congressional editionMedia: the Young ConsHave you seen? Reality Bites

Help! there’s no air down here:echo boom’s economic outlookPolitico: Matthew HurttThere’s no app for that:a lesson in common senseYouth bulge:young countries, big revolutions

Scene stealer: Glenton DavisAmerica: Hollywood Stylethe New WorldPortrait: Sahra Vang NguyenYoung documentarians:Invisible ChildrenChange:a new perspective on politics

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To Our Readers

Happy First Day of Summer and welcome to the first issue of Mercutio Magazine.

This project has been a long time coming, and I couldn't be more excited now that the inaugural issue is finally here. It's an incredible feeling to dream up an idea and watch it become a reality. I, and a team of dedicated writers have put months of hard work into creat-ing a magazine that is not only a great read, but hopefully a source of information and inspira-tion.

The magazine is named Mercutio because of my fondness for the witty Shakespearean character and his increasingly relevant message: Existing in a dream world will do nothing to change the status quo and will only lead to a disappointing end. To denounce the fictitious and demand truth is the only way to live.

As concerns mount over the outcome of our country and politicians make decisions about our future, it's irresponsible of our generation to not make our voices heard. Which is why the first issue is dedicated to them: The Echo Boomers, or as I like to call us “The Big Bang Generation”

In this weeklong issue, we concern ourselves with the state of young people in today's quickly changing world: Who are we? Where are we going? What are our fears and expectations? Why should we get involved?

Over the next week, you will meet politicians who campaign in bathing suits, environmentalists who protest in corporate office buildings, Wall Street stars who bring art education to inner-city children, and ivy-league rappers. Plus, you will read articles that will help you cipher through political conversation and discover what's important.

We would love to have your feedback, so don't hesitate to leave a comment.

Allez! Everyone to your computers!

Joshua Grant

Joshua GrantEditor-in-Chief

THE EVENT

Introducing Team Mercutio

Jonathon Saia Los Angeles, CA

Who inspires you and how are you a bit like them? German filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder directed 40 movies in 15 years before dying at 37. Whenever I watch a film of his, I get an anxious desire to jump up from the couch and get behind a camera. Like he and another of my idols, Woody Allen, I feel the need to constantly be creating to give my life meaning before the clock runs out.

What is something unexpected that has changed about you in the last few years?Falling in love. It changed everything.

Zachary Hughes Dallas, TX

If you were to have a talk show, who would be your first three guests and why?This is the question to sound really cool on—I can feel it. I’m actually not much of a talker, so this scenario is utterly unfathomable. I would, however, like to Christmas carol with Sufjan Stevens, walk away from an explosion with Andy Samberg, and walk through a zoo with Yann Martel.

What do you like most about living in this country?You would think that living in China for six months would have made this question easy to answer, but alas. What comes to mind first is the ability to take a hot shower in the winter (and that’s just for those of us fortunate enough to have access to hot water). I’m nervous about the direction this country—hell, the world—is headed, but every time I go abroad and come back, I realize America is a part of me.

Alana Kuwabara Easton, PA

What was the first job where you got paid by someone other than your parents?Babysitting! I got certified at the hospital and I had an official card and binder and every-thing. The Babysitter's Club was big back then, too, so I really felt like I was doing something.

When was the last time you did something for the first time? What was it?I cooked dinner while having my first Braxton Hicks contraction earlier tonight. Does that count?

Kevin Haggerty East Stroudsbourg, PA

What is something unexpected that has changed about you in the last few years?I wouldn't have expected that after graduation I would become so interested in politics. I now work all the time towards self-education and remaining fully abreast of the events shaping our nation and the world.

You have to wear a t-shirt with one word on it for the rest of your life. Which word do you choose?Stubborn. I find this trait in me to be both positive and negative. So, I'd wear it as a badge of honor and a constant reminder.

What's great about the city you live in?I live in Washington, DC,, the mecca of American politics. It’s great because this is the only place where politics and politicians are cool.

If you were to have a talk show, who would be your first three guests and why?Craig Ferguson - because he is an awesome tv host Nancy Grace – because I really want to know what makes that terrifying woman workNewt Gingrich – because I enjoy seeing delusions of grandeur up close and personal

Tylla Bradley Washington D.C.

Jason Cameron Atlanta, GA

What was the first job where you got paid by someone other than your parents?My first real job was washing dishes in a seafood restaurant when I was fifteen. I earned enough money doing that to buy myself a lawnmower and some other equipment and spent a couple of years doing lawn service on weekends and summers to save enough money to move out on my own. When was the last time you did something for the first time? What was it?A couple of days ago, I used a sewing machine for the first time. I made a pair of cargo pants into shorts for work. I immediately saw endless possibilities. Then I thought of the vastness of the garment universe and thought it wise to do the bare minimum.

