When I used to watch network news, I would often hear a news anchor state the desire to know what the students thought about whatever issue was in the news.

I wondered, why do I, or anyone else, care about what students think.

Students are students because they are young and have not, as yet, developed a base of knowledge or the skills to process such knowledge.

Certainly when I was a student nobody cared to know our opinions. At the age of 18 or so we all thought we knew more than we did, but a wise professor once told us that the more we learn, the more we realize how little we do know. By the time he got his Ph.D., he said, he was getting really humble.

So what's with the awe of student opinion. I've had occasion to read student newspaper occasionally and I did not get the idea that students today have a better grasp of the issues than in my own day. If anything, I think opinion may be stronger but facts and logic weaker.

Possibly the "student activists" of the 1960's created an image of students as being on top of issues. The question is: were these really students, and if they were students were they simply gullible in following left wing leaders such as Jerry Rubin.

Also, when did they find the time for such activity? I know I never would have had the time for it,

One experience I did have with demonstrations was as a new reporter on a newspaper in a college town. I hardly got oriented to the job before I was sharing in the coverage of a "peace" demonstration and interviewing on of those leaders and some students as well. At the time, I had very little knowledge of what was going on. In retrospect, however, I would say that a core group of "professional" organizers came marching through with advance publicity  and all. One thing the protestors have always been media wise. Along the way, the probably enlisted the help of local groups and various folks just out for a lark.

As I recall, the students I did interview seemed to have other concerns than the war.