Voice of the youth

Where there are people there are differences of opinions, and what would government be without disagreements? Would we even need government? Every election season, politics proves to be an important factor in determining the nation’s leaders. This shows that politics has a strong influence on the opinions of citizens, including long-term issues and current affairs.

Young people today think little about politics and how politics affects them. I assumed for a long time that politics was over my head. For me, there was no point in politics and no reason to try and understand them. But when I took up political science as a subject I found it interesting that I became more aware of political issues.  Also, I have begun to develop my own beliefs about politics and the government, including its leaders, judicial system, and the military.

Young people often overlook the significance of understanding the relevance of politics in their lives as I did. Students do not know what they’re missing when they assume politics is not as essential to them as it is to our older generation. Young people tend not to care for politics for a few reasons. First, my age group can’t realize the impact of taxes because young people don’t work and don’t pay taxes. Today’s generation is being raised to praise the economy, taxes is something that will have a huge impact on our future as we grow older. Second, politics is sculpted around our leaders; the president, the senators. Now that I know something about politics, I realize that it is important to have at least some understanding of what is happening in our current society. Politics is vital to our society since it is present issues that affect us all. Strong political parties are necessary for a healthy government. Thomas Jefferson believed that, “The duty of an upright administration is to pursue its course steadily and to cherish the good principles of both parties.” This shows that it takes more than one political party to make a well balanced government. Having at least two ensures the exclusion of the weaknesses of each, and uses both parties’ strengths for one prosperous government. In this case two groups of politicians with a narrow path toward individual goals may exclude the needs of the nation. As long as there is free speech there will be multiple political parties. They are necessary to the strength of our government. Our founding fathers proved it could work, and it has thus far. For our political system to flourish, older adults must realize that younger people must be educated about politics: why it exists, why it is important, and what our generation can do. Soon enough, it will be our turn to lead. (Meynard Castro, Desiree Salvador, Christian Villaroman)