en-us Copyright 2008 - All Rights Reserved. Mon, 20 May 2013 08:14:15 GMT 15 By MariaFernanda Gomez
Hipsters, fashion Kardashian fans, and other groups of people in this teen generation don’t care about politics as much as they should. Whether or not it is because Indie music doesn’t play in the background of the Utah state legislature during a debate over the Department of Environmental Quality Board's Revisions, or because Eric Hutchings isn’t looking as spiffy in a tailored Armani suit as James Franco would, teens are not as politically engaged as they should be. They should be because the social, cultural, economic and general health of the future of millions of people depends on them. No big deal. According to Michael Carpini, in his article ‘Gen.com: Youth, civic engagement, and the new information environment,’ only 19 percent of young adults ages 18 to 29 say they follow politics “most of the time.” At the same time, young adults ages 12 to 24 have turned MTV into the top-rated network. Isn’t something clearly wrong? Teens would prefer to watch someone get a makeover, for example, over watching a debate that could decide who the next president of our first-world country could be. In a sometimes cynical and have-fun-all-the time generation, it is easy to see why teens don’t care as much about politics. Homework is usually the only thing we want to live without. Getting grounded is the worst predicament we can imagine. Most of us don’t have to worry about paying a mortgage (if we know what that means), or if the price of milk has gone up. Life seems relatively easy. But, ironically, that is exactly why we should care. If we don’t give a carrot about who is running for what, which member of the legislature is leaning toward what policy, which one of us will when it is our turn to run the country? Jean Hill is the Government Liaison for the Catholic Diocese of Salt Lake City who lobbies politicians for and against legislation that supports or contradicts Catholic values and teachings. She encourages teens to get involved. “Now is the time to learn about what is going on, how the political process works, and start thinking about the issues that matter to you (though those will change over time),” she said. “Learning before you vote that political ads are useless, certain cable news programs only provide one side of the story, and where to find balanced information on candidates and issues will help you when you do vote.” At JD, as in most schools across the country, students are fortunate enough to be exposed to how the government is structured and how they can influence it. But that isn’t enough. We should know what we believe in. We know that we sometimes hate curfews and “nos” from our parents, right? Well, the government also issues some curfews and “nos” that likely ruffle our feathers. That is similar to what recently happened regarding the withdrawn SOPA Act. At the same time, there could be a policy in the works that can positively affect us. What if the state legislature proposed a bill giving teens 300 dollars weekly to use however their classy True Religion selves desired? Some politically active teen would find it out, post it on Facebook, and a jubilee would break loose, right? While nothing as exciting as that is likely to ever happen, the point is the same: if we care, we win. You can’t win a battle without fighting. So, let’s do simple stuff. Maybe paying attention in class when reviewing how polls can be inaccurate isn’t a bad idea. Or, for all the savvy teens, pop open the Safari app and look up issues in the news. And if that isn’t exciting enough, then there are other venues for participation. “You can also find issues that are important to you and get involved in different groups that work on those issues, attending rallies, sharing information about the issue,” said Hill. “Teens can be involved in political campaigns -- walking with candidates door to door, or dropping literature.” If it helps to keep you interested and active, imagine Ashton Kutcher walking next to you snapping a Nikon camera, or Angelina Jolie next to us driving a sleek red Porsche, or Ryan Reynolds jogging alongside us… yep, imagine that. Then vote. ]]> Wed, 29 Feb 2012 00:16:31 GMT