by Ethan J. Hollenberger
This past holiday season M&M ran a commercial with the yellow and red M&Ms seeing Santa. All three proclaim that each other really does exist. I get the same expression when I meet other conservatives for the first time. As a 19-year-old conservative in college, it is very hard to find one as out spoken as me. When I meet and talk to others they find me to be refreshing and cannot believe that someone so young would be so involved.
I always get the question when did I start getting into politics. When George W. Bush was first elected I was only in fifth grade, but I think it was 9/11 a year later that I started getting involved. Like most Americans, I found unity. From that point on, I began watching the news and paying attention. You might also attribute my interest in my mom. Growing up she always had the news on in the morning as we were getting ready.
When I was in eighth grade, I had a very liberal teacher. I was the only one who challenged him. He felt the minimum wage was too low because you cannot live with that amount of money. I argued that people shouldn’t live off the government because it was better for the society to have people work than steal my money.
Throughout high school my interest grew. I had a couple conservative teachers. Yes, they do exist, yet they are rare. They really challenged me to think about what I was believing. They challenged me to look things up and research.
While I am only 19, I have had more experiences than many. I have been to Washington D.C., at the National Teenage Republicans Conference and I myself have run for public office. In 2009, I ran for my local school district board. While I lost, I ran on a platform of a realistic look at education. I ran on a platform to make the education system more efficient.
When Barack Obama was elected, it was the darkest day in presidential history. American had elected a leftist. America elected a president who denies the greatness of America. In the year since he was inaugurated, we have seen the debt grow exponentially and are seeing the biggest governmental takeovers in history.
As a conservative, I truly believe what this country stands for. As a conservative, I believe in what the Founders wrote. As a conservative, I believe God is essential to our culture.
It is with that drive that I fight for my future. In the coming weeks, I will have organized an event at UW Oshkosh featuring Christopher Horner, a Global Warming expert. I fight for my voice on campus.
In the coming weeks, I will have launched a blog (fightingformyfuture. com) to get the conservative message out.
In the coming months, I will be organizing a Tea Party in my home town, Winneconne. It is my hopes we double the population and bring nearly 2500 to the village.
Fellow conservatives, it is our time. Stand with me. Stand with the youth. Stand with me as I fight for my future!