Dear Jesse Crimm,
I could eviscerate you. I could present statistic after statistic disproving each and every point you made on your little list. I could just shame you, make you feel absolutely insignificant, and roast you to death with multisyllabic, college words like eviscerate. I could do all of these things Mr. Crimm, but I don’t want to. What difference will it make? You’re old and bigoted. You’ve lived for 70 long and eventful years. You saw Kennedy get assassinated. You saw Nixon resign. You saw Martin Luther King march on Washington. You’ve seen it all and you still hold these bigoted views. What can I possibly do? I can give you a lesson in rhetoric!
Before I educate you, let me clarify what I mean when I call you bigoted. I don’t mean racist. I don’t mean sexist. I don’t mean stupid. You seemed very erudite in your letter, and you went to Wofford, one of the most prestigious universities in the South and the place where I chose to further my education, so you most know something. When I call you bigoted I mean that your views are fixed and you don’t want to learn about anyone else’s. It’s clear that you’d rather live and die in your own world with your own beliefs rather than expand your horizons. I would recommend that you make a change to your own philosophy.
You don’t have to completely change your worldview. I just want you to at least research the other side so you can strengthen some of the arguments you made. Many Americans, whether they are young or old, liberal or conservative, black or white, are so assured about the validity of their argument that they think they don’t need to know about any dissenting opinions. This trend has led to a national political discourse characterized by screaming over one another and name calling instead of actual conversation. To be truly informed on an issue and be able to effectively argue it, one must know all facets of the issue in question and be able to argue for or against each side. Judging by the points you made in your letter, you clearly aren’t informed enough to do that with any of the issues you mentioned. But don’t fret, you’re not alone in your inability to effectively argue. In today’s world of soundbite news and politically charged Facebook comment sections, fully developed arguments aren’t required anymore.
I challenge you, Mr. Crimm, to be above the fray and not do what men of your age usually do- hold tightly to their beliefs until their dying breath and not even attempt to read things that don’t completely reinforce their long held ideals. Scope out the enemy, Mr. Crimm. Read all that millennial garbage that you probably hate. Read The Huffington Post, read Vox, read The Atlantic, watch Vice News, watch Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, you may change your views a little bit. If you can withstand all their feminist, pro-Black Lives Matter, pro-choice, PC police rhetoric and still hold to your original views…kudos. You will be better able to argue your views with the millennial monsters, like me, who are ruining your beloved university.
Peace and Love,
Khalil Gamble ‘20