# Should 16-year-olds vote?



## PhuBai70 (Sep 26, 2019)

Absolutely not!! They are not legally adults and have not yet earned the right to vote because they have no skin in the game. They do not know yet what it is to go to work every day to put a roof over their heads and put food on the table. They are still living on their parents' dime and have no concept of responsibility. By far the biggest majority of 16-year-olds have no idea how this country runs let alone the rest of the world.
So, what gives them the right to make decisions that will affect my life?
Well, if squad member and racist Ayanna Pressley has her way she will give them that right. She did not come up with this idea but she is certainly not alone.
Personally I don't want 18-year-olds to vote but there's this thing called the 26th Amendment...


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## tony pasley (May 6, 2006)

No 16 year olds should not vote.
When this country was founded age was not the factor. You had to be a property owner to vote. Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.


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## hillman (Jul 27, 2014)

Considering the state of our education system, maybe the voting age should be raised - Constitutionally - to, say, 50. Betting a higher percentage of 50 year-olds have a clue.


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## MoMan (Dec 27, 2010)




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## Sabrien4 (Oct 16, 2019)

tony pasley said:


> No 16 year olds should not vote.
> When this country was founded age was not the factor. You had to be a property owner to vote. Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.


+1


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## RK3369 (Aug 12, 2013)

Nope. They are still kids and too easily led. Not even sure 18 year olds have enough independence to be rational about their choices.


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## denner12 (Oct 14, 2017)

Only if they vote for Trump, but no and neither should illegals. 18 is when you're considered an adult at least in my mind.


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## paratrooper (Feb 1, 2012)

Some 18 yr. old's are mature beyond their years and act responsibly. Problem is, they're an exception and not the rule. 

Voting age should be raised higher. 20 would be a good start.


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## BackyardCowboy (Aug 27, 2014)

Even 18 year olds should be required to take the GED exam to prove they can read, write and paid attention in school.


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## denner12 (Oct 14, 2017)

BackyardCowboy said:


> Even 18 year olds should be required to take the GED exam to prove they can read, write and paid attention in school.


Yep, and I'd extend that to any age in the general population as well.


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## Goldwing (Nov 5, 2014)

My belief is that most of the bed pissers are good at protests and polls, but can not find a sober ride to the polling place. They might vote on facebook if they could do a selfie.

GW


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## PhuBai70 (Sep 26, 2019)

At the very least the voting age should be raised back to 21. 
During WWII Roosevelt lowered the draft (Selective Service) age to 18 while the voting age was 21. That started a debate over "Old enough to fight, old enough to vote". It was not until 1971 during the Viet Nam war that the voting age was lowered to 18 by the 26th Amendment. 
In 1973 the draft was deactivated and the military became all volunteer but the voting age remained at 18. The Selective Service System still exists and the draft could be reactivated in the future if need be.


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

It doesn't matter how smart teens are or how well they scored on the SAT or ACT. Good judgment isn't something they can excel in, at least not yet.
The rational part of a teen's brain isn't fully developed and won't be until age 25 or so.
In fact, recent research has found that adult and teen brains work differently. Adults think with the prefrontal cortex, the brain's rational part. This is the part of the brain that responds to situations with good judgment and an awareness of long-term consequences. Teens process information with the amygdala. This is the emotional part.
In teen's brains, the connections between the emotional part of the brain and the decision-making center are still developing-and not always at the same rate. That's why when teens have overwhelming emotional input, they can't explain later what they were thinking. They weren't thinking as much as they were feeling.

https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/encyclopedia/content.aspx?ContentTypeID=1&ContentID=3051


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## wirenut (Dec 16, 2015)

Goldwing said:


> My belief is that most of the bed pissers are good at protests and polls, but can not find a sober ride to the polling place. They might vote on facebook if they could do a selfie.
> 
> GW


Most of them could not find their way out of mommy's basement.


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## Tangof (Jan 26, 2014)

Shouldn't be allowed to drive at 16 let alone vote. Does seem odd now that I was carrying an automatic weapon and hand grenades at nineteen but couldn't vote or drink alcohol.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

Although I agree that 16-year-olds should not be allowed to vote, and that the voting age should be raised again to 21, I most firmly believe that the real criterion for voting should be: "Do you have an iron in the fire?"
That is, "Are you paying tax to cover the costs of government services?"

If you pay tax, you are allowed to vote on the people who decide how your tax money is spent.
If you don't pay tax, you have no voice in that matter. None.

This criterion would apply equally to rich and poor.
If the rich avoid paying tax through the use of "shelters," then they have no voice in the government.
If the poor work only enough to pay tax and then have it refunded, then no voice for them, either.

Dole suckers should not have a voice in how the dole is constructed, nor how it's paid-for.


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## texasboy75 (Nov 7, 2019)

at 18 i was living on my own working 60 plus hours a week welding in a hot ass shop making enough money to support my new wife and unborn child (yes i had kids young). I was paying a stack of ever growing bills with no help from parents and definitely no help from the government. and of course i was paying taxes. when i was 19 i decided to join the USAF as an airplane mechanic. Im currently 20 still serving this country and will for the next at least 5 years and some of y'all want to tell me that i cant vote. Obviously there are some bed wetting,video game addicts who are 30 living with their parents who have no clue what bills or taxes are, but it would be foolish to take away my generations right to vote because of their age alone. guidance is what they need not intolerance.


