A while ago someone asked me how to appeal to young people, so I thought up some answers that might help.
I'm gonna be honest, no one I know under the age of 20 has a high opinion of the GOP or the conservative ecosystem in general. It's hard to get anyone my age interested in politics as it is but being vaguely liberal is definitely the default position.
Here's what I think should change:
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No more bootstrapping. Young people aren't proud of the fact that they might have to work hard every day doing something they hate just to survive. Gen-Z generally sees productivity in a negative light, because the general vibe it gives is that of being stressed, rushed, and forced to do something that feels completely unnatural. I think a lot of zoomers turn to socialism because they hate how much of their lives are dominated by economic considerations. Everything from picking a major in college to choosing where to live to choosing whether or not to have a family is downstream from the pressure to compete in an economy and stay financially afloat. Everyone hates this.
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No more Cold War / War on Terrorism rhetoric. We were born after 9/11 and every example we've seen of going to war or doing regime change is seen as a total disaster. We don't care about "defending our allies" or "making America strong in the world" or anything like that. Our lives are being decided here in this country, not in Ukraine or China or Israel. The best Zoomer-friendly foreign policy position is trying to make friends with everyone and making compromises to achieve that.
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Being an "institutionalist" in this century is completely out of step with the times. Young people want revolution. We want to take part in a new era of history that's completely different from the shitty world we're experiencing now. Something great and exciting, not just a return to legal precedent or the founding fathers. Pretty much everyone I know thinks the Constitution is either outdated or something that should be interpreted very loosely. The few Trump supporters and Young Republicans I know are more interested in handing power over to an inspiring leader like Trump who will use his judgment instead of going by a pretty limited historical document.
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This is a smaller one, but politician speak really needs to die. "When we do this, they do that." Talking about the kitchen table or "everyday Americans." The cringe turn of phrases and canned lines written by someone who has obviously never had a real conversation before. Basically don't be Ron DeSantis or Tim Scott lol. The president we grew up under was Trump, not Ronald Reagan. Talking about Reagan or trying to sound like him is like trying to make Calvin Coolidge a big thing in the 80s. It doesn't make sense for this generation.
I'll try to think of more soon.
It's very hard to get people who aren't religious to think the world revolves around anything else. We're kind of taught from day 1 that truth is something people construct to justify empowering themselves. So everything goes down to self interest.
And that's where it all went wrong for you.
Ditch that premise all together and there might be hope yet.
So then it should be self evident why meeting people like that 100% on their own terms in order to try and lure them to support you and your cause is about the worst thing you can possibly do. Sooner or later they will all learn that they are not the most important thing in the universe, and that God is real, and that there are far more important things to consider than just what they want to eat for dinner tonight. Some will learn quickly, some (like me) will be thick-headed slow learners that have to learn everything the hard way, and some won't learn until after they pass from this earth. But everyone has to learn the truth eventually, and WILL learn it eventually. What good does it do to help them remain in their ignorance longer just so you can try and attract them to your cause? Help them to learn the important truths faster if they will let you, if not then just stay out of their way and let them learn on their own the hard way. Don't waste your time and sabotage your own efforts by trying to pursue them while they refuse to leave their own little self-centered world.