Building a Progressive future with our youth

Michael Connery is dropping some solid work over at TPM Cafe's Table for One. His work at Future Majority seems credible and I think imprtant. His book Youth to Power: How Today's Young Voters Are Building Tomorrow's Progressive Majority also gives me hope. His Millennials Rising examined the new crop of young voters and surely made me think the future might be bright. I couldn't help but think some of my first 8th graders at Long Cane Middle School that witnessed 9-11 are now coming of age. Today's Conservative Youth Factory motivates me to drop this post. He writes:

... It is from these institutions that many of the stars of today’s Conservative stars – Gover (sic) Norquist, Ralph Reed, Karl Rove – received their start. Contrary to conservative political mythology, these individuals did not emerge as fully formed political geniuses on the national scene. They were the beneficiaries of a highly subsidized and intensive youth training apparatus that values new blood as the backbone of the movement, and pumps out thousands of activists on a yearly basis. ... Conservatives talk a good game about “lifting oneself up by their bootstraps,” but that’s a trial rarely forced on conservative youth, who as I’ve explained are afforded every subsidized opportunity imaginable. ...

Yup! Ain't that rich? On the dole when mere pups.

Thinking of how the movement conservatives have developed so much of their "talent" frustrates me. Reckon if this is why their spawn seems unable to rationally entertain anything that contradicts their upbringing? Dance with the ones what brung ya? Or are they just bent? I've written on Wingnut 101 via Young America's Foundation previously so this is hardly a new itch.

I also grieve over those we failed to support and build for our team. Not that Progressives could come up with our own Karl or Grover or ... as few if any Progressives could be that calculating. Still, I'm sure some of our most talented young prospects are now barely scraping by or more likely out of action . John Gunn