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There's an immediate impact for some of us. I walk out of the polling place and feel great.By the grace of God I'm an American citizen and by voting I get tell everyone what I think. I get to support the people and laws I believe in and I get to tell the other side to stuff if. Not a whole lot of that going on in North Korea.
Put me in the "we talk politics at the dinner table" category. Did our kids get influenced by us? Of course. Sometimes we even got influenced by them.
I almost always take my kids with me when I vote. You are so right that we are fortunate to have a voice in this country, and we should never take that freedom for granted. I'm doing my best to help my kids to appreciate that and remind them to be respectful of all of the candidates on the ticket, whether we are voting for them or not.
My oldest son had a home work assignment to 'watch' the first debate. I asked him the next morning who he thought won the debate and he said 'Obama'. I looked at the poll numbers on CNN and told him that it looks as though most folks think Romney won and he said he didn't care.. Obama won.
I know my 8 year old twins are both enamored with Obama and although my wife and I don't talk politics with them they did ask who we were voting for and my wife said she was voting for Romney and my son asked me to vote for Obama because mom wont.
Obama is the only president they have ever known being too young to remember Bush. I remember that innocence of looking up at the US President like he was a king or a god. I miss that feeling and am glad my kids are still enjoying it.. i wont take from them just yet.. let them enjoy that a little longer.
I remember wanting to "vote" Carter in for a second term, mainly because he was the President at the time and had a daughter (Amy) in the White House. Those were pretty much my only reasons but they sure made sense at the time .
In in your vegetable analogy, if the vegetables are healthcare your analogy is not apt.
To be apt it would need to state:
Pres. Obama wants everyone to be able to have access to healthy vegetables, and in order to make sure everyone can afford them, he is requiring everyone to have a basic, minimal amount of vegetables.
Gov. Romney wants the healthy, tasty vegetables for the rich people and everyone else can eat the rotten vegetables.
But some how I do not think you are going to phrase the real issue that way, while you are training your child to your beliefs. Sharing is the most basic thing we teach our children, but as grown ups we call it "socialism". Ugh.
I remember wanting to "vote" Carter in for a second term, mainly because he was the President at the time and had a daughter (Amy) in the White House. Those were pretty much my only reasons but they sure made sense at the time .
And there are some adults that refuse to vote for Obama because they are convinced he is a Muslim. Being poorly informed is not just a virtue/handicap of the young.
And there are some adults that refuse to vote for Obama because they are convinced he is a Muslim. Being poorly informed is not just a virtue/handicap of the young.
Well, o.k..... I was just relating to what that particular poster was saying about his twins. I remember having very similar views as a kid about Carter. I actually thought it was kind of cute .
Actually, I don't think the veggie thing is an analogy.
Wow. Then its really not apt. Obama is not trying to force anyone to eat vegetables. He is just trying to make sure that federally funded meals are nutritional balanced. No one MAKES anyone eat vegetables.
"Now, while it certainly seems like I was trying to lead him to a decision, I really wasn't."
Is just inaccurate. NO ONE can really discuss politics without leading the witness unless they do nothing but ASK their kids.
Very true. I did not intend to lead him to a certain decision, but I most likely did. What kid wants to be forced to eat vegetables? It is difficult not to. I was trying to draw a simplistic example of the role of government. At it's base, this is the rhetorical difference between the two parties/candidates (please no lectures on the "reality", I am intimately aware).
Quote:
Originally Posted by eastwesteastagain
My kids are still a bit young for complex political discussions, but I am thinking the best we will be able to do is note our own biases when presenting information and try to present "the other side" as objectively as possible while noting our biases, and teaching the kids how to identify their own biases, as well.
NJGOAT, I think it is great that your kids are being exposed to political thinking and decision making. I share your view that voting is very important, even when it is maddening, even when the choices may not be what we want, and even in a specific election where our particular vote may not swing the state or county.
Good points. I generally try to present both sides if a question comes up, but he doesn't ask too many questions. My 4 year old daughter decided she wants Obama because he wears a red tie and he looks like her friend Damir. Not too much room for real discussion there, lol. My general idea is to get them at least somewhat aware/interested in the process and what is going on. Get them to start thinking more critically about the process and why people make the choices they make.