Where do you place yourself in the political hemi-sphere? Through and through I would call myself a Democrat. Depending on how nicethe weather is, somedays you could call me a socialist. What book or CD would your friends be surprised that you own? The entire Twilight series...but I mean, who doesn’t , right?

Natasha Gibbons Manhattan, KS

Stephen Saia Denver, CO

Where do you place yourself in the political hemisphere?I would like to think that we are past labels and blanket party voting by now, but if I had to choose, it would be Democrat. You have to wear a t-shirt with one word on it for the rest of your life. Which word do you choose?Since I am going to live till I am 150+ it needs to resonate with me forever. At first I thought “swagger” because I feel even as a 90 yr old I will still possess this. In all seriousness, the acronyms GRIND (Get ready. It’s a new day) or LASERS (Love always shines every-time remem-ber 2 smile, with the meaning taken from Lupe Fiasco) would represent me the best.

What excites and scares you about a new life in America? Hope- That's why I'm moving to L.A.The American Dream still attracts people like me. The country represents success. If you have a good project and push yourself, you can succeed. No matter if you're white, black, or foreign. I'm sad to say this notion has disappeared in France. Everything is slow and closed. I want to live off my own work and stop paying so much in taxes without seeing results. I'm tired of our old lazy political system. To continue to love France, sometimes you have to leave it.

Fear- There's so much CRIME! No Health-care! And no bread! We have the impression in France life in the U.S. is exactly like an episode of CSI. I don't want to end up a real life CSI case.

Mika Watchaa Paris, France

Echo Boomers, other-wise known as Millen-nials, Gen-Yers, the 9/11 Generation, the Facebook Generation, Gleeks, and Bieberd-

weebs, are the generational cohort born between 1982 and 2001. We—Mercutio is by Echo Boomers for Echo Boomers and those Echo Boomer-curious— numerically dwarf Generation X and our Baby Boomer parents, who were busy getting it on-

sans contraceptifs and starting families during the ’80s and ’90s. The puppet masters of today’s America (and, by ex-ceptionalistic extension, the world) are Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers. Like how things are going? “Not so much,” you say? Me neither. Tomorrow’s America is ours for the salvag-ing and shaping, and my hope is that Generations Z and beyond (whatever their futuristic monikers) will remember us not only as crusty old farts with

outdated Tweetingtechnology, but also as the bringers of a desperately necessary paradigm shift, which begs the question: How will we roll when we’re in power?

All indications point to our someday inheriting a god-awful shitty mess whilst having to brave a political hellscape, what with the ever-ascending national debt, climate change, an ideologically- entrenched two-party system with deep-

Echo Boomers: Bringing the Paradigm Shiftby:Zachary Hughes

pocketed lobbyists lodged up its collective ass, and America’s four wars (Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and, now, Yemen; the latter two are illegal, as President Obama—yay for Nobel Peace Prize recipients!—hasn’t even feigned interest inreceiving congressional approval to start these wars). If we as Echo Boomers are going to leave anything worth a damn to our children and their children (it’s never too early to start thinking like an old fo-gey), then our worldview must vastly differ from the world-view that guides America today. We must bring the paradigm shift.

Generalizing the worldview of an entire American generation is as silly as claiming there’s aone-size-fits-all Deep V for that generation, especially when its members are both hipster-thinand overwhelmingly over-

weight, but it’s safe to say that early experiences shape a generation.As Echo Boomers, we’ve seen economic prosperity and the Pax Americana. We’ve seen amassively devastating terrorist attack, Team America under the Bush Doctrine (which, forall intents and purposes, is alive and well under President Obama), and the Great Recession.

We’ve seen an ineloquent, waterboarding-championing president stumble through jingoistic speeches about Good and Evil (capitalized, mind you, like “Truth” and “God”), and we’ve seen an eloquent man garner a great number of Echo Boom votes to become America’s first black president. We’ve seen the hope and opti-mism of the latter’s “Yes We Can” get sucked into a Beltway

black hole after his becoming president. We’ve seen the ice caps begin to melt, and we’ve seen a congressman with a phallic last name Tweet a pic-ture of his pitched dick-tent.We’ve seen the misguiding media spend more time on the aforementioned pitched tent than on stories that truly war-rant scrutiny and energy, such as the Global Commission on Drug Policy’s recent declara-tion that the worldwide War on Drugs has failed miserably.

We’ve seen wondrousadvancements in technology and medicine, and we’ve seen the advancement of gay rights as women’s bodily rights are occasionally trampled. Basi-cally, we’ve seen some crazy shit, and all of it is formative, all of it colors the lens through which we see the world—albeit, the tint is notentirely rosy.

