Lower voting age to 16 in BC?

[gman313]

At the end of the day anything that involves youth in current events is a great thing.

As one poster mentioned, teenagers are the driving force behind hopefully finally getting some gun laws changed in the US. That is truly a great thing!

Technically I am a millennial but just barely. born 1983. I got a full time job at 15 because I wanted the money to buy a car etc. My parents matched my school savings dollar for dollar otherwise car, fancy clothes etc was on my own. I lived rent free while in school and as soon as that was finished I paid. I still managed honor role most years except grade 12 because I lost interest in science and became more interested in business. I did get my BBA with honours though.

I was very interested in politics at that age. I went on this Encounters with Canada program to Ottawa and it was the best week of my life. The group of young people I attended with were top notch people who took a very keen interest in issues that affect society.

I did pay some income tax I am pretty sure I didn't get all that back. I also spent my money on consumer goods thereby paying GST or PST or HST or whatever it was back then. I filled my car with gas. So yes, youth pay taxes.

There are lots of irresponsible youth out there that might not vote 'with intelligence' as some suggest. But there are plenty of adults in that category too. This may come across judgmental but one only needs to glance at City Park or Leon avenue to see that poor decisions are made by adults as well. Those adults probably don't pay a ton of taxes with their current situation but likely use government systems extensively (health care, ambulance, police, fire, safe injection mobile unit etc).

By some of the logic here they shouldn't vote either (not my opinion)

At the end of the day society is made up of a group diverse of individuals from various upbringings and cultures. We have 16 year olds and we have 102 year olds.

In my opinion, a 16 year old is old enough to live by the consequences of their action, give consent for sex, drive a car, smoke(if their parents buy the smokes) and work without parental permission. They are old enough to vote.

If this goes through, I would also support amending the Criminal Code of Canada so 16 year olds are responsible for their crimes as well, I believe right now that is 18 or 19. You want the responsibility of voting then you are fully responsibly for your actions.

Youth under the age of 16 are the responsibility of the parent and therefore should not be able to vote.

Thanks for reading

[Jmfva]

I don’t know why adults think they know anything about current events. Like... my mom still has an iPhone 4! How is that current?

Ha ... Boom ... that would be the sound of you blowing your foot off ... you just have proven everyone's point here ... that to you your Mom's phone type is so important it defines your Mom as unworthy to vote?

You are too immature to handle a serious responsibility like voting ...

Obviously Slootman was imitating an immature teen, see their previous post. You fell for the troll.

[Glacier]

Youth Politics Are Stupid

Let’s establish a baseline. I assume we can all agree that everyone is born remarkably dumb. Ever try to talk about the causes of the First World War with a newborn? So frustrating.

There are few things more settled in science than the fact that humans start out not very bright or informed and that this condition only wears off over time — i.e., as they get older.

Only slightly more controversial: Young people tend to be more emotional than grown-ups. This is true of babies, who will cry about the silliest things (hence the word, “crybaby”). But it’s also true of teenagers.

Again, this is not string theory. We know these things. And the idea that I must provide empirical evidence for such a staggeringly obvious point is hilarious to me.

Aside from all the social science, medical science, novels, plays, poems, musicals, and movies that explore this fact, there is another source we can consult on this: ourselves.

Every not-currently-young person reading this “news”letter has one thing in common: We were all young once.

This is what I mean when I say that “youth politics are the laziest form of identity politics.” Say what you will for racial-identity politics, there’s at least a superficial case that such identities are immutable. I can never be a black woman. And before everyone gets clever, even if I dropped a lot of coin on cosmetic surgery, I can never claim to know what it’s like to be a black woman.

You know what I can claim, though? Knowing what it’s like to be young.

https://www.nationalreview.com/blog/g-f ... -of-youth/

[ninetyninepct]

Children that age are in the process of maturing. Weaver is clearly pandering to their socialist tendencies, prostituting himself for their votes. Promise them free everything and they will support him. Free schooling, free university, free tuition. He is disgusting.

[normaM]

well except you are claiming to know what your reality was when young :/
I was out of the house by 17, gainfully employed, blah blah
So if the young are too immature, boomers to self centered, etc who should get to vote?
Usually younger ppl are more open to new ideas, if we really fear giving 16 year olds a chance to vote then we prolly should fear most people's voting rights. I mean if someone votes for who has the best hair how informed is that?

[Veovis]

The 16 year olds of today are better educated than at any time before in history. I would rather trust the vote of a 16 year old still attending education, than a 35 year old who dropped out of school and has let conspiracy theory videos on YouTube replace what little actual knowledge they once held.

Not true, the kids of today have access to more information than ever before in history. That is not the same as being better educated. A lot of created content is drivel based on trends and feelings, not knowledge created from information access.

If people are realistic and look back honestly, they only thought they knew everything when they were 16. (....and 18, and 20, and 25, until hopefully they realise they need to keep learning forever.)

[Urban Cowboy]

At the end of the day anything that involves youth in current events is a great thing.

As one poster mentioned, teenagers are the driving force behind hopefully finally getting some gun laws changed in the US. That is truly a great thing!

Technically I am a millennial but just barely. born 1983. I got a full time job at 15 because I wanted the money to buy a car etc. My parents matched my school savings dollar for dollar otherwise car, fancy clothes etc was on my own. I lived rent free while in school and as soon as that was finished I paid. I still managed honor role most years except grade 12 because I lost interest in science and became more interested in business. I did get my BBA with honours though.

I was very interested in politics at that age. I went on this Encounters with Canada program to Ottawa and it was the best week of my life. The group of young people I attended with were top notch people who took a very keen interest in issues that affect society.

