Looking forward to the upcoming week in New York, where the anti-globalization demonstrations may or may not be tolerated. Either way, the following LA Times article suggests bad news for US conservatives, and good news for the regular folk and the planet:

College freshmen more liberal, less apathetic, poll finds Los Angeles Times Published Jan 28 2002 More college freshmen today describe themselves as politically liberal than at any time since the Vietnam War, according to a nationwide survey by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles.

A resurgence of liberalism among the freshmen also is reflected in their attitudes on a range of political and social issues, according to survey results released today.

"It's a real change, a broad-based trend toward greater liberalism on almost every issue we look at," said Alexander Astin, an education professor at UCLA who started the survey, the nation's largest, in 1966.

The researchers measured liberalism by asking students to describe their political views and take positions on certain benchmark issues.

For instance, a record percentage -- 57.9 percent -- think gay couples should have the legal right to marry. The highest portion in two decades -- 32.2 percent -- say the death penalty should be abolished. And more than one-third -- the highest rate since 1980 -- say marijuana should be legalized, although 75 percent also say employers should be allowed to require drug tests of workers and applicants.

Still, about half of the class' members, in line with their recent predecessors, view themselves as "middle of the road" politically. And 20.7 percent consider themselves conservative or "far right," while 29.9 percent -- the highest figure since 1975 -- say they are liberal or "far left."

The latter figure has risen steadily since 1996, said Linda Sax, an education professor and director of the most recent survey. But it pales compared with the peak year in 1971, at the height of the anti-Vietnam War fervor, when 40.9 percent of those polled called themselves liberal.

The American Freshman Survey, based this year on responses from 281,064 students at 421 four-year colleges and universities, is the nation's oldest and most comprehensive assessment of student attitudes. It is a joint project of UCLA's Higher Education Research Institute and the American Council on Education, based in Washington, D.C.

Freshmen usually fill out questionnaires during orientation or the first week of classes, so their answers often reflect more on their high school experiences..

Almost all of this year's forms were completed before Sept. 11, so any changes in student attitudes as a result of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon would be reflected in next year's results, survey directors said.

Among the more striking findings of this year's poll was a reversal in a long slide toward political apathy on college campuses, probably attributable to the 2000 presidential contest, Sax said.