Student Meet-and-Greet with Tom Nichols

Reflections by Yujin Choi

(Above) From left to right: Dr. Tom Nichols, Arlyn McAdorey, Ngila Stone and Elliot Mohammed.

Students from the Margaret MacMillan Trinity One, Ethics Society & Law, and International Relations programs had a special opportunity to converse with Tom Nichols, staff writer for The Atlantic and Professor Emeritus of the Naval War College, on October 2, 2024.

Nichols, a Senior Fellow of the Bill Graham Centre for Contemporary International History, visited the College to deliver the 2024 Margaret MacMillan Lecture in International Relations, “Polarization, Populism and the Global Challenge to Democracy” (see recording below). Prior to the evening’s talk, Nichols sat down with students and faculty for an informal conversation moderated by Ngila Stone, Arlyn McAdorey and Elliot Mohammed, International Relation student ambassadors for the Margaret MacMillan Lecture.

The conversation began with Nichols identifying key challenges to democracy, which he explored in his most recent book, Our Own Worst Enemy: The Assault From Within on Modern Democracy. With a sense of urgency, he described tribalism, lack of informed participation, and difficulty establishing trust among citizens as threats to maintaining democracy.

As a self-identified, centre-right conservative, Nichols shared his candid thoughts on the 2024 U.S. Federal Elections and the media’s portrayal of the presidential candidates. “Policy doesn’t matter in this election,” he lamented. “No one is making Donald Trump talk about details. The media has normalized Trump. It is a double standard. If [Harris] wins the election, she needs to deliver her plan for the first 100 days.” Nichols criticized the media’s unfair and biased reporting, identifying it as a contributor to the deepening polarization in American politics today.

Further, Nichols highlighted the growing tendency of the American electorate to shift their political preferences based on the running candidate rather than issues, which is a result of the dramatization of politics. Politicians like Trump are now seen as entertainers, drawing people in with their theatrics rather than policies, he said. “I’m not sure we can sustain a democracy on this. People change their political practices based on what people say. You can’t govern this way… There are people in the U.S. who don’t understand that the ACA [Affordable Care Act] and Obamacare are the same thing,” he explained.

As a solution, Nichols called on students to show humility and work from the ground up. He said implementing local projects will help establish trust among political participants by creating nonpartisan connections at the community level: “Nothing heals like building roads… You can’t solve Gaza, but you can run for school committee; you can solve literacy in your neighbourhood.”

Turning to his personal journey – how he became a staff writer at The Atlantic – and what advice he would give to students considering a career in writing, Nichols encouraged the audience to develop an area of expertise in ordinary pursuits like technology or housing. “You aren’t going to save the world, and you can’t plan it all out. You just keep showing up. Just say yes… You have to leave some room in your life for serendipity,” he added, noting he didn’t attend the Naval War College but ended up there.

His bracing dose of reality resonated in a room full of bright, ambitious undergraduate students.

Nichols ended the Meet & Greet with an appreciation of our shared humanity: “As human beings, we are hardwired to hate ambiguity. We want to belong. We are social animals. We want to be respected and valued… The speed of modern life is defeating us. We need to stop and reflect: ‘Do I really think this? Is this what I meant to say? If someone said that to me, how would it make me feel?’ We have a culture where you have to be plugged in 24/7. Be kinder not just to each other but with yourself. Unplug. Touch grass. Pet your cat. Hug a loved one. This is how we get out of this.”

Yujin Choi is an International Relations Stream Mentor in the Margaret MacMillan Trinity One Program. Yujin is a second-year student studying Political Science and Criminology.

2024 Margaret MacMillan Lecture in International Relations:

View more photos from the Meet-and-Greet and Lecture on Trinity College Alumni Facebook page

Categories: Ethics, Society & Law; International Relations; Student News; Trinity One