I did pay some income tax I am pretty sure I didn't get all that back. I also spent my money on consumer goods thereby paying GST or PST or HST or whatever it was back then. I filled my car with gas. So yes, youth pay taxes.

There are lots of irresponsible youth out there that might not vote 'with intelligence' as some suggest. But there are plenty of adults in that category too. This may come across judgmental but one only needs to glance at City Park or Leon avenue to see that poor decisions are made by adults as well. Those adults probably don't pay a ton of taxes with their current situation but likely use government systems extensively (health care, ambulance, police, fire, safe injection mobile unit etc).

By some of the logic here they shouldn't vote either (not my opinion)

At the end of the day society is made up of a group diverse of individuals from various upbringings and cultures. We have 16 year olds and we have 102 year olds.

In my opinion, a 16 year old is old enough to live by the consequences of their action, give consent for sex, drive a car, smoke(if their parents buy the smokes) and work without parental permission. They are old enough to vote.

If this goes through, I would also support amending the Criminal Code of Canada so 16 year olds are responsible for their crimes as well, I believe right now that is 18 or 19. You want the responsibility of voting then you are fully responsibly for your actions.

Youth under the age of 16 are the responsibility of the parent and therefore should not be able to vote.

Thanks for reading

So we should accept that 16yr old youth are mature enough to vote, but we don't trust them to be mature enough to drink, is that about right?

[Urban Cowboy]

Children that age are in the process of maturing. Weaver is clearly pandering to their socialist tendencies, prostituting himself for their votes. Promise them free everything and they will support him. Free schooling, free university, free tuition. He is disgusting.

Every move that Weaver has made since even before being elected, has been solely about "what's in it for the Green Party, and what can I dream up to help its survival".

[khutchi]

Who cares? Nobody votes anyways. 71% of registered voters in West Kelowna stayed home a month ago for one of our lowest election turnouts in our province's history. 16 year olds are not going vote either unless they really care about the issues. In which case they are going be pretty well informed no?

[Urban Cowboy]

I initially replied to gman313, but then it dawned on me, that I should be asking this question of all those, who support 16 year old youth voting.

Do you also all support the drinking age being lowered to 16yrs old?

If not, please explain how they are mature enough to vote, but not mature enough to drink responsibly.

[khutchi]

If not, please explain how they are mature enough to vote, but not mature enough to drink responsibly.

For me, I guess it's because I believe drinking responsibly and voting "responsibly" require different parts of the brain. Drinking responsibly is about impulse control and voting is literally just about your ability to observe the universe. 16 year olds are qualified at one of these in my opinion. So I have no problem with a higher drinking age than voting age.

[Veovis]

It's on the more current generation. I was married and buying a home young as well. Now kids don't even think about moving out until mid twenties, let alone taking on actual responsibilities. Not saying there aren't those that do, just the average age for "getting their crap together" has increased yet we want to decrease choice making on a large level.

you purchased during better economic times... back then homes were no where near the same price, you could manage on a single family income, Rentals were also affordable. If kids these days had the same bang for their buck you would see them move out as soon as possible.

I'm not that old. It was certainly a double income issue, and this area I will agree was different, but had I sat around waiting my commitment now would be the same as then, the difference is time wasted and "fun" taken then instead of now.

I disagree that more would be gone as soon as possible though, it isn't just Kelowna seeing kids staying home longer, it is everywhere not just here.

[Urban Cowboy]

The 16 year olds of today are better educated than at any time before in history. I would rather trust the vote of a 16 year old still attending education, than a 35 year old who dropped out of school and has let conspiracy theory videos on YouTube replace what little actual knowledge they once held.

Not true, the kids of today have access to more information than ever before in history. That is not the same as being better educated. A lot of created content is drivel based on trends and feelings, not knowledge created from information access.

If people are realistic and look back honestly, they only thought they knew everything when they were 16. (....and 18, and 20, and 25, until hopefully they realise they need to keep learning forever.)

Don't forget much is also paid troll derived fake news, though those whose agenda this stuff supports, will be quick to label those who don't agree as conspiracy theorists.

There are people paid to create online data that supports a given agenda. This is the reality we now live in unfortunately, thus anything we are passionate about requires due diligence on our part, in order to ferret out the real truth.

[Urban Cowboy]

If not, please explain how they are mature enough to vote, but not mature enough to drink responsibly.

For me, I guess it's because I believe drinking responsibly and voting "responsibly" require different parts of the brain. Drinking responsibly is about impulse control and voting is literally just about your ability to observe the universe. 16 year olds are qualified at one of these in my opinion. So I have no problem with a higher drinking age than voting age.

Thanks for the feedback.

I guess I disagree because to an extent I believe voting is also impulse based for many, plus at that age the individual is still heavily influenced by the education system. A situation which many of us believe is crossing a line that it shouldn't, in unduly influencing our youth to think a certain way.

Not for a moment, do I believe Weaver would have tabled this bill, if he didn't think he and his party stood to gain substantially.

[Urban Cowboy]

well except you are claiming to know what your reality was when young :/
I was out of the house by 17, gainfully employed, blah blah
So if the young are too immature, boomers to self centered, etc who should get to vote?
Usually younger ppl are more open to new ideas, if we really fear giving 16 year olds a chance to vote then we prolly should fear most people's voting rights. I mean if someone votes for who has the best hair how informed is that?

Yes and that right there is part of the problem I'd say.

At that age many are in a stage where they feel they know better than their parents, yet at the same time still in the stage where their main influence is teachers, many of whose motivation might not be viewed as exactly neutral in the political department.

These youth need to be out in the world for a while, in order to see it for themselves, and better decide what views and ideals they support, rather than being subconsciously told what to think.