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:
-
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.
-
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.
-
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 Pretty much everyone I know thinks the Constitution is either outdated or something that should be interpreted very loosely.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in handing power over to an inspiring leader like Trump who will use his judgment instead of going by a pretty limited historical document.
-
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.
And this is different from every generation in history because why?
Check out The Great Depression of the 1930s, with millions out of work, homeless, and with almost zero public assistance compared to today. THAT generation had a very different response to the difficult economic environment. In short, the harsh economy isn't the only factor shaping opinions of the younger generation; the particular (and not helpful) attitude you describe is shaped by relentless Marxist propaganda in schools, in the media, and pretty much everywhere.
"Turning to socialism" and seeing "productivity in a negative light" are hugely counter-productive, because productivity is what CREATES WEALTH, and socialism -- rewarding the non-productive and penalizing the producers -- DESTROYS wealth.
You know that, clearly, and your Point 4 is an excellent response -- honest and direct talk is necessary and "politician speak" needs to be laughed off the stage.
Freedom allows and encourages the creation of wealth; consider Hong Kong, which went from severe poverty in the 1950s to top-tier wealth under the British because the Brits gave Hong Kong far more economic freedom than they gave their own people back home in England. Or check out China's rapid rise from starvation and poverty under Mao to economic powerhouse once (relative) market freedoms were instituted.
Freedom rewards people for doing the hard work of creating wealth, which is how the West got wealthy in the first place.
Believe me: a LOT of hard work went into creating the wealth of America (which has nearly all been siphoned off now by massive government, corporations, and individuals USING government coercion -- such as corporate give-aways and regulations, the military-industrial complex, and a thousand other things).
We need to convey the truth about freedom to people. That's actually what the Great Awakening is all about -- we're not trying to wake people up to the wonders of tyranny, because there aren't any positives to tyranny. Socialism and other forms of tyranny are just ways to destroy prosperity for the masses while enriching those at the top. The destruction can happen slowly (as it has until recently in Europe and America) or rapidly, as it did in Venezuela and Zimbabwe, but the destruction itself is inevitable.
FREEDOM is what creates a better world, not only because being free feels better than being under the boot-heels of tyrants but because, by rewarding effort (i.e., a free market) instead of stifling it, prosperity is created.
But make no mistake: effort is required. Wealth doesn't appear by magic.
You want something great and exciting? Who doesn't, really? As it turns out, America's Founders did also, and created a nation and a movement that electrified the entire world. A lifetime of modern anti-America, anti-freedom propaganda has created a common bias against the idea of genuine freedom, but listen to Thomas Paine's electrifying tone in what has been called "by far the most influential tract of the American Revolution":