August 30, 2004
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Be the first to pick up a copy of College Daze
Read the first few pages of College Daze
Topic: There’s an ongoing conversation from Sun. aug 29th about voting, check it out
Topic: Tasting the fresh air
Today is the first time in months I haven’t thought about what to write in my book. OK, that’s a lie, I’ve already thought of a few changes and additions I’d like to make. But for now, I’m waiting till Wednesday, when I’ll have a copy in my hand. After a quick preview, if it passes my standards, College Daze will 100% be completed.
So…today, I’ve been daydreaming a lot, thinking back to college with a lot of nostalgia, and ahead to next week when I step foot on my old campus. I’ve taken a first step by contacting the campus book store, which will be able to hold up to 10 copies of my book, although they will also be holding any profits I make. However, I will take what I can get.
I’m devising a strategy for marketing my book. I’ve actually decided to market the opportunity to preview my book, allowing people to read a few pages, and decide for themselves whether or not they want to buy it. I hope to visit the quad, certain study areas, and dining halls, and place some copies around with a note encouraging people to have a peak. I’ll be in the area, to make sure my books don’t walk away, and to be visible to people as, “the author.” I also plan on putting signs up around campus w/ a picture of the cover, to expose people to it and make them hopefully curious when they see the books lying around. I’m also hoping to get an article published in their student newspaper.
I’m hoping to let the book market itself. I think that fits my personality, and it serves as an icebreaker versus randoly attacking students, “buy my book, buy my book.” Get the idea out there first, then let the book follow.
I’ve now been in touch with both the President of Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound, and New York City Outward Bound. That’s my top candidate for work this winter, and those are my top leads for creating a revolution in the way college and universities operate in America. In the weeks upcoming I hope to visit some Outward Bound schools to provide you with a better idea of how this organization is transforming how we educate.
Comments (7)
Do the first chapter on-line with an order link… that’s your best tool, along with this blog and commenting on education sites whenever you can to build name recognition.
still, you need to vote.
but re: your thoughts on voting from the last post. There’s a reason nothing is done for 18-25 year olds in this country. Why public college tuition has grown 4 to 5 times faster than inflation, for example, and free institutions (University of California and CUNY) have stopped being free in the years since 18-year-olds got the vote. 18-25-year-olds don’t vote. So nobody in Washington or any state capital gives a sh** about what you think or what you need. It’s why they will re-institute the draft without even thinking about it. Why they’ve cut student loan programs over the past four years. Why it’s legally ok to discriminate against people under 25 in insurance and car rentals but not ok to do the same for people over 70. It’s why the drinking age in 21. No, they don’t check your record, but if you go to a politicians office, they’ll laugh when you leave because they know you have nothing to offer them. You can’t contribute cash and you can’t deliver votes. Those are the only two elements of power in America. If my mother goes, they’ll listen carefully to every word she says. She’s over 70, lives in Florida, and every single person she knows will vote in every single election.
As you’re paying off your student loans consider that in Germany (70% of 18-25-year-olds vote) college is free. In Britain (64%) Labor is getting blasted in the elections because they’ve created a situation where some university students might pay something. And now they’re already cutting back even the minimal proposed costs.
And when you get drafted, well, you’ll wish…
I think you make an interesting point, but i question the relation between the high voting rates of college age students and the fact that Germany and Britain have very low tuitions. Low tuition is definately a trend throughout Europe, I know it’s free in France, and in fact, I know America is virtually alone in it’s high tuition, so i question whether this has to do solely with us voting, or just who we have in office. England also has socialized medicine. I think it has more to do w/ Europe’s approach to government, than necessarily who’s voting. Kerry has talked about making tax breaks available on college tuition, and i think that has more to do w/ his platform than young people voting, but i’m not sure exactly what the cause is.