Last February afforded us one of the first quantifiable looks from our generation’s perspective when the Brook-ings Institute, a non-partisan, not-for-profit public policy organization that researches and educates within the social sciences, published a survey entitled “ D.C.’s New Guard: What Does the Next Generation of American Leaders Think?” Brookings surveyed over a thou-sand teenagers in America who have been identified by their peers as future leaders.

The introduction to the survey stresses that the findings repre-sent a subset of the Echo BoomGeneration, not the entire generation. Brookings found that the majority of these Echo Boomers believes that “The U.S. is too involved in global affairs and should focus on more issues at home.” Add to that the salient sentiment among those surveyed that we should be afraid of the eco-nomic tour de force that is the rising Red Dragon—China has us quaking in the boots that they made for us, as, among other reasons, they are the largest foreign holder of U.S.debt—and the Brookings survey concludes that the Echo Boomers may have already embracedisolationism.

In August of 2010, before the Brookings survey was pub-lished, Daniel Drezner wrote a quick piece entitled “How do Millennials think about foreign relations?” for Foreign Policy online. Drezner posited that Echo Boomers, given our early

formative experiences, would be so opposed to intervening in other countries’ affairs that we would advocate an isolation-ist approach to foreign policy. He then encouraged his Echo Boomer readership to comment, and what ensuedwas one of the most civil and erudite comment threads in the history of the Internet (seriously, I implore you to check it out for yourself). The comments paint a nuanced and intelligent portrait of our gen-eration, a portrait that gives me hope for the future, despite my eternal pessimism. The one point that was over-whelmingly agreed upon is that isolationism is an antiquated notion that would be impos-sible to implement—culturally, economically, militaristically, the U.S. has made its indelible mark on the world. The Echo Boom Generation is making its indelible mark on the world, too, but through technology and unprecedented mobility. Echo Boomers like me have studied abroad (Je t’aime, Par-is) and worked in foreign coun-tries (Teaching English in China was weird and wonderful). The Echo Boom Generation has been exposed to other cultures and countries and has friended millions and millions of people from all over. We know that when we are in power we can-not attack first and then try to ask questions to the guy we just shot in the head; instead, we must be diplomatic, ad-dressing global problems multi-laterally with helpfrom others. By leaving our bloated sense

of self with past generations, which thought Americainvincible, and by respecting our place in the world and others’ places in the world, we will bringthe paradigm shift.

“Tomorrow’s America is

ours for the salvaging

and shaping.....”

Applicant Qualifications:Must be born between 1982-2001

Must be upbeat, confident, and assertive with high self-esteem

Optimism is a plus

Experience being independent and self-reliant is appreciated

Willing to assert your “intellectual authority”

Must be tech -savvy, a seeker of information, and have a strong value for education

Should enjoy volunteering and investing in social and community causes

Racists, Sexists, Homophobes, and the Intolerant Need Not Apply.

Calling All BoomersNew Generation seeks members to join political movement

From the age oF 14, Joshua Kahn russell Knew he was meant For more than a quiet liFe in suburbia. sneaKing away to new yorK to expose himselF to the realities oF liFe in the big city,

he quicKly accepted the call oF activism.

as Founder oF the rucKus society, Joshua has made it his mission to push For environmental protection and eradicate racial inJustice.

mercutio sat down with mr. russell to Find out the pros and cons oF liFe as a Full-time activist

Do you remember the issue or mo-ment in your life that made you de-cide to make activ-

ism a full time job?I think politicization occurs

for a lot of people when you live an experience that is so different from the way you have been taught to view the world that you are forced to shift your worldview just to make sense of it. I grew up in Southern Connecticut in a mostly-white suburb. I felt deeply alienated from my surroundings, but had never met anyone doing organizing or activism. Reggae music and punk rock spoke to my alien-ation in middle school. In 8th grade I started to hop on trains to Brooklyn to go to politically conscious reggae and punk shows. I met people who were dealing with everything from evictions to police brutality, and who were taking action on it too. The lives my friends were living in New York couldn't fit into the ways people were taught to think about the world in my Connecticut town. That

was my doorway into activism.

By the time I was a Junior in high school, I was part of a statewide anti-racist organiza-tion. We learned that the lead-ing white supremacist in the country, Matthew Hale, who at the time was the leader of a neo-Nazi group called "World Church of the Creator," was speaking in our state. Walling-ford ,CT had been known as a "Ku Klux Klan capital of the north" - the town even refuses to recognize MLK Day and forc-es their kids to go to school in order to disrespect that federal holiday. Hale was scheduled to speak at the public library. We went to protest him.

