Political discourse, both on the University of Wisconsin campus and in the city of Madison is in a sad state. More worrisome, however, is the lack of discourse on the UW campus. The university has long prided itself on being a beacon of equality and openness, and it has always touted itself as a proponent of an open-minded atmosphere that accepts all peoples and their ideas, yet many voices still go unheard.

One of the quietest, and as it seems, least respected and accepted voices on campus is that of the conservative. While there is no doubt that conservatives make up a very small portion of the overall population in Madison and on campus, the presentation of their views is absolutely essential to creating a real atmosphere of political discourse.

The school itself has traditionally brought controversial speakers from both sides of the political aisle to speak in Madison. Speakers such as Dinesh D'Souza and David Horowitz have been invited to speak as well as many left-leaning speakers. But nonetheless, the conservative voice is consistently squashed on the UW campus and in the city that surrounds it.

This was evidenced when the controversial right-wing speaker David Horowitz spoke on campus just a few weeks ago. Madison, this supposedly all-tolerant city, embarrassed itself by basically mocking everything the man had to say. He was rudely interrupted repeatedly and many who did not share his views turned out to protest even his presence on campus. Some of these protestors were undoubtedly some of the same people who just weeks before were arguing that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadenijad be allowed to speak at the Columbia University campus on grounds of the First Amendment.

The rude reception of Mr. Horowitz is just an example of how many conservatives are treated when they express their views on this campus, and this is coming from people who are supposed proponents of free speech.

Thus, an atmosphere has been created where there is almost no healthy discourse on campus. This is partially the fault of conservatives who are unwilling to step up to the plate and state their opinions, but it is also largely due to the fear created by the overwhelming liberal majority that will not take time to consider a conservative idea. Conservative ideas are merely mocked and discounted when they are presented, as was evidenced in Horowitz's lecture.

This undoubtedly happens in areas where an overwhelming conservative majority dominates as well, but there is no place for this on a college campus, especially not one that prides itself on its forward thinking.

There is no good that can come from this constant one-sided barrage of political rhetoric. It is detrimental to the political atmosphere, and it renders any rational discussion of issues useless when one side is never given a fighting chance.

This is also dangerous to college students in particular because college is a time when students are finding their political identities. This is when students finally begin to develop their own views and ideologies; when these fragile and vulnerable young minds are only exposed to one side of the story, they get a very warped view of society.

A lack of opposition leads results in extremism on both sides of the political spectrum. Being constantly bombarded with liberal ideology and rhetoric only pushes liberals more toward the left and conservatives more toward the right. Those who never hear any opposing viewpoint at this crucial time of political development will only become more polarized.

Conservative students become more and more disgusted and thus develop a more antagonistic view of the left, which often breeds extremism. On the left, students begin to believe their view is the only view and thus are never willing to listen to a viewpoint that differs from their own. This also leaves others feeling alienated, even causing them to begin to reject this whole notion of politics and thus become apathetic — the worst scenario. It is for these reasons that the conservative viewpoint must be heard and respected on campus.

All political viewpoints must be heard, whether we agree with them or not, in order to ensure a rational political discourse. Therefore, the solution on the UW campus is for conservatives to speak up and for liberals to give them a chance. And when the university brings in speakers from either side, give their views a chance and at least listen to what they have to say. Without the presentation of opposing viewpoints, no true political discourse will occur, and when there is no discourse, we are all in danger of becoming extremists.

Joe Trovato ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in journalism.