should kids get to vote?

aol news ^ | Sept. 17 2003 | Geraldine Sealey

[Destructor]

This is a very bad idea! Most teenagers don't even give a damn enough to keep up with current events. Why should they be allowed to vote?

[freekitty]

Give me a break.

[Argus]

Yes, especially if they are illegal aliens with felony records. How else will Hitlery become President?

(sarcasm off)

[Mark Felton]

If you do not own land, or pay taxes, you should NEVER be allowed to vote.

[TheBigB]

This is an interesting topic...lots of the more libertarian-minded folks on here argue that there's no rational reason that 21-year-olds can drink but 20-year-olds can't. So if an 18-year-old can vote, why not a 17-year-old? I'm not sure of my actual feeling on the topic, as I haven't thought about it much. But it seems like that would be a logical argument.

[Alouette]

In Baltimore, Md., 16- and 17-year olds voted in the mayoral primary

So, who's running for Mayor? Britney Spears or Eminem?

[Spok]

Why stop at kids? My dog lifted his leg on my tv once during a Clinton state-of-the-union, which makes him more astute than most MTV'ers.

[Tired of Taxes]

The top issue for teen voters would probably be: Lower the drinking age.

the most radical proposal to enfranchise youth belongs to Germany, where parliament will consider this fall giving children the vote from infancy, giving new meaning to the social policy "from cradle to grave." Under the proposal, which would immediately increase the number of potential voters by 13.8 million, parents would vote on behalf of their children until they are 12, when the children could decide whether to allow their parents to vote for them.

So, in Germany under this proposal, parents would be given more than one vote up to the number of children they have...?

[So Cal Rocket]

I say raise the voting age to 35. If you're not old enough to run for President, then you shouldn't be voting for one.

[Calpernia]

Another sly left move from the left coast.

[Tired of Taxes]

I don't know about other libertarians, but my support for lowering the drinking age is based on this reasoning: If you're a legal adult at 18, old enough to fight and die for your country, you're old enough to handle alcohol. Making it illegal hasn't stopped them from drinking.

Still, with a teen vote, I can see the 15 and 16 year-olds voting to lower the drinking age to their level.

[Calpernia]

I see your states listed here too. This is one to watch.

[Carry_Okie]

They need to get the votes before the brainwashing starts to wear off.

[Blue Screen of Death]

It should be just like share holders. You get one vote for every $100 dollars you pay in federal tax. Want more votes? Pay more taxes. Don't pay taxes? You don't get to spend my tax money. Why should people who have little or no money invested get a say in how that money is to be spent?

[firebrand]

You betcha

[Chancellor Palpatine]

No. This is as mind bogglingly stupid an idea as anyone could imagine - the maturity and reasoning ability are not present.

[JustAmy]

If they can't use the punch card ballot, they should not vote!!
In California, Illegals can now obtain a driver's license and will probably be voting in another year so since the country is going to hell anyway, let them vote!

/sarcasm
Okay ..... No, I do not think that 16 or 17 year olds should be allowed to vote. I think voters should be paying taxes and supporting themselves before making decisions that affect all of us.

[Calpernia]

Instant spokemen for the NEA.

[HoustonCurmudgeon]

I paid my first income tax at 15. At 16 I was head of a Young Republican Club and new every elected official in my area. I knew far more than most adults about what was going on in politics.

That said, hell no they should not vote. I suggest 30 as a better age, then again I think you should have a 120 IQ, own property, be a vet and have a college degree to vote!!