Our message was simple and clear, while we thought they had a right to speak at the library, we had just as much of a right to show up and say we didn’t want scum like them in our state. We were peace-ful. But we were greeted by a line of riot police. They were menacing. They allowed any-one who looked like a Nazi into the library to listen to the talk. Anyone who looked like

a protestor was intimidated, silenced, and kept out. I had seen police play this role in protests before: protecting the status quo (which in this case happened to be an extreme example) from change-makers. But it became a transforma-tional experience for me when I realized that many of the cops were black. I realized that they probably didn't want to be there at all. These black officers were being forced into a position where they were protecting people who would kill them in a dark alley if they had the chance. That was the moment when I started to think about systems.

Our problem that day wasn't with individual officers. We had a lot more in common with most of those cops than we had with the people in the library. But it was the institution of the police - playing a role of social-control - that was preventing change. Regardless of their personal sympathies, their role amplified voices for violence and hate and silenced peaceful voices for justice. After that I started to learn that racism is

embedded in our legal, politi-cal, and economic systems in much deeper ways that are normalized in our country. I realized that fighting Nazis was perhaps not the most strategic way to address racism in our society (as satisfying as it may be). From that day onward, I knew that I was going to find ways to make systemic change for my whole life. I was in it for the long-haul. You come down pretty harsh on large corporations and banks on your Twitter account. How much respon-sibility do you feel they have for the current state of our planet, in terms of our envi-ronment?

The great American folk singer Utah Phillips once said "the planet is not dying. It is being killed. And the people killing it have names and addresses." One of the reasons I like that quote is it challenges this idea that the ecological crisis we face was somehow an ac-cident that we're all at fault for. There's a popular idea that since many people drive cars, use electricity, etc, that we all have equal culpability for climate change or the other environmental problems we're facing. But the asthma that's caused by coal plants in low-in-come communities of color, the skyrocketing cancer rates in In-

digenous lands where they are extracting Tar Sands oil in Can-ada, the devastation of liveli-hoods of Gulf Coast families in the wake of the BP oil spill, the poisoned water communi-ties in Appalachia are forced to drink because of Mountaintop Removal Coal mining - all these problems are caused by corpo-rations acting in the only way they know how - in their own self interest to maximize prof-it. That's what corporations are built do to. And there are real people making real decisions at the heads of these things. We didn't get into the climate crisis, or the water crisis, the collapse of fisheries and for-ests by accident. We got here

based on an economic system that says we can have infinite growth on a finite planet. The fossil fuel industry is the most lucrative industry that human-kind has ever seen. Big banks not only fleece our economy for their own gain, but often fund the companies that are caus-ing the destruction. And yes, as consumers we do play our role by over-consuming unsustain-able products, gas & oil, etc. but to focus on the consumer is to miss the point. Demand for this stuff is manufactured. All of us are just playing the game that is set up for us and rigged by these parasitic corporations. Our power to make change is not in our individual consumer habits, but in our collective power as participants in a democracy to organize and to change the game itself.

Would you agree that part of the resistance to climate change could be a fault of imagery and language? Often times we hear in the media terms like "green" and "organ-ic" mixed with images of those who live rather privileged or "artsy" lifestyles. How do we get the poor and working class active in the climate change conversation?

Unquestionably, the com-munities most impacted by climate change are low-income people, people of color, indig-enous people, and those who live in the Global South. They don't stick incinerators, smoke stacks, and sludge impound-ments in the suburbs of the

rich. The droughts, famines, floods, and hurricanes that are increasing in severity because of climate change are primar-ily hitting the Global South right now - not North America and Europe. This year alone whole mountainsides in Latin America were washed away by record storms, record famines hit Pakistan, hurricanes in the Philippines, and over 15,000 heat-related deaths in Russia alone. In our country, when "natural" disasters hit, the institutional neglect and racism means it hits poor communities of color first and worst - Hur-ricane Katrina in New Orleans is a great example. The federal and statewide response to the levees breaking was disgusting. Yet when there were wildfires in wealthy Malibu? People were evacuated immediately and resources were mobilized. And yet, you're right. In the popular imagination in this country, many people think of polar bears or melting ice caps when they hear of global warm-ing. When "Green" is marketed as a consumer commodity, that wealthy white people can af-ford it continues to shift the conversation away from the real impacts. The fact is that working class communities, people of color and Indigenous peoples have been at the fore-front of movements for eco-logical justice for a long time now, but their work usually isn't called "environmental" work. People tend to still think of the environment as something sep-

arate from humans. The media still focuses on young white college kids talking about sav-ing the whales. That's the story we need to change in order to create a compelling movement for everyone. From President George W. Bush to President Obama, how have the politics changed in relation to the environment?

Certainly the eco-rhetoric has changed – George Bush’s admin-istration publicly denied that climate change even existed, and Obama has public com-mitments to safeguarding the environment. The EPA has a lot more political will than it did during the Bush years, which is why it is under attack from the Right. But unfortunately Obama’s administration has let us down on everything from the EPA’s treatment of Mountaintop Removal mining to the “Clean Energy Standard” to climate legislation.

