Mulling how politics is like high school, New York Times’ columnist David Brooks recently argued: “Nobody has ever voted for a presidential candidate they wouldn’t have had lunch with in high school.” And along that same thought line: “Bill Clinton was unique in that he was a member of every clique at once.” In the end, Brooks said, “we never escape our high school selves” — a thoroughly depressing conclusion he punctuated with “Vote for Pedro.”
Posted by Rhonda Holman
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18 Comments
Trying to re-live the youth aye? I rather forget about High School. Yikes!
The photo accompanying this blog is from the movie, NAPOLEAN DYNAMITE. The two boys are Napolean (on the right) and Pedro, one of his high school friends. When I originally watched this movie, as the movie started, I thought it was the dumbest movie I had ever watched. But as it went on, I realized it was a brilliant parody of todays’ high school teenagers. Funny movie. I highly recommend it.
On the separate subject of old high school classmates, I believe most people do remember names of their classmates almost forever. Many times when I meet someone whose name I want to recall, I visualize them standing beside an old classmate with the same name. Try it, it works.
Interesting how David Brooks has finally stumbled onto something everybody already knows. We are, and will always be, what we were in high school. It is the biggest trauma we’ll ever undergo, except maybe combat, and that doesn’t last four years.
Git, it looks like combat in iraq will be for MORE than four years. Not the “six days, six weeks, but certainly not six months” that the preznit and rummy promised us.
Not for the individual soldier.Although I admit, that could change.
I’ll agree to a point about people never getting over high school. But I don’t think people remain defined by or in the roles they were in high school. Not entirely anyway.
The jock of the walk in high school becomes the frustrated guy who wants to beat up the umpire at his kids T ball game.
The prom queen becomes the backstage mother at her daughters 5 year old beauty pageant.
Know what would be a good movie for all kids entering high school to see about 3 days into their freshman year?
The Breakfast club. That might make a difference.
This is a bit off topic but I don’t see people rushing to claim they ate lunch with george bush in high school. There is also no “I served in the Air National Guard with bush”club that I know of.
Good post, JR.
What I noticed about the popular kids from my high school class was that they continued to believe their press clippings as they journeyed into real life.
This did not seem to help them very much.
Didn’t the Boss already cover this story in “Glory Days”?
“Bill Clinton was unique in that he was a member of every clique at once.”
This comes as no surprise, after all, being a horny male makes you sympathetic with all the cliques in high school, since they are composed of… horny males! (gasp!)
JR, good choice with the Breakfast Club. The Brat Pack movies rate among my favorites. I’m partial to Sixteen Candles, but that’s because I’m female, I’m sure. The comments made as a paper written at the end are what make the whole point. Each are apart of the others. I’m not sure that many of us see it that way at the time, but it’s true.
I’m one of the few who actually enjoyed high school. In fact, I’ve coordinated 5 class reunions. If I didn’t do it, nobody would, and those who’ve attended after opting out for the earlier ones have been glad they finally decided to join in.
I still have “feelings” from high school, also hair, unlike other guys!
When I see classmates its fun, don’t see them often or get together besides the 20 year events.
It’s not just high school, grade school too, people we know since 3rd grade some of them.
I haven’t done many things like to go Vegas with old high school classmates we should plan to do that. Go on a cruise together. Hike a mountain. Memories with those old friends shouldn’t be stuck back in that high school building.
Was my life a straight line from high school to now, no way! Are my politics, probably yes. I didn’t vote Reagan in 84.
Happy birthday, Mark!
Happy B-Day Mrage! Glad you still have your hair and your idealism:)
gosh! like, gosh! GOSH!! GOOSSHHH!!!Gosh! I hate that guy, he was so like, totally irritating to watch.
Happy Birthday, youngster!
I’ve changed since high school. And all the popular kids are still being bigshots in the small town where we went to school 40 years ago. The jock who bullied me and stole my girlfriend wound up married to her (poor guy) and walks with a stoop. The class football hero I didn’t get along with died in the WSU plane crash. The class beauties all have butts wide as Mac trucks.
I go to my class reunion every 10 years just to remind myself why I left that burg.
Our freshman class president joined a commune after high school and named her kid “Sunshine”. One of the biggest nerds moved to New York and ended up with a very successful career working on Broadway. People don’t always stay the same, many grow above and beyond anyone’s expectations and some fall by the wayside.I think it’s always interesting to see what people have done with their lives. I went to an all girl school and there were only 120 in my graduating class, so it’s always fun when we get together.
PS I LOVED Napoleon Dynamite….so funny!
Happy birthday Mrage. Cool I got a contemporary. I am also 40. I would have pegged you as younger. But almost everyone here is older than me. So it’s hard to tell.
At the last meet up, XXX said he had me pegged as older and taller!