On Nov. 2, if you’re registered to vote in California,
you’ll have the chance to vote on Proposition 60. Whether or
not you think the state constitution should be amended to allow for
open primaries, I have my own proposition to pitch: Dating should
always be an open primary.
Even if you’re a Republican who would rather vote Democrat
than date one, hear out the other party before you veto a
bipartisan relationship.
Some people have rules about who they will or won’t date,
a set of criteria someone has to fulfill before they get some
digits. For example: No smoking, must love animals, must subscribe
to similar religious beliefs, or must aspire to own a boat.
But whatever the rules, if restrictions are made, they’ll
usually get broken.
Nick Louw, who serves as vice chair of Bruin Republicans, said
he decided not to date Democrats, only to violate his own rule and
date an active member of Bruin Democrats.
“It was a lot of fun because we’d always be taking
jabs at each other. … She always wanted me to watch “˜West
Wing’ and I wanted her to watch “˜The O’Reilly
Factor.'”
Louw even took his girlfriend to a shooting range for the first
time.
“She’d never seen, heard, or felt a gun before, and
she had a lot of fun,” Louw said. After the shooting range,
he asked what she thought about regulation of semi-automatic
weapons and she said they should be illegal, “even though she
loved using one a few minutes earlier,” Louw said.
Ultimately, Louw and his Democrat broke up ““ not over Bush
and Kerry, or the Iraq war, but because of religious
differences.
Baylee Decastro, co-chair of UCLA’s chapter of the
Feminist Majority, is another politically active student who never
thought she’d date the opposition.
But last spring while studying on the CAPPP program in
Washington, D.C., she met someone who worked in the Office of the
Vice President, and they proved a compatible pair.
“When you really probe into someone’s political
views, you learn that labels can be deceiving and that it’s
good values that bring people together,” Decastro said.
Dating solely along party lines limits your dating pool, and you
could end up missing out on a meaningful relationship.
Additionally, dating someone with different beliefs can help you
cement your own if you’re being challenged.
President of Bruin Democrats Kristina Doan says she has an
affinity for Republicans and that all her friends think
she’ll marry one.
And while interning in Washington, D.C., this summer, Doan dated
a member of the GOP. For Doan, it comes down to a passion for
politics and not pledging allegiance to a specific platform.
“I’d rather take someone who’s Republican than
apathetic. It’s easier when someone understands my passion
for politics, even if (he’s) on the wrong side,” Doan
said.
You may vote along party lines, but you don’t have to date
accordingly.
Look at Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ““ a Republican not just
married to a Democrat, but a Kennedy. Granted Schwarzenegger admits
his sex life suffered after endorsing Bush, but he’ll get
over it.
If we truly want a nation that is united, we shouldn’t
divide ourselves into separate dating pools. Think how powerful an
active bipartisan couple could be. Imagine if Hillary’s Bill
were an O’Reilly instead of a Clinton. This couple could
attract supporters on both sides. (Although I wouldn’t want
to pay their marriage counseling bills.)
I was born into a doubly mixed marriage. Differing religious
backgrounds didn’t prevent my parents from walking down the
aisle during the Carter administration. And when my dad registered
as a Republican to vote for Reagan in the ’80s, my parents
still didn’t split.
No matter how polarized the political climate, civility and
respect can swing the polls in favor of two-party relationships.
Let’s pass this proposition; I urge you to vote for
open-mindedness and stimulating debate.
Bonos is the 2004-2005 managing editor. E-mail her at
lbonos@media.ucla.edu if you have nightmares imagining the
offspring of a Clinton-O’Reilly union.