What it underscores is that change isn’t made by a presi-dent’s political sympathies – it’s made by pressure from the bottom-up.

If we want Obama to legis-late some change, we need to make him do it. The national balance of forces is not in our favor right now. Our opposition is strong. Whether it’s the dirty money in politics coming from the Chamber of Commerce or the billionaire Koch Brothers, any presidency can only go as far as they are pushed. It is the job of social movements to create political leverage, not

politicians. We are loud but we need to get louder. On tax day this year there were 10,000 young people in DC demanding action on climate change. But a couple scattered Tea Party tax protests of a dozen or less people dominated the me-dia coverage. You would have never known about the 10,000 people in DC from watching

the news; all you would know is that there are crackpots out there saying we shouldn’t have public libraries and that global warming is a conspiracy to tax people. Our side has people power and theirs has a loud

media noise machine that helps shape people’s ideas about what’s going on in our country. So we need to organize where we have power – which is in our own communities and in the streets.

There are two kinds of power in the world: organized money and organized people. They have the money but we have

the people. It’s our job to build that power and make any presi-dent answer to us.

Tell me about the Ruckus Society.

The mission of the Ruckus Society is to provide environ-

mental, human rights, and social justice organizers with the tools, training, and sup-port needed to achieve their goals. We are a North American network of volunteer train-ers, facilitators, organizers, and non-violent direct action coordinators. We are a move-ment-servicing organization that supports communities on

the frontlines who are waging campaigns for their rights and their health. Oftentimes when a campaign is ready to escalate to civil disobedience, Ruckus supports them in doing it stra-tegically, safely, and with care.

Recently, Ruckus has been supporting migrant communities in Arizona fight racist anti-immi-gration laws, supporting indigenous communities in Canada fight the expansion of Tar Sands oil extraction, supporting public workers in the Mid-west safeguard their rights to form unions, sup-porting indigenous voices at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, and

many other important fights. We also run annual training camps for organizers and activists. You can get more information at www.ruckus.org.

Does being a busy activist come with per-sonal sacrifices?

I find this work deeply fulfilling. I think I would sacrifice a lot more in my humanity, con-nection to others, and sense of contribution

by not spending my time organizing. There’s a misconception that in order to be active you have to sacrifice your whole life and martyr yourself to “the cause.” But there is room in this movement for everyone, no matter how much or little time you have to give, no matter your interests, or skills. Sure I overwork myself, chronically under-sleep, and sometimes it’s dif-ficult to figure out how to resource your work or pay your rent, but it’s a gift and a privilege to do this work.

When you see the popularity of a show like Jersey Shore, one may get the impression that our generation might prefer to be wasted than politically active. Does our generation need an image overhaul?

Our generation is one of the most active in U.S. history – you just wouldn’t know it from watching the news. The concept of the “me” generation of “millennials” is an unfortunate marketing idea that doesn’t reflect my experi-ence at all. I’ve worked with many thousands of young people over the last couple years, and it’s clear that our generation understands that soci-ety is broken. Many young folks don’t yet have a sense of agency – the idea that our actions matter, that change is possible. When offered a doorway into action that feels credible, young people jump at the chance.

Have you met any resistance because of your age? Have people ever told you that you're too young to do this or that? Or your opinion isn't important?

Young people are often on the forefront of great change. Even household names that are familiar to most people:Gandhi was only 25 when he founded the Natal Indian Congress; Martin Luther King Jr was 25 when he led the Montgomery bus boycott. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t a lot of people who will dis-miss you for your age. I think it’s challenging especially for youth organizers whose ages may not reflect their assumed experience. If you start seriously organizing in high school, you may have 15 years of experience under your belt before you’re 30. Nonprofits in particular are not good at honoring and recognizing this experience, and instead measure people’s skills based on jobs they have had post-college. It’s

important to honor the unique wisdom and skill of young people.

What are some accomplishments you're most proud of?

Everything I have accomplished has been the result of organizing with a group of committed people. All our accomplishments are collective and shared. Often Americans are taught that his-tory is made by individuals, great leaders who have some unique insight or ability. That’s not true. For every activist you’ve heard of, there are many many people behind the scenes do-ing the real work. I have worked on campaigns that have shifted 6 major banks on wall street away from financing Mountain Top Removal coal mining and other fossil fuel projects, have helped coordinate major mobilizations at the United Nations, helped get the power plant that heats the U.S. Capitol off of coal, have trained thousands of activists across the country, have helped important issues gain media coverage, have helped custodial workers win parity and keep their unions, have supported Canadian Native communities kicking logging companies off their land, have coordinated student strikes against the war in Iraq, and all of this work I am deeply proud of – but the pride is in the success of groups of people coming together across dif-ference in order to make change that is bigger than the sum of our individual efforts.