I also bring my kids to vote with me to reinforce the importance of doing it. Last year my son and I had a good conversation about the school budget when we went to vote for it. They were slightly raising taxes to pay for some new programs. I feel our district/town is very well run fiscally and I generally vote my approval. It was interesting seeing whether or not my son thought everyone in town should pay an extra $24 a year so that the school could add some additional programs and technology. He didn't think the new programs were very interesting and the technology was expanding the student laptop program to 4th and 5th graders. Since he wasn't in 4th grade and he wouldn't be getting a computer, he didn't think we should say yes.
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Originally Posted by Charles
Imperative? It's imperative that we impart to our children to question everything and make wise economic decisions. Despite what we've been "trained" to think, voting has a practically irrelevant impact to a person's life.
I understand your position and respect the fact that it is your choice, I also happen to think you are wrong on many levels. Obviously nothing I say is going to sway you. The question then becomes, what would happen if everyone shared your belief? What if no one voted? Why not just have a dictatorship if choosing our national leaders is a pointless exercise?
To me, people who rail against the influence of special interests and corruption need to take a harder look at the American people themselves. The fact that voter turnout is so low is that allows politicians to simply bank on their blind supporters and ignore a large number of Americans. In 2008 only 56.8% of Americans showed up to cast a vote for the presidency, the highest amount since 1968. What would have been the outcome if another 10%, 20% or 30% had voted? In 2000 only 51.3% of Americans turned up to vote. How could that election have changed had more people gone to the polls. In Florida only 72% (8 out of 11 million) of registered voters, voted in 2000. The election and the presidency was determined by a margin of 537 votes in Florida. To say that individual votes "don't count" is simply not true.
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Originally Posted by springfieldva
Love it. Clear, concise and to the point. Love the veggie angle. So true, so easy to understand even for a 2nd grader.
I honestly can't think of a convincing argument like that for Obama. I'm sorry, but it's true - what can you really say? It's kind of hard to push the "helping the middle class" angle with gas and food prices sky rocketing and more potential tax hikes looming, all coupled with unemployment. But if your wife can think of something persuasive - she should absolutely present it to your daughter. It's always good to hear both sides of the argument before deciding.
Well, I was going for something that hit close to his heart with the veggies, yet encapsulated a "bigger" concept. I think he really did "get" what I was saying. As for one for Obama, I think somebodynew already sort of provided the twist that one could build on...
Obama believes that everyone should have an equal chance to get their own dessert. Romney believes that the only reason people can't get dessert is because they are lazy and are waiting for someone else to give it to them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mco65
My oldest son had a home work assignment to 'watch' the first debate. I asked him the next morning who he thought won the debate and he said 'Obama'. I looked at the poll numbers on CNN and told him that it looks as though most folks think Romney won and he said he didn't care.. Obama won.
I know my 8 year old twins are both enamored with Obama and although my wife and I don't talk politics with them they did ask who we were voting for and my wife said she was voting for Romney and my son asked me to vote for Obama because mom wont.
Obama is the only president they have ever known being too young to remember Bush. I remember that innocence of looking up at the US President like he was a king or a god. I miss that feeling and am glad my kids are still enjoying it.. i wont take from them just yet.. let them enjoy that a little longer.
It was that feeling you describe that I think spurned my interest in politics. I was born in 1980 and I remember growing up watching Reagan on TV. He was like a grandfather figure, that everything was OK because he was in charge. He certainly projected a great "presidential image". I can be much more critical of the man now, but he certainly captured my imagination then. Obama seems to have done that among todays kids as well in a way that Bush Sr., Clinton and Bush Jr. simply couldn't do. Though it seems like he certainly gets some help with that image. I don't remember seeing Reagan's face plastered on flags or hearing songs sung by Kindergarteners about Reagan's "shining city", lol.
Wow. Then its really not apt. Obama is not trying to force anyone to eat vegetables. He is just trying to make sure that federally funded meals are nutritional balanced. No one MAKES anyone eat vegetables.
That's probably true enough and that certainly would make more sense. But some of the fruit/veggie homework that I've been hearing about (coupled with the whole healthcare mandate) kind of makes you wonder....
At any rate, I'm a fruit/veggie lover and I'll continue to eat them as long as I can afford to do so! If others choose not to, more for me.
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