The Liberal In The Basement: The Origins

By Alyssa Tompkins

Welcome to my blog, where I will be discussing politics in a very opinionated manner. I'll be updating you on political goings on weekly through a liberal lens.

Now for my backstory! Get some snacks and settle into a comfy chair, cause you're gonna need it. For starters, my family is very conservative in quite a few ways. I, on the other hand, am very liberal and am not afraid to voice that. Due to my status as the only non-conservative in the household, my mother began to refer to me sometimes as The Household Liberal. But, because I am a teenager, I spend the bulk of my time huddled away in my bedroom. Soon after this habit began, my nickname changed; now I am known as The Liberal in the Basement.

I do not conform to my family in an abundance of ways, which is to be expected, I guess. I am aiming for a degree in education, which is not one my parents are very fond of. They know teaching is crucial for the future, but they don't think I should be the one to be that type of back bone. They tell me to choose an occupation that would make more money than the one I am currently pursuing. My thoughts on the matter are very simple, though: no education equals no future.

I have a deep passion for the humanities, which is shown in my article in our first quarterly of The Pawprint, which was entitled "S.T.E.M. is Not Always the Answer." I play the viola and violin, and I have since fifth grade. I paint, draw, and play around with any other medium I can get my hands on. I have even recently taken up ballet and have found it to be amazing. As you can imagine, my parents are not too keen on these interests either. They suggest past times that involve academics rather than those they consider to be along the lines of hobbies. But, believing what I believe leads me to carry on with my ideas of fun and engaging activities even though they are not my parents' first choice.

Making my way back to politics, now, my goal of this blog is to be able to express my political opinions in a safe and harmless manner. Prior to this blog I would waltz into newspaper everyday and always have something to say about the political climate of this country (though I'm sure that will not stop even with this blog). Please understand that this WILL be a very biased blog and I will not attempt to make it otherwise. With that in mind, I will not be one of those bloggers who spreads rumors or attacks others. I will be stating my opinion strongly, but not hatefully.

You can be sure that there will be quite a bit on the Midterm elections coming up, so hop aboard the #TheLiberalintheBasement train to stay filled in on my view of politics!