Stereotypes. They exist because most of us can’t help but generalize our observations. Yet, because of them we’re often quick to judge a person or an issue without looking deeper. Many people think environmentalists are a bunch of smelly, tree-hugging hypocrites that use their cell phones one moment and decry any type of industrial development the next.
I’m sure many of us “hippies” often forget that judgment is a two-way street (insert truck-driving Albertan joke here). The point is this: the world is more complicated than a headline. Sure, our communities need economic and industrial development. Without it, how could our governments fund the social services on which we depend?
Still, that doesn’t mean our federal government should continually pay lip service to the issue of global warming while cutting back on scientific research, giving billion-dollar handouts to the oil and gas industry and marketing it as “ethical” oil.
The current federal government is continually exploiting stereotypes to appeal to their base and maintain the status quo. They attack their opponents and repeat their messages ad nauseam until the electorate either believes it or gets turned off. This is classic politics of division, meant to keep young people apathetic and cynical towards the political process. The irony is that the stereotype of young people is perpetuated in the process.
How long will it take our generation to wake up and realize that together we can actually make a difference by becoming involved in the political process and demanding more from our elected officials?