Last night’s Carolina Clash debate, which pitted representatives from Democratic, Republican and Libertarian student organizations against each other, cultivated a necessary environment for political growth.
Three major political student groups at USC went head-to-head (to head) last night, with two representatives from each organization defending their positions and trying to bring down their opponent’s arguments.
Putting the specific arguments that were on display last night aside, this kind of debate is a necessary catharsis to groups which spend almost all of their time interacting only with themselves.
There is a tendency, in all political organizations, to become cloistered into their own ideas and refuse to respect or even recognize the positions of the other parties.
Having each group in the same room, answering the same questions, responding to the same audience: this is where the true heat of political and intellectual debate lies.
And, in our opinion, there should be far, far more of it. This is the second Carolina Clash and each time it has been real, public political discourse.
As citizens, the people who represent us in politics affect how we live our lives. The more people who are encouraged to speak their piece and cast their ballots, the more representative our local and national governments will become.
We believe that Carolina Clash can muster a much larger active political student base at USC, with a few small modifications to its procedure.
If Carolina Clash became an event that ran once a semester instead of once a year, the debate’s attendance would see its numbers grow substantially. (With this in mind, it wouldn’t hurt to book a larger venue next time. Some students were literally standing in the aisles to see the debate last night.)
Additionally, the number of flyers advertising the event and their distribution so soon before the debate might well have limited the number of people who saw them.
With the midterm election coming up next week and the 2016 presidential election seemingly just around the corner, people who are knowledgable and active in politics are going to be essential, both at USC and elsewhere.
We feel that Carolina Clash, with a few changes, is a perfect event to stoke political discussion and participation.