RUSH: You know, another thing I heard while I was gone: “Hey, Rush, you know, this global warming, the kids believe it. So you’re not going to gain any ground by just saying it isn’t happening.”
“Well, so what should I say?”
“Well, you’ve got to say that it could be happening, and it might be happening.”
“So IÂ’m supposed to abandon the truth in order to get the kids. When did we start assuming that kids are smarter than we are, and that we have to bend and shape to what the kids think?”
Folks, I’m hearing this, by the way, from a lot of friends of mine who have kids in their thirties and younger, who are totally… (sigh) Not totally. They are heavily influenced in what they think by virtue of what their kids think. I can’t tell you the number of guys who told me their kids think X and therefore we’d better think it, ’cause the kids are the future.
When I was 25, the adults of the world thought I hadn’t’ lived long enough to know enough. I didn’t have enough experience at life to be able to tell them what was up and the way things oughta be. It’s stunning — and this may be a profundity here, folks, because this is more than a trend. I can’t tell you…
And I’m not going to name any names, but you’ve gotta trust me here. A bunch of guys my age and ten years younger (I’m 63) are speaking of what their kids think as though it’s Gospel. It doesnÂ’t matter whether what their kids think is right or wrong. We had better take note and we had better pander to it. Politically, we had better pander to what our kids think or else.
I think a lot of it is… Well, I can’t analyze the parental aspect of it, ’cause I’m not one. But the political aspects of it, I think are rooted in once again the lack of leadership from the Republican Party, and people are desperate to beat Democrats however they can. It doesnÂ’t matter how. They just want to beat them, even if we have to lie to people about what we think. Even if we have to stretch the truth about what we think.
This is what IÂ’m hearing. And the kid vote seems to be among the most important in these friends mine’s minds, because they think that’s the demographic on which elections turn. But it’s a really… I was thinking about this last night as I was cramming, getting back into things. I heard this on my vacation and it just reminded me of the last two or three trips to California.
I’ve been inundated with this, “Well, you know, my kids think…” My friends have changed their outlooks on life because of what their kids think! I just think, what a stark difference… And I’m not putting anything down, here. Don’t misunderstand. It’s just an interesting observation. You know the old saw they don’t let you make any money in this country until you’re forty?
You know the roots of that, it used to be a sweeping generalization to which there were many, many exceptions, of course, ’cause a lot of people made it big before they were forty. But the general rule was that by the time you were forty, you had to be pretty much set. If you missed that, it was going to be tough to enjoy wild, profound success.
By the same token, you weren’t really invested in by managers and management until you were forty, whether it was by design or accident, simply because it was at that point where people had judged you’d lived long enough, you’d experienced enough in life to have different and valued opinions. You’d established a work ethic, or not. You’d established an integrity record, or not.
I know when I was 25, my dad was interested in what I thought, but he thought I was all wet. When I was all wet, when I was wrong, he told me. There was no, “Oh, you think that? Okay. Well, you know what? That’s interesting, Son. I’ll think I’ll think that, too,” even though he thought it was wrong.
But today these parents are just the exact opposite: Whatever their kids think, it’s Gospel! As I say, I think a lot of it is rooted in, “Well, the kids, they vote Democrat! We gotta find a way to get ’em.” So I had people telling me, “Rush, you just can’t say there isn’t any global warming, because these kids believe it, and… and… and… and… (sigh) You’re just shuttin’ ’em out! You’re just shuttin’ ’em out when you tell ’em there isn’t any!”
“So I’m supposed to not say what I really think so as to not turn off potential voters?”
“Yeah! That’s exactly right!”
I said, “I donÂ’t know how to do that.”
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: The youth vote seems now to be Gospel. Whatever it takes to get them, even if you have to say things you don’t believe. Even if you have to parrot what they believe in order to get their vote.
So if they think global warming is real, then you’d better not shut it down. They’ll just reject you out of hand, because they think it’s real. Okay. Why did think it’s real? That’s what’s fascinated me. Why do they think it’s real, when it clearly isn’t? We all know the answer. The Media. But it’s also psychology. Everybody wants meaning in their life. Most people never really get it.
But if you’re told that you can save the planet?
Oh, man, do you become important or what! So they give you ways to save the planet. Buy junk cars that nobody would ever buy. Start behaving with stupid environmental restrictions on yourself and then agree to pay higher taxes to support bigger government and all that — and vote Democrat, of course — and bammo!
