Teens ages 13-18--What are your opinions about our government?
105893
I think that the government has made some mistakes, but is doing the best they can under the circumstances, and under the time limit they have to make the desicions. I'm 13, by the way.
918141
There was a legitimate reason to lower the voting age to 18 from 21--with so many young people fighting and dying in Vietnam, it seemed appropriate for them to have a say in putting into power the policymakers who would control their destiny.\n\nHowever, there is no similar claim that can be made for 16 year olds.  Many may be interested in politics, but there is no legitimate reason to allow voting simply for the sake of voting.  By voting, citizens claim a role in the political process and seek to elect policymakers who will further their individual interests.  The interests and needs of a 16 year old largely are not addressed by Congress (with the notable exception of education-based bills), thus there is no legitimate claim for their right to vote.
959530
not really...\nby the way, im 13 too...
408860
The way our government acts....
940168
16 is too young.\nRaise the age to 18, when they are all legally responsible for ALL their own actions.\nHow about that for starters?
501006
I say 18 if you ask me, yeah its still young i guess, but by that time, you should be finishing up H.S and have lived under parents law long enough. Just like you said, you can go fight wars and vote, thats a big responsibility right there. If you old enough to (die) and old enough to vote. then I think the legal age should be 18.. As far as drinking, let be real, if someone under age wants to drink they can get liq, its not that hard..
402021
13 and 14 year olds...
572153
No,My family & friends thinks that our Goverment is a Communist  thier trying to take our gun rights away,take our Freedom of speech, privacy act,  travel rights away they try to tell you where to go and not go, The government has to put there hands in there pocket and try to take Social Security, Medicaid, meals on wheels, and last wishes from children and elderly away. There trying to take hospice and the crippled rights and medicare away. There trying to make where people can't live anymore without family and friends. I know for a fact that this government is only for the rich and that's that. And i know for a fact that the rich people is going to live and there trying to get rid of poor people and that's that. Any young woman make sure before you get married you just know that when there
1120632
I COMPLETELY agree.  I've been pretty lucky.  I know exactly how my local government works, and I have participated actively.  If more students were exposed at a younger age to the basic structure of their hometown government, I think there would be more people to make positive changes the right way.
32171
Yes! Mature ones anyway. You care about the world you live in and politics is a big part of it. Younger people tend to be self-obsorbed and at your age your eyes start to open up to what's going on around you. My 16 year old daughter is interested in politics also. You are the next generation and you can play a very big part in changing the way things are. Good luck to you! You sound like a wise guy (meant in the best way) Never care about what seems normal and what isn't. You are you and thats a good thing. Be comfortable in your own skin and never let anyone tell you how you should be. Later in life it doesn't matter what anyone says. I know 16 is a pretty rough age with peer judgements. Don't worry about it too much. It all goes away.
520417
My parents were open minded and beleived all people had a right to there own opinion. That made me Liberal from early on.\n\nMy freshman High School teacher showed me how the government didn't always have my best interests at heart. That devastated me. Until then I didn't think the government lied to it's people. How wrong I was.\n\nQuestion Authority, it is the ultimate democratic thing to do.
912314
You need to go back and read the basics of American Government. When you understand how your government works, you won't need to ask questions that a middle school student can answer.
174045
Morality is already legislated to a degree. Murder & rape are illegal. It's illegal to drink & drive, as well as operate vehicles on drugs. It's illegal to have sex with a minor.  It's illegal for brothers & sisters to marry, as well as first cousins in most states. It's illegal to beat someone up. It's illegal to rob someone of their property.\n\nAs for your other quesiton about teenagers. If the government would revamp the welfare system and educate these teens more, rather than provide them a saftey-net for the consequences of their behavior, I believe we'd see a decrease in teen pregnancy.
753098
More young people need to get involved in the whole campaign, voting process.  I really believe the focus should be to address internal local issues, like education and drugs.  Two areas that definitely impact America's youth.
893800
All interesting topics. Two sides to all the issues so you can choose any side you want. Juvenile justice I like. Some people think that we need to charge 14 year olds as adults and throw away the key. But there's a lot of info on the other side too. 14 year olds aren't adults when they're "good' so why are they when they're bad. It can be argued that we need a better system. There is science that teenage brains aren't fully developed. And it's a money issue-if you throw a 14 yr old in prison for life instead of rehabilitation, that gets expensive. Not to mention our prisons are full. And then the war against drugs. Another great topic. Do some searches using some of those terms-wikipedia.com is a good place to start looking for ideas....
604320
Actually, I think it should be 21.  I have a daughter that will turn 18 in December and she doesn't graduate from high school until June 2007. If she decided to quit school next year there would be nothing I could do legally to stop her. As for voting I really don't believe that at 18 any teenager is ready to make a decision who should or should not be in office. I am 50 and I don't know these answers either!!  No teenager at 18 is ready to be on there own and they still need the guidance of a parent to get them prepared for adulthood. At 18 a teenager is just starting to get a glimpse at what being an adult is and I truly feel as though they need a few more years of adult supervision to hopefully guide them in the right direction and ease the transition into adulthood a little easier and less painful.\nNow adays it seems like everyone is so concerned about sending our kids to college when years ago our great grandparents and our grandparents could make an honest living not even finishing high school. My parents learned more in elementary school than I did in High School. Times have changed and it is not for the best. We are raising a bunch of irresponsible, lazy group of teenagers. They have no idea what it's going to be like on their own. I am not saying that all teenagers are this way, but I would have to say the majority of them are. When I was 16 and got my license I paid for my own car, the insurance, the gas and any repairs that had to be done. I worked and went to high school and kept my grades up. Most kids now are given a car and money to pay for anything they may need. What is that teaching them about responsibilty?  As for the school system I feel as though instead of trying to prepare our kids for college they should be getting them ready to be out on their own. Go back to basics, READING, WRITING AND ARITHMETIC. College should not be a necessity to get a job to make a decent living.  As for going into the military at 18, I think it is wonderful. They can learn so much and the military will teach them to become responsible young men and women and to be proud of themselves. What other job out there really will do that for them?
711291
I'd agree with you except  younger people by virtue of their age are less informed.  Most of them have simply accepted the views they've naively accepted  from other people (parents, teachers, news media, etc) whether it's in their best interest not.\n\nI wouldn't care except the scary thing is it affects my little world and I care a great deal about that.