[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6388]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNITION OF SPEECH BY STUDENT GOVERNOR REBECCA DESILETS UXBRIDGE 
                              HIGH SCHOOL

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. RICHARD E. NEAL

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 13, 1999

  Mr. NEAL of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this 
opportunity to recognize the superb speech delivered by Rebecca 
Desilets, a Senior at Uxbridge High School. Ms. Desilets was elected 
Student Governor for the 1999 Massachusetts Student Government Day. For 
the past 52 years, the high schools of Massachusetts have 
democratically elected student delegates to assume the roles of 
constitutional officers, court justices, and members of the General 
Court on Student Government Day. This has been a most worthwhile 
experiment in state government. Mr. Speaker, the speech delivered by 
Ms. Desilets is both eloquent and timely, and it is with great pride 
that I submit it for the Record.

       Ms. Rebecca Desilets, Student Governor, Uxbridge High 
     School. It's quite remarkable to see so many of us here in 
     this historical chamber. I use the word remarkable because we 
     are here as a result of an interest in government. We won our 
     elections in our respective high schools. We took the risk 
     and threw our hats into the ring. This is remarkable. At a 
     time when the political talking heads have focused their 
     attention on scandal and investigation, when TV news coverage 
     devotes more time to a stain on a dress than to the 
     President's many attempts to discuss Kosovo, it becomes easy 
     to turn off, to become cynical about government and politics.
       A cynicism has infiltrated our view of the political 
     process. The very word ``politics'' conveys a negative 
     connotation. Who hasn't heard the seemingly endless jokes of 
     the late night show hosts? Is nothing sacred or off limits? 
     No wonder there is such distrust of the American political 
     system. No wonder there is apathy among the citizens of this 
     nation.
       In preparation for Student Government Day, I conducted a 
     survey of my peers. This was a random sampling of the Juniors 
     and Seniors at my high school. It is pretty safe to say that 
     although my survey may not be 100% scientific, it is accurate 
     enough to be a reflection of what you would find if repeated 
     at your high school. I was trying to get a handle on how 
     cynical our age group has become. The results were depressing 
     to say the least. Let me give some of the findings. 75% of 
     the respondents blamed their distrust of government on 
     political parties, on lack of bipartisanship. 60% stated that 
     the political scandals of late had added to their negativity. 
     In the comment area that I provided there were some 
     interesting opinions and observations made. The word 
     ``corruption'' appeared over and over again as an explanation 
     for the pessimism toward government. Perhaps even more 
     significantly, many students attributed their distrust to the 
     media. Specifically, the press was blamed for focusing on the 
     worst case scenarios of political blunder and bad behavior. 
     One responder said that politicians were more concerned with 
     the ``power prize'' than with the common good, the good of 
     the American people. Politicians are viewed by many as 
     motiviated by self-interest rather than the good of the 
     people they represent.
       What is the cause of this cynicism? Of course, some of it 
     comes from politicians and the political party system. Our 
     forefathers were right to have a fear of party politics, of 
     faction. It is also a result of an unrestrained press and the 
     race for great ratings.
       It is up to us to reduce the effects of cynicism. However, 
     we can't nor should we eliminate it. A healthy skepticism is 
     a good thing, no doubt. But how can we make sure that voters 
     don't get so turned off that they stay away from the polls, 
     that they simply do not participate in this democracy?
       As you probably know, last November's election had one of 
     the lowest turnouts ever. Sure we can rationalize and blame 
     it on the candidates. You know those people who say ``I 
     didn't vote because I didn't like either candidate''; or the 
     oldest excuse ``I didn't vote because my vote doesn't really 
     make a difference.''
       Adlai Stevenson, a Governor of Illinois and a presidential 
     candidate in the 1950s, said: ``As citizens of this American 
     democracy, you are the rulers and the ruled, the lawgivers 
     and the law-abiding, the beginning and the end.'' Stevenson 
     was right. We do have an active role to play as citizens of 
     our towns or cities, state, and country. We have rights but 
     also responsibilities.
       I know that this room is filled with people who are 
     interested. We care about capital punishment, health care, 
     and education. We may be somewhat cynical but this doesn't 
     stop us from knowing what is at stake in Kosovo.
       We are the voters who will decide the issues of the 21st 
     Century. Some of us will be the policy makers of the new 
     millenium. Let us send the message, as we are in a small way 
     just by being here, that cynicism will not keep us from our 
     responsibilities as citizens. In fact, let us be the ones 
     that replace cynicism with healthy skepticism. Jay Leno may 
     make us laugh, he will not turn us off. The Drudge Report can 
     contain sensational gossip, but it won't keep us away from 
     the polls. There may be scandal and corruption but some of us 
     will still consider politics as honorable and public service 
     a priviledge.

     

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