Your life has meaning and you’re saving the planet.
My God, there can’t be anything more meaningful than that. No, I understand how seductive it is. So I’m supposed to sign on that instead of saying it’s a hoax, because we’ll lose the youth vote if I tell the truth.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: I am supposed to say what they think so as not to offend them. That’s the lesson (chuckles) that I learned on vacation. If I’m right but nobody thinks I am, I’m supposed to agree with the people who are wrong so as not to offend them, and therefore not scare them into voting for Democrats.
I got an email during the break.
“Yep, Rush, I know what you’re talking about. It’s the way you were raised. Kids were meant to be seen and not heard.” That’s not what I said! How does anybody get that I said kids weren’t meant to be seen not heard? The only thing I said was, my parents were interested in what I said. They treated me like an adult (except when I didn’t deserve to be). That’s all we did is sit adown debating things.
My friends would come over on Friday night instead of going out and partying and listen to my dad get revved up. The point was that if I thought something, my parents did not automatically adopt it because I was their child, and assume… I mean, they just didn’t assume I had lived long enough or had enough experience in things. That’s all it was. It wasn’t to be seen but not heard or any of that.
It’s a fascinating thing. I don’t want to dwell on it, but it’s happened so much lately, that I thought it was worth commenting on. There is this story that ran in Salon.com, which is a well-nope leftist website way back on September 2nd. That would be a week ago tomorrow. “Salon Q&A: William Deresiewicz on Millennials, the Meritocracy, Student Loans and What’s Wrong with the Ivy League.”
This is a long interview, a Q & A piece, but the comment about Millenials — and that’s anybody under 30 or 31 and under. This guy, whoever he is, says, quote, “They are intellectually underpowered and full of themselves, because theyÂ’ve been told their whole life how wonderful they are.” This is a leftist saying this about Millenials. There’s a certain degree of, you know, the self-esteem movement in schools.
“You’re okay; I’m okay. You’re wonderful, you’re great,” no matter what you do. It’s whole self-esteem movement is undeniable. It’s happening and it did happen and parents cricket contributed to it. Who knows? Maybe it’s a contributing factor to this phenomenon of parents who are device as old as their kids, readily assuming their kids know more than they do, or are right and the parents are wrong.
Automatically. Or, “Well, the kids believe it and we don’t want to hurt their self-esteem. No, we don’t want to tell them they’re wrong.” That’s what it is. We can’t tell them they’re wrong! They’re wrong? That would violate the raise the way we raised them. That’s punishing. That’s diminishing, that’s a putdown, and that will destroy their self-esteem. So we can’t tell them they’re wrong.”
I guess that’s what this is.
“When you say flat-out that what they believe is wrong, Rush, you’re just destroying any chance of getting them to vote for the Republican Party.”
So, anyway, there’s that.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: Well, the kids also believe in gay marriage and gay love, but you know why? Because they think that 40 to 50% of the population is gay! Do a test. Tell your kids (if you have any under 30) that the actual percentage of the population that’s gay is 1-1/2%.
See what they think.
Just gauge it. If they don’t know that, they’re going to be shocked, and who can blame them? I mean, the media portrayal of homosexuality in primetime (well, everywhere) conveys that it is large. It’s natural. It’s fun. Everything is cool about it. No problem whatsoever. So it would be natural to think, especially in an era of equality and fairness and sameness and everybody being validated in what they do (i.e. the self-esteem movement).
So what are we supposed to do in these cases? Just whatever? Set aside the facts? “They think it, and their vote is important, so don’t tell them they’re wrong.” Until when? Do we ever? Do they ever get old enough that they can then hear the truth without voting Democrat? At what age does that happen? Because for now, don’t dare! I can’t tell you…
I don’t want to beat a dead horse here, but I wouldn’t mention this if it hadn’t happened to me in the past six months over and over again. By the way, it’s a reverence. These parents are speaking with a reverence for what their college-aged kids think. And in many cases… I’ll tell you this, too. In many cases it has led to these parents telling me, “Rush, we’ve been so wrong about so much. These kids, they’ve got it figured out. These kids, I’m telling you, we’re going to have to admit some things here.”
I’m listening to this in just stunned speechless amazement. You know, not having kids, I don’t face this challenge. So I don’t know what I would do. Can’t just… They’re kids. Self-esteem movement. Don’t want to hurt their feelings. Don’t want them to go up stunted, want them thinking positively of themselves and so forth. This is what maybe it’s led to.