Secondly, your mother most likely has more time to speak to her politician than a college student. while i am very limited by my own personal experience, it seems that your avg. college student isn’t knocking on their politicians door, period. they’re in class discussing how they’re getting screwed, but there’s not much this age group can do while they’re in school (i’m probably very wrong here, and hopefully very wrong) i agree with you, if we collectively as an age group got together and decided to throw our votes behind the politician who agreed to help w/ tuition, we’d see changes. but, as i argue in my book, if 18-22 year olds were encouraged to take a larger role in society, they could achieve the things you suggest, however, this age group is still viewed as “students,” and passing course X somehow becomes more important than trying to make a difference in society by paying a visit to their politician.
great point though about money and votes being the 2 things that influence politics. i think maybe image is important too, if you have no money, and a politician feels he can live w/out your votes, you can do whatever is possible to expose the the politician.
actually most european countries have socialised education and medicine (germany and the scandinavian countries being the best social welfare states in the world – i think sweden is regularly ranked number 1). england is creeping up there with their tuition top-up fees, and everyone is protesting.
dan – i think it’s not just about our politicans but our politik. this country is so anti-taxes. in order to have a decent functioning social welfare state, you have to jack up the taxes so high (denmark is 20%, I believe), that americans (who are cheap, lazy, and solely focused on getting more obvious bang for our bucks – i.e. – the supersized mcd’s meals) can’t seem to muster enough of themselves to pay a little bit more for free healthcare and higher education.
similarly, this country has a history of vehement anti-socialism, that even a moderate social welfare system (like that of germany or france) would never make it here because it would immediately be written off as communism (even though it isn’t even close to leninist-bolshevism).
alas – our country is a huge conundrum – we want more but we aren’t willing to pay to get it. we want more rights and more voices, but we aren’t willing to challenge a 2 party system. and we want everything fixed now and aren’t willing to realise that some changes may suck at first, but in the end, the benefits will be sweet as hell!
ps – good luck with your book! let me know when you have the final final final copy!
nice link additions. I’m glad I could push you on that.
Yes, I agree, senior citizens have the most time, and fewest competing interests, and so voting and political activism are easier. And yes, there’s more to the social welfare policies in Europe than 18-25-year-olds voting. But, and this is the thing. No group that doesn’t get to cast votes is ever going to be listened to: period. African-Americans are important to the Democratic Party because their turnout decides elections. Seniors are important to both parties because they always vote. Conservative Christians matter to the Republicans because their turnout can make the difference. If John Kerry thought he could add a certain sure percentage of votes through pitching the college tuition thing, he’d be all over it, but notice: he’s barely pitching it to college age people at all, he’s talking to suburban parents who are helping to pay for college for their kids. The pitch goes there because those parents vote.
Labor is still important because unions turn out the vote. They’re very important because they can “deliver” the vote (one candidate or another). As long as college students sit back and complain, and don’t assemble themselves into voting blocks, they’ll be ignored.
The fact remains that since the 18-year-olds got the vote, they’ve actually lost ground on everything from alcohol to education funding. Politicians have learned that in lean times the one group they can always screw without consequences are all those under 25-years-old.
Well…i don’t know much about the role of gov’t in higher education, whether it be tuition, or what other influence they have (i’m sure dara knows) but as i go out to visit schools and learn more about what college really is for, hopefully i’ll uncover this story you’re telling me, why nobody is uniting this age group. a recent though shockingly conservative book called “brainwashed” is all about how liberal our colleges are. that to me is a good sign that students should be pressing liberal candidates to step it up for them, not just hoping mommy and daddy will pick the right candidate, since it’s mommy and daddy who are usually footing the bills.
The state role in higher education is massive, and policy makes huge differences, not just money. Michigan, for example, doesn’t just have the world’s most expensive public educations because the schools are badly funded, but also because they waste unbelievable amounts of money having every state school be an independent entity (often competing with each other, which, in education, raises prices). The change (in the mid-1970s) of NYC’s CUNY from free to tuition-based was a tidal shift for the city’s whole social fabric, and was forced by the Republican White House of the time. The Feds control the student grant and student loan programs and thus totally control who can afford to go to school and who can’t, plus Federal Research Grants are the dominant funding source for most private universities (thus, every time a Republican member of congress says “cut these stupid studies” you need to flinch).
Conservatives, of course, think that facts and ideas are threateningly “liberal.” Of course they are. True conservatives, opposing change, naturally oppose inquiry as well.