Any advice for someone who wants to start getting active?

Talk to people! Most activists love to share their work, offer advice, and mentorship. Find-ing mentors was crucial for my growth. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel – there are many shoulders we can stand on in learning how to do this work together. Check out my site www.praxismakesperfect.org for resources to get engaged!

Big summer plans?Ruckus is planning an activist training camp for

migrant rights organizers. In general the summer is a big time for trainings because many young people are out of school. I have an organizing manual coming out that was co-authored with Hilary Moore called Organizing Cools the Planet out in June on PM Press (www.pmpress.org) and The Next Eco Warriors on Conari Press.

Members of the Millennium Generation...

Love a challenge and strive for excellence

Foster and feed off of technology

Pave their own path; 1 in 5 are self-employed

Prefer a diverse range of careers over their lifetime

Will be saddled with large debts (college loans ain’t no joke)

Want to be rich; they spend up to $200 billion dollars a year

Postpone marriage and children into their mid 20s or early 30s

What makes us tick

In 1999, teen pop sensation Britney Spears broke onto the American pop culture scene with her winning combination of schoolgirl innocence and sex appeal.

She was blandly pretty, could dance decently, and had seem-ingly mastered the elusive art of live lip-syncing. The dark secret hiding beneath the blond pop exterior was that the cheery teen pop image was a facade. And not a just afacade that was well-crafted and elaborately hidden—the flimsiest of facades that its perpetrators seem proud of flaunting.

Since then, pre-fabricated pop stars have not only be-come a seemingly stable part of tpeople believe what they see, sometimes even if they know it’s a lie.The American entertainment landscape, but the process has gradu-ally seeped into all aspects of American life, including the political realm. Unfortunately,

as the emphasis of politics has switched more and more from serious issues to another source of tabloid en-tertainment, this approach has proven to be detrimental to the American political economy.

In 1960, every-thing clicked in place with the great meeting of politics and television. After the first televised Presidential debate between Nixon and Kennedy, those who listened to the de-bate on the radio thought that Nixon won, but people who saw it on TV thought JFK had emerged victorious. And politi-cians across America found a new way to win.

JFK was a complete pack-age—handsome, charismatic, and seemingly wholesome—he was America’s knight in shin-ing armor. This was the man who looked like he could and should be the face of America. All others paled in comparison. Fortunately for him, his place in America was sealed with

an untimely bullet, a series of iconic family photos, and a never-ending mystery that has and will fuel countless conspiracy theories.

While JFK may have been the first pop star president, those who have followed in his foot-steps have been less fortunate. The winning ratio of personal-ity to policy has been tricky for the puppeteers to master and there have been very appar-ent slip ups along the way. But soon, three general lessons became obvious:-Have the better looking can-didate—even if they don’t agree with what he represents, people like looking at pretty/attractive people.-Image is everything—people believe what they see, some-

Don’t Hate Me Because I’m Beautifulby: Tylla Bradley

“People believe what they see, sometimes even if they know it’s a lie.”

times even if they know it’s a lie.-When in doubt, be cool—only nerds can rattle off the specific names and dates of anythingat a moment’s notice. And really, who wants to be a nerd?

While this checklist might make an excellent prom king or queen, for the leader of the free world, it leaves a lot to be desired. Think I’m making this up?

Bill Clinton was a good old country boy from Arkansas who showed up to chill on MTV with Arsenio Hall.( all mentioned moments can be seen using video links found in the post following this issue)George W. Bush, the son of a President and part of a political dynasty, okay, basi-cally won by default after an unnerving PDA by Al Gore and Tipper (the world does not want to see non-sexy middle aged people making out).Barack Obama went bowling, played basketball, and gener-ally charmed a whole nation with his innate coolness

Contrast that with their opponents.Bob Dole—seriously, he was as boring as wood and the only time anyone smiled at hisrallies was when he fell off the platform (Sad, but funny, John Kerry—he came across as the lost Munster, was incredibly bland and boring, and always looked like the uptight Yankee he was, is, and forever will beJohn McCain—as much as Amer-ica loves its war heroes, he looked like a grumpy old man

who needed to spend his final days on the back porch recall-ing his youth and telling war stories to his bored grandchil-dren.

The system works.

The downside of the popularity test that American politics has become is the fact that only the inept or vaguely compe-tent get elected. Just because they’re able to read off of tele-prompters and articulately re-peat rehearsed answers doesn’t mean they actually know what they’re talking about and the state of the nation reflects that. While sex and charm win over boring policy talk on the campaign trail, the Presidency is a job that quickly wears away at anybody; the charming candidates are the first to go. And when their looks are gone, all that’s left is a person des-perately trying to regain lost approval numbers.

