Posts Tagged ‘Youth’

Are college students too “foolish” to vote?

Monday, March 7th, 2011

If you ask some politicians, they are. And they’re mucking up the whole political system, dag-nabbit. According to a Washington Post article, some lawmakers have had it up to here with whipper-snappers voting with their feelings.

Average taxpayers in college towns, [Sorg] said, are having their votes “diluted or entirely canceled by those of a huge, largely monolithic demographic group . . . composed of people with a dearth of experience and a plethora of the easy self-confidence that only ignorance and inexperience can produce.”

Their “youthful idealism,” he added, “is focused on remaking the world, with themselves in charge, of course, rather than with the mundane humdrum of local government.”

– New Hampshire State Rep. Gregory Sorg

The solution? Proposals differ from state to state, but basically every voter would be required to show ID or proof of residence in order to vote. That would mean anyone without an appropriate ID would have to get one.

But identification costs money! That’s unconstitutional! It’s akin to the poll tax used to disenfranchise African-American voters in the 19th century!

What does this have to do with me and my money, you say? Well, since state governments can’t legally force people to buy the right (or the ID) to vote, taxpayers would have to absorb the costs.

And according to one estimate, the state of Wisconsin alone would have to pony up $2.7 million just to provide valid identification cards to voters who do not currently have them.

What do you think? Do you want to pay for that? Or are you too foolish to know?

Trying To Protect Older Workers, Japan Creates A Youth Crisis

Tuesday, February 1st, 2011

“TOKYO — Kenichi Horie was a promising auto engineer, exactly the sort of youthful talent Japan needs to maintain its edge over hungry Korean and Chinese rivals. As a worker in his early 30s at a major carmaker, Mr. Horie won praise for his design work on advanced biofuel systems.

But like many young Japanese, he was a so-called irregular worker, kept on a temporary staff contract with little of the job security and half the salary of the “regular” employees, most of them workers in their late 40s or older. After more than a decade of trying to gain regular status, Mr. Horie finally quit — not just the temporary jobs, but Japan altogether.

He moved to Taiwan two years ago to study Chinese.”

What do you think?

See any similarities between the situation in Japan and the situation here in the U.S.?

Twilight Star Takes Runaway Role To Heart, Planning To Invest In Troubled Teens

Friday, January 21st, 2011

“Anytime I hear that somebody’s really rich, the first question is ‘Do you do anything with it? Or do you, like, chill? You just sit on it?’” She is thinking carefully, strategically, about how best to put her own contribution to use, and has a plan—inspired by her researches for the role of a runaway in the sex trade—to set up a network of halfway houses to help those who want to recover and get back on their feet. “That would be amazing,” she says. “Right now it’s the thing I feel most connected to.”

What do you think?

Does this impact your view of Stewart? Do you agree that having money obligates you to “do something with it?”

It’s Time To Talk About Your Rich Kid Guilt

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Young people from wealthy families in Washington, D.C. take comfort in talking to their peers about the mixed feelings and guilt they experience because of their societal privilege and wealth.

  • Resource Generation, a national membership organization, brings wealthy young people together who want to use their money for progressive change.
  • The organization’s meetings provide members with a place to discuss personal issues that accompany being young, wealthy and committed social justice.
  • Many members feel their inheritance and the accompanying privilege they enjoy perpetuates the injustices they work hard to fight against and change.

Facts & Figures

  • A Boston College study concluded that about $50 trillion will be passed from one generation to the next over the first five decades of this century.
  • The number of children of millionaires decreased from 26 million in 2007 to 19 million 2009, according to the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College.
  • There are a little more than 250,000 millionaire households in which the head of household is 35 or younger.

Best Quote

“I definitely feel like I am at war between my desires instilled in me to eat out at nice restaurants and my better sense and principles. If I make different choices when I am older, I hope to God they’re coming out of principles. Everyone changes. My great-grandmother was a communist in her 20s and a total conservative in her 90s. I won’t rule out anything.” – Janelle Treibitz, 28, Part-Time Waitress

The Educated, Unemployed Generation

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

It’s normal to be unemployed right after college, but being young and unemployed for a long time is bad for everyone.

  • Young people are being disproportionately affected by the recession because they’re missing out on entry-level employment opportunities, even when they’re highly qualified. Employers lose, too: young employees bring freshness and ambition to the job.
  • Being unemployed in one’s youth can lead to lower lifetime earnings due to missed opportunities, experiences, and sometimes a stigma. On a large scale, this will adversely affect tomorrow’s retirees, who will depend on this generation’s earnings to fund their Social Security benefits.
  • Some call for government action in the form of a more flexible minimum wage (employers that must pay the increased minimum wage are increasing their education and experience requirements commensurately), or increased training and apprenticeship programs. But the budget deficit makes these options unlikely.

Facts & Figures

  • The unemployment rate for 16- to 24-year-olds is more than 18% in the U.S., 39% in Spain, 24% in France, and 19% in Britain.
  • 46% percent of 16- to 24-year-old Americans were employed in September 2009.
  • A study showed that 15 years out of school, workers began their careers in a recession earned 2.5% less than workers who began in a better economic climate.

Best Quote

“Every morning I wake up thinking today’s going to be the day I get a job. I’ve not had a job for months, and it’s getting really frustrating.” – Dan Schmitz, recent college graduate