"The Importance Of Politics In A Younger Generation"

Without revolutions the United States would still belong to the British. Without individual revolutions, politics would not be an important factor in our government. 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 an important factor when 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. To me there was no point to politics and no reason to try and understand them. As I learn more about its importance to the health of our country I find it is important to be 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. Being a young adult myself, I know I sure did. Young adults do not know what they’re missing when they assume politics is not as essential to them as it is to our older generation. Younger people tend not to care for politics for a few reasons. First and foremost a word cherished by so many Americans is taxes. My age group can’t realize the impact of taxes because a lot of younger people don’t work and don’t pay taxes – an issue which greatly affects politics. Today’s generation is being raised to praise the dollar, 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, and the governors – not young adults.
So politics, though it affects teens and young people, is shaped by adults. The average young adult is not interested in the terms of the budget summary nearly as much as football season. Plainly put, politics is on a different level of intelligence and interest than what we are used to.
When choosing between the Braves and the Yankees on ESPN and the electoral debate on CSPAN, I know which one I would choose. If a young adult was asked the following day if he or she watched the baseball game and responded with, “No, but did you hear what Bush said when asked about the budget cuts?” calls for oxygen would echo through the halls. Basically, it’s normal for a young adult to not care about politics, even though I believe we should. Up until a few years ago, if I were asked to define politics I would have been forced to respond with, “Some government stuff?”
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 the United States, political parties have guided us through times of hardship to triumph; however politics can become a liability if the parties’ only focus on what they think is important. 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.