But, if you really need a prime example of the formula pro-viding ineptitude in the White House, check out the one term reign of Jimmy Carter. The peanut farmer from Georgia was able to bumble his way to the White House on sheer charm and goodwill. And, in four short years, he managed to pretty much screw up every-thing that he touched.

When push comes to shove, America wants the cool guy, but needs the nerd to figure out what the hell is going on. Yes, it sucks that the face of America is a dork who can re-cite numbers and figures with-out coaching, has an encyclopedic knowledge of for-eign policy, and will put all but the most masochistic to sleep at parties.This is the leader that America needs, but no one wants.

Ivy-League rap music could be seen as a rather oxymoronic idea. How is it beneficiries of higher education could possibly understand the struggles and

frustrations of life in the street so often depicted in rap?

Perhaps they can't. However, everyone has their own frustrations, and for David Ruffel and Joshua Riddle (aka The Young Cons) theirs are with the

political landscape. Using rap as their medium, The Young Cons are on a mission to spread conservatism and Christ to all who will listen.

At what age did your passion for politics begin? Would you say youchose conservatism or did it choose you?

Politics became a passionate topic during our first encounter with theelectoral process. The 2008 elec-tion and primaries is when we first asked the question of what role

we wanted the government to play in our lives.We would say that we chose con-servatism. Every man is master of his own destiny and responsible for the ideas and philosophies they adhere to.Why do you think it is still so dif-ficult to get the average youngperson engaged in politics?The average young person in

America is more concerned with the present and instant gratifica-tion. Issues such as the debt crisis and foreign policy relations do not appear to directly affect their daily lives. We do think that this trend is shifting as the looming is-sues of our generation are rapidly approaching.What was the origin of the “Young Cons”?

The Young Cons, which is short for Young Conservatives, began atDartmouth College in May of 2009 when we released our first music video called “Young Con Anthem.” That video received over 500,000 views on YouTube-and landed us on seven different national television shows ranging from Huckabee on Fox News to Real Time on HBO, as well as a host of radio, web and newspa-per outlets. We have a mission to spread the love and logic sur-rounding true conservatism and fight many of the stereotypes that the mainstream media, Hollywood, and college campuses portray.To a young person, liberalism has a strong appeal. What are theappeals of conservatism to to-day’s youth?Conservatism appeals to young Americans because we love thenatural liberties of life and pri-vate property, but despise an all-powerful central government that seeks to destroy the dignity of the individual. We believe in the Constitution, which specifically outlines the balance betweenindividual liberty and government authority, and understand this law has been ignored to create an enormous federal government that illegitimately imposes many things like redistributing wealth and financing welfare programs.Do you believe conservatives are depicted accurately in the media?The media portrays conservatives as old, rich, white and disconnect-ed from the common man. I would say this does not accurately depict the Conservative movement. The

goal of the some in the media is to create a divided nation en-trenched in class warfare, instead of trying to unite all Americans against an invasive and tyrannical big government.Where do conservatism and the Tea Party meet?Conservatism and the Tea Party meet at the founding principles and documents of the United States. The Declaration of Inde-pendence outlines that every citi-zen has the right to life, liberty and the pursuit, not the guaran-teed equal outcome, of happi-ness. The Tea Party recognizes the danger of government spending and champions ideas of freedom that is the bedrock of true conser-vatism.Rap music began as a form of expressing problems within thecommunity and grievances against public policy. Would you say your music hasthe same mission? What are your grievances?Our grievances are with politicians in Washington that think it is okay to take taxpayer dollars and waste

them on backroom deals and catering to the needs of special interest groups. Rap music was made to give a voice to thevoiceless, and we believe the average person in America dreams of a society where they are able to work hard and take pride in the fruits of their labor.You are very open about your religious beliefs. Where do you think the line should be drawn between politics and faith? Is it possible that mixing politics and faith in America could hurt more than harm?I think every law or policy is an indication of what our political leaders believe is right. Words like right and wrong are based on moral judgment. In this way, politics naturally forces us to discuss our values and our ideas for the common good. Therefore, the argument that religious be-liefs should be removed from the political conversation makes no sense at all. Therefore, no line can be drawn between politics and faith because there is no such thing as legislation that is morally

“The media portrays conservatives as old,

rich, white, and disconnected from the

common man.”

