Many people have their opinions of colleges and universities, but one of the most important factors in choosing where to attend school is how liberal or conservative the community is. Does the surrounding area value education, or do they mostly focus on money?
Does the campus seem like it’s only for students who are politically active, or does it feel more neutral and open-minded? These characteristics can be learned from outside sources such as social media, news reports, and talking to other students and teachers.
However, not every student feels comfortable sharing his or her political views with the rest of the world, so looking within the walls of the classroom and into the public records of professors is another way to get an idea of whether this is you team or theirs.
Yale is considered to be a very politically moderate university, which may make some students uncomfortable. However, there are ways to learn about politics at Yale beyond just reading your Daily Mail online subscription and listening to Rush Limbaugh. Here are ten things you probably didn’t know were part of the Yale Political Culture.
1) The Skull and Bones Society is known for being extremely secretive
The Yalies that know what the organization is called usually refer to it simply as “the society,” because it was originally founded as The Order Of The Tomb Or The Brotherhood In Honor And Memorial Of All The Dead Slaves.
Yale University and the liberal media
In an era when there is seemingly never enough money for education, higher-education institutions are constantly being criticized for their expensive tuition fees and excessive spending habits. Students are continually protesting about how much they have to pay to attend college and how wasteful some of their universities can be.
In fact, many students feel that colleges and universities spend too much time marketing themselves as socially responsible organizations and then spending large amounts of money on advertising campaigns aimed at promoting diversity and inclusion. Some even refer to these advertisements and slogans as “vanity” programs because they feel that it is not worth the cost.
Too often, though, these criticisms seem to go unnoticed or ignored by most people. This is due in part to the way different educational institutions market themselves. Universities typically emphasize social responsibility and compassion towards others through projects such as educating homeless youth or providing free health care to those who cannot afford it.
Furthermore, several schools use flashy advertisements and logos with highly artistic designs to promote their brand. These brands sometimes include references to rich history or classic literature which may appeal to more intellectual individuals. All of this contributes to the university coming across as very intelligent and well educated.
Yale and Trump
In an interview with The Washington Post, Yale College Dean Jonathan Holloway said that students should be able to protest outside of the school by using “nonviolent direct action” strategies like sit-ins or wearing masks in order to protect themselves from pepper spray.
He also mentioned how student groups at Yale have organized events which include inviting politicians on campus as speakers or hosting discussions about politics.
These are all very liberal things to say, but they go further than what most people would consider normal when it comes to protesting. When protesters use violent tactics like throwing rocks or setting buildings ablaze, that is considered terrorism.
It is important to remember that universities exist to foster an environment where different ideas can be discussed without there being any violence. This does not seem like something that Holloway fully understands since he seems to suggest that engaging in peaceful protests could get someone hurt or killed.
Yale and socialism
This past week, The Daily News published an article about how liberal Yale is. According to the author of this piece, Yale does not teach students that capitalism is the best system. In fact, according to her sources, several professors have said things like “we no longer believe in capitalism” and “the capitalist system has failed us.”
This claim got our attention because it rang true. We at LibertyBallot do not believe in capitalism either – we want a democratic economy where every person can achieve their dreams. That’s why we are advocating for a universal income guarantee.
But what exactly is socialism?
Socialism refers to various economic systems characterized by government control over industry and distribution of resources (food, goods, services). These include state-run economies such as those in China and Cuba today, along with newer variants such as Venezuela’s Bolivarian Socialism.
There are two major schools of thought within socialist philosophy: Marxist and non-Marxist. Both emphasize equality, but they go about achieving it through different means.
The Marxist school holds up Karl Marx as one of its most prominent members. His main idea was that history is driven by class struggle — people with more money than others create conditions that allow them to keep their wealth while depriving others of opportunities to succeed.
He proposed a second group who would be able to enjoy prosperity once all individuals are equalized economically.
Yale and freedom
In an era of ever-increasing political polarizations, it is important to understand where institutions like Yale fit in.
Yale was founded as a liberal institution. This has not always been the case, however. When Yale first opened its doors in 1701, it had more than 100 students and only two departments — theology and philosophy.
It wasn’t until 1871 that psychology was established as a department at Yale. But even then, it took another 47 years for the department to acquire its own building.
