8:27 Procrastination: 13-Year-Old More Articulate Than You

By Madison Shimoda | March 24, 2009 at 8:28 pm | Life | 12 comments | |

 

Watch the 13-year-old, Jonathan Krohn, already the published author of Define Conservatism, well, define conservatism, and really, try not to be jealous.

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Madison Shimoda

Born in Johor Baru, Malaysia, and raised in Tokyo, Japan, Madison Shimoda is an award-winning writer, performer, and shopper. She now temporarily lives in the United States and working on a Bachelor's degree in Literature and Philosophy & Public Affairs at Claremont McKenna College. During her spare time, Madison likes reading poetry, shopping, and listening to jazz. She is currently working on the next great American novel.

 
 
 
 
  • Luke Johnson

    Jealous? This kid is pretentious as hell. But I guess according to Republican standards nowadays he is pretty articulate

  • Luke Johnson

    Jealous? This kid is pretentious as hell. But I guess according to Republican standards nowadays he is pretty articulate

  • Played Mario Kart At Age 13

    I am no conservative, but seriously props to the kid. Impressive showing: being articulate, having a far better resume at age 13 than I do at 20, choosing resume building over spin-the-bottle, reminding us that feelings and empathy have no place in government, and getting a room full of very powerful rich white men to their feet. I certainly couldn’t have done it.

    He is going to destroy the PSATs–and maybe a sip or two of manischewitz at a bar mitzvah…

  • Played Mario Kart At Age 13

    I am no conservative, but seriously props to the kid. Impressive showing: being articulate, having a far better resume at age 13 than I do at 20, choosing resume building over spin-the-bottle, reminding us that feelings and empathy have no place in government, and getting a room full of very powerful rich white men to their feet. I certainly couldn’t have done it.

    He is going to destroy the PSATs–and maybe a sip or two of manischewitz at a bar mitzvah…

  • http://sahilkapur.blogspot.com/ Sahil Kapur

    This kid is impressive for his age, no doubt. But the moral clarity he tries to put forth as a defining feature of conservatism compels me to raise the important distinction between principle and dogma — the latter of which has significantly penetrated (and in my opinion, inflamed) the modern conservative movement. I mentioned Krohn and discussed this issue in a recent op-ed, if anyone’s interested:

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sahil-kapur/key-difference-between-mo_b_175535.html

  • http://sahilkapur.blogspot.com/ Sahil Kapur

    This kid is impressive for his age, no doubt. But the moral clarity he tries to put forth as a defining feature of conservatism compels me to raise the important distinction between principle and dogma — the latter of which has significantly penetrated (and in my opinion, inflamed) the modern conservative movement. I mentioned Krohn and discussed this issue in a recent op-ed, if anyone’s interested:

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sahil-kapur/key-difference-between-mo_b_175535.html

  • Really?

    If you can be articulate while totally lacking substance and pausing to wait for applause that isn’t coming–then yes, he was articulate.

  • Really?

    If you can be articulate while totally lacking substance and pausing to wait for applause that isn’t coming–then yes, he was articulate.

  • http://claremontconservative.com Charles Johnson

    Yeah, not a fan of this kid, but when I was thirteen I could barely tie my shoes, let alone write a book — though I am planning on writing a book now.

    But if you want eloquence, try Mitt Romney. Try Mike Huckabee (who I loath, by the way). I could go on, but I won’t.

    Obama has become the teleprompter president.

    Oh and Sahil, he writes on the oh-so-august Huffington Post,

    “It’s witty and hyperbolic but there’s a grain of truth to this, namely that at the core of the conservative ideology lies a thirst for heroes and villains, a visceral resistance to change, rigid adherence to tradition, fear of the unknown, a tribal tendency to chastise those who are different, and the encapsulation of complex realities into simplistic principles.”

    If you mean, we call a spade, a space, then I’m happy to say that I’m a conservative. We understand that there is evil in this world and we fight against it. But on the “visceral resistance to change, rigid adherence to tradition, fear of the unknown…” I must protest. It is PROGRESSIVES who exhibit all of these tendencies.

    Who tries to turn the success of wealthy people on Wall Street into morality plays? Progressives.
    Who backs the failed social experiment in our public schools? Progressives.
    Who was it that made it so that stimulus dollars would only go to American workers and not qualified H1-B workers? Progressives.

    I could go on, but you get the point.

  • http://claremontconservative.com Charles Johnson

    Yeah, not a fan of this kid, but when I was thirteen I could barely tie my shoes, let alone write a book — though I am planning on writing a book now.

    But if you want eloquence, try Mitt Romney. Try Mike Huckabee (who I loath, by the way). I could go on, but I won’t.

    Obama has become the teleprompter president.

    Oh and Sahil, he writes on the oh-so-august Huffington Post,

    “It’s witty and hyperbolic but there’s a grain of truth to this, namely that at the core of the conservative ideology lies a thirst for heroes and villains, a visceral resistance to change, rigid adherence to tradition, fear of the unknown, a tribal tendency to chastise those who are different, and the encapsulation of complex realities into simplistic principles.”

    If you mean, we call a spade, a space, then I’m happy to say that I’m a conservative. We understand that there is evil in this world and we fight against it. But on the “visceral resistance to change, rigid adherence to tradition, fear of the unknown…” I must protest. It is PROGRESSIVES who exhibit all of these tendencies.

    Who tries to turn the success of wealthy people on Wall Street into morality plays? Progressives.
    Who backs the failed social experiment in our public schools? Progressives.
    Who was it that made it so that stimulus dollars would only go to American workers and not qualified H1-B workers? Progressives.

    I could go on, but you get the point.

  • Madison

    Dear Friends,

    What I meant to say is that he is more articulate than I am. Perhaps, all of you are more articulate that he is but I find him quite impressive– regardless of his politics. Please don’t hate.

    Best wishes,
    Madison

  • Madison

    Dear Friends,

    What I meant to say is that he is more articulate than I am. Perhaps, all of you are more articulate that he is but I find him quite impressive– regardless of his politics. Please don’t hate.

    Best wishes,
    Madison