neutral. Charles Chaput at the Witherspoon Institute elaborates on this idea of how politics and faith are naturally intertwined. The Founding Fathers believed, and we agree, in moral absolutes,which have their foundation in faith and have been tried and tested over time. The Left, how-ever, accepts moral relativism that blurs the line between good and bad. As a result, modern lib-erals must arbitrarily create their own morality and rights, which is susceptible to circumstantialapplications. For example, the Left accepts the legal killing of an unborn child in the third trimes-ter, but rejects the legal killing of a child minutes after birth. The Left also legally defends the right of inheritance to the unborn, but not the right to life. Our lyrics about politics must remain true to what we believe is right in our hearts or we would simply deceive ourselves. As Christians, we be-lieve in the Bible. And, unlike the Quran, the Bible does not obligateChristians to legally codify the entire moral system. For example, there are many things that are morally wrong and left legal, like adultery, and other things that are not fundamentally wrong and outlawed, like driving above acertain speed. This exemplifies how Christians are obligated to use both their faith and natural reason in the legislation process. There are certain issues, like

abortion, that we believe Chris-tians should take a particularlystrong legal stance against be-cause the murder of innocents is both fundamentally wrong in faith and natural reason. As Christians, we also agree that Jesus promoted charitable giving on behalf of the individual and not as a spiritless act of government. He argued for individuals to give from his or her personal resources and not to force others through taxation.We think mixing politics and reli-gion could cause harm as it doesin Saudi Arabia where women still cannot drive or open bank ac-counts without the consent of a male. Most people are religious.

And the dominant religion in America was and is Christianity, which has influenced our funda-mental laws and policies. The Founders accepted Natural Law through which man understands moral order and the unalienable rights of life and liberty. Webelieve, as argued by Alexis de Tocqueville, that the Gospel only speaks about the relationship be-tween men and God and to each other, but does not support domi-nance over politics or seek justifi-cation from it. On the otherhand, Alexis de Tocqueville states,

the Quran is not only a body ofreligious doctrines, but also po-litical maxims, civil and criminal laws, and theories of science. Islamic law regulates many things, including politics, finance, dating and hygiene. In this way, mix-ing politics and some religions, particularly those which preach dominance over politics, can cause harm. We believe in reli-gious liberty, as the Founders did, and reject the establishment of a national religion. We disagree, however, with Franklin Roosevelt’s Supreme Court appointee and Ku Klux Klan member, Justice Hugo Black, who wrote,“The First Amendment has erected a wall

between church and state. That wall must be kept high and im-pregnable. We could not approve the slightest breach.” This idea of separating church and state is dis-loyal to the founding of America and the intentions of the Found-ers. We agree with Chief Justice William Rehnquist who wrote in 1985 that, “The First Amendment did not require government neu-trality between religion and irreli-gion nor did it prohibit the Fed-eral Government from providing nondiscriminatory aid to religion. There is simply no historical

“Our lyrics about politics must remain true to what we believe is right in our

hearts or we would simply deceive

ourselves.”

foundation for the proposition that the Framers intended to build a ‘wall of separation’ that was constitutional in Everson.”In your opinion, who is the face or future of conservatism?Paul Ryan, Lt. Colonel Allen West, Marco RubioTrump vs. Obama: a possible matchup?No, I think we should be skeptical of Mr. Trump’s claim to be a trueconservative. In the last elec-tions, he financially supported politicians like Charlie Crist with $4,800 in his race against Marco Rubio. In addition, he has given about $2,800 to Chuck Schumer, $2,000 to Anthony Weiner, $4,000 to Hillary, and $2,400 to Harry Reid. I think this demonstrates how he gives political donations without principle. In 2008, Trump said he met with Nancy Pelosi and was very impressed by her, adding "I thought she would have done more with impeaching Bush over the war." In 2008, Trump said President-elect Obama could be agreat president for the American people. In 1999, Trump told Fox News Sunday, "I'm totally pro-choice.. I am pro-choice because I think we have no choice." Now, he's pro-life. In 2000, Trump said, "by imposing a one-time 14.25% net-worth tax on the richest indi-viduals and trusts... we can putAmerica on sound financial footing for the next century." Now, he isn't in favor of huge tax increases. In 2000, Trump said "We must have universal health care. The Cana-dian plan also helps Canadians live longer and healthier than Ameri-cans. We need, as a nation, to reexamine the single-payer plan." Now, he opposes Obamacare. In 1987, Trump wrote aboutReagan saying, "He could con peo-ple, but not deliver the goods...He is so smooth and effective a performer that he completely won over the American

people. Only now, nearly seven years later, are people beginning to question whether there's any-thing beneath that smile. Now, however, he claims to havereally liked President Reagan. For these reasons, we are unsure about about Mr. Trump’s core prin-ciples and whether or not he truly embraces the conservative values that can save our nation and give power back to the individual. And finally what was the...

Last album you listened to? Lecrae Moore's Rehab

Book you read? The Road to Serfdom by Friedrich Hayek

DVD you watched? The Patriot (2000) Directed by Roland Emmerich with Mel Gibson, one of our personal favorites.

(Two weeks after this interview , Donald Trump removed himself from the Presidential race.)