In those days, professors trained their students through lecture and discussion rather than using textbooks or formal lessons. And while they may have discussed moral issues such as truth, honesty and justice, there were no courses dedicated to studying morality itself.
It was not until 1948 that William James gave his famous lectures, “The Function of Philosophy Today,” which focused on the importance of ethical reasoning. These arguments remain relevant today since we are constantly being confronted with new situations requiring us to apply our understanding of ethics.
Since then, many other academic disciplines have found ways to include concepts related to ethics within their fields of study, making this topic more prominent at Yale.
However, despite these changes, one thing has remained consistent at Yale: the value placed on free expression. Even during times when such expression was heavily restricted by societal norms, Yalies continued to emphasize the fundamental worth of open debate.
Yale and the liberal media
In addition to having large student bodies that are predominantly socialist, pro-immigration, and multicultural, Yale has also been known for its active participation in leftist politics both as an institution and through its students.
Since at least the 1960s, many of Yale’s most well-known professors have actively supported left-wing political causes. Some even went so far as to call themselves “socialists.”
In fact, several famous intellectuals received their highest academic honors from left-leaning institutions like Harvard and Princeton while working at Yale. These include two Nobel Prize winners (economist Herbert Simon and chemist Arthur Kornberg) and six Rhodes Scholars (three of whom were awarded the honor for social work).
Leftism is clearly attractive to some high profile academics at Yale. But what does it mean when we talk about socialism?
Is supporting universal health care or giving all citizens access to free college education enough to classify someone as socialist?
Many would argue not, but there is one area where people often use the term and that is economics. This is typically referred to as Marxist economics. According to this theory, capitalism cannot exist without inequality; only under a system where the workers control the means of production can true equality be achieved.
Thus, according to Marxism, any form of private property is inherently unjust. All wealth should belong to everyone equally, or society will crumble.
See what I mean?
In this era of social media, everyone has an opinion. And most people are very vocal about those opinions. This is great for giving yourself a sense of self-confidence by hearing only positive comments about your work or life.
But as powerful and motivating as it can be, such constant reinforcement also creates a skewed perception of you and how well you’re doing.
It may make you feel better to know that most people like you, but it doesn’t tell you whether you’re successful or not. It doesn’t factor in if you’ve had a bad day, or if something didn’t go your way.
Furthermore, these “like me” feelings could be because others view you as intelligent, attractive or hard working. They might even admire you, but still think you’re overcompensating when it comes to your personal appearance or career status.
Trump is the worst thing that ever happened to Yale
Many people have discussed how liberal Harvard, Stanford, and other top universities are. But what about Yale? Some say that it’s even more so now with all of its political activism. Others argue that Yale has always been very politically active, but never as much as it is today.
Either way, there’s no denying that Yale is quite politically involved. It is actively working to promote social justice causes and politics that are perceived as leftist or progressive.
These include promoting left-wing ideologies like socialism and communism, supporting socialist governments in foreign countries, and giving out prestigious awards for leftist achievements.
Yale also uses student groups to spread these beliefs to others. For example, one group organized a lecture series on Marxist theory. Another sponsored a talk by an author who wrote a book about why capitalism is wrong and how we can replace it with socialism.
Not only does this influence students in their ideological understanding, it influences them socially. Since most of the school is oriented towards studying hard sciences and engineering, many professors require students to be friendly to both sides of the political spectrum. This includes having classes with speakers from both liberals and conservatives.
Trump is ruining America
In his first year as president, Donald Trump has done an incredible amount of damage to this country. He calls himself the “least racist person in politics” which is quite frankly laughable coming from someone who uses racial slurs regularly.
He boasts about being a nationalist while dismantling our international alliances and institutions at a breakneck pace. Nations are not friendly entities that can be counted on for help when times get tough; they are competition sites where countries strive to outdo each other in wealth and power.
Trump consistently treats nations like dirt by talking down their economies or suggesting we don’t owe them anything beyond what we’re already paying in military spending. This attitude will never win him friends and it’s hurting us in ways he may not know about until long after the election.
Liberal elites have a tendency to look down on ordinary people, assuming they are too dumb to understand complicated issues and ideologies. This condescension is sometimes internalized, with educated liberals feeling that non-intellectuals lack worth and importance because they do not agree with their political perspectives.
It creates a sense of separation between the two groups, making it harder to find common ground and compromise. Without these compromises, decisions become more difficult and things go downhill from there.
