I opened my Google Reader at 8:00pm today and found this interesting piece by Farhad Manjoo about how the internet is influencing politics.
First of all, as a conservatively-raised farm boy who has been fully acclimated to the college life, I find myself swaying further and further left on certain topics (whether I like it or not).
Recently, my good friend invited me to join this Facebook group about a week ago. The pro-concealed weapons on campus group was obviously the brainchild of a right-winged student. My first reaction was "who in their right minds would want to actually carry a gun to class? and what kind of legislator would support it?" The answer: every single one of my South Dakotan friends and a bunch of South Dakotan legislators. Holy carp folks, did you hear that? I actually don't like the concealed weapons bill! What is wrong with me?
Online support groups like the Facebook group supported by www.concealedcampus.com are influencing people. Not necessarily as propaganda or "sales" type purpose, but as a confrontational-force-you-to-decide kind of medium. That right-winged Facebook group made me learn about my own beliefs. I discovered that I don't want to bring a gun to class, and I don't want my classmates to bring one either.
I realize that our founding fathers put it in the constitution for me, and I am also an avid deer/goose/pheasant hunter, but I (and the SDSU Student Association) honestly don't think it is necessary to bring a deadly weapon to class. And as for the legislators in SD - they shouldn't fix something that isn't broke. If they really want to get something done, they should first figure out why most college students can't even afford a gun in the first place.
All in all, I just wanted to point out that the ever-consuming internet is helping us along, and it is (whether we like it or not) making each of us realize our own values.
Thanks for reading!
John
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