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## BackyardCowboy (Aug 27, 2014)

texasboy75 said:


> at 18 i was living on my own working 60 plus hours a week welding in a hot ass shop making enough money to support my new wife and unborn child (yes i had kids young). I was paying a stack of ever growing bills with no help from parents and definitely no help from the government. and of course i was paying taxes. when i was 19 i decided to join the USAF as an airplane mechanic. Im currently 20 still serving this country and will for the next at least 5 years and some of y'all want to tell me that i cant vote. Obviously there are some bed wetting,video game addicts who are 30 living with their parents who have no clue what bills or taxes are, but it would be foolish to take away my generations right to vote because of their age alone. guidance is what they need not intolerance.


As far as Steve's comment above, you do have an iron in the fire. You've taken (Adult) responsibility for your life and your family's. There are many others who are still not willing to really go out and get a meaningful job who haven't
Congratulations on your life choices.


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## PhuBai70 (Sep 26, 2019)

texasboy75 said:


> at 18 i was living on my own working 60 plus hours a week welding in a hot ass shop making enough money to support my new wife and unborn child (yes i had kids young). I was paying a stack of ever growing bills with no help from parents and definitely no help from the government. and of course i was paying taxes. when i was 19 i decided to join the USAF as an airplane mechanic. Im currently 20 still serving this country and will for the next at least 5 years and some of y'all want to tell me that i cant vote. Obviously there are some bed wetting,video game addicts who are 30 living with their parents who have no clue what bills or taxes are, but it would be foolish to take away my generations right to vote because of their age alone. guidance is what they need not intolerance.


You, and a few like you are the exceptions, not the rule. My oldest grandson is from your generation and he is living on his own and going to a university 2,500 miles away from his family. Also, he is sometimes more of a conservative than I am but that doesn't change the facts. 
Let's say, for the sake of discussion, that twenty per cent of your generation are responsible citizens. If a decision has to be made then that decision must be based on the eighty per cent and not the twenty per cent. That's because the eighty per cent is the problem, not the twenty per cent.
When I was your age I wore a uniform and served in a very hostile environment but I was not legally old enough to vote or walk into a bar and order a beer. That was the law and I accepted it.


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## tony pasley (May 6, 2006)

A quote from the founding fathers that I remember is When the people are fed from the public trough the Republic will soon be over" I think It was Jefferson or Madison but don't know for sure which. That is why they only wanted those invested in the country to vote


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

tony pasley said:


> No 16 year olds should not vote.
> When this country was founded age was not the factor. You had to be a property owner to vote. Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.


Being a landowner makes a whole lot of sense.
So many responsibilities come to mind.
Taxes, raising children. Etc

I do remember back in the day.....
This is my corner punk.


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## BackyardCowboy (Aug 27, 2014)

pic said:


> Being a landowner makes a whole lot of sense.
> So many responsibilities come to mind.
> Taxes, raising children, *Running Moonshine*. Etc
> 
> I


Sorry Pic, couldn't resist.


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## aarondhgraham (Mar 17, 2011)

Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.

Not correct,,,
Property owners were the rich/elite of the day,,,
It was a method to keep power in the hands of the wealthy.

Aarond

.


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## terryna (Mar 15, 2018)

hillman said:


> Considering the state of our education system, maybe the voting age should be raised - Constitutionally - to, say, 50. Betting a higher percentage of 50 year-olds have a clue.


Nice...


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## PhuBai70 (Sep 26, 2019)

Last March Ayanna Pressley's proposal to allow 16-year-olds the right to vote was defeated in the House by a 126 - 305 vote.
The really disturbing thing is that 126 representatives actually voted for this proposal.
Let's be clear about this. The Democrats do not care about the rights of young people, they just want the votes.
Some Democrats think that illegal immigrants who are working and paying taxes should also have the right to vote. Again, the Democrats do not care about illegal immigrants unless they are doing the laundry or mowing the lawn. They just want the votes.

Edit: The breakdown was 125 Democrats and 1 Republican.


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## AZdave (Oct 23, 2015)

aarondhgraham said:


> Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.
> 
> Not correct,,,
> Property owners were the rich/elite of the day,,,
> ...


Taxes are the way to enslave the middle class preventing them from becoming rich. There should be a fair tax, flat at 3% for everyone rich and poor alike.

Lowering the voting age to 16 is another way for the dems to "bend" the rules since they can't win elections. Popular vote, let prisoners vote, let illegal immigrants vote, ...

The more people voting increases the occurrence of voter fraud especially with mail in ballots. Have a "purple" finger paper ballot holiday.


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## tony pasley (May 6, 2006)

aarondhgraham said:


> Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.
> 
> Not correct,,,
> Property owners were the rich/elite of the day,,,
> ...


Not correct the shop owner who lived above the shop or the 10 acre dirt farmer


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

aarondhgraham said:


> Property owners were invested in the country and building a future.
> 
> Not correct,,,
> Property owners were the rich/elite of the day,,,
> ...


Sorry, Aarond, but the point of requiring ownership of property as a requirement for voting ensured that the people making the political decisions had a real stake in the process.
A middle-class merchant who owned his own shop, or a tavern keeper who owned his own tavern, qualified as land-owning voters, even though they most assuredly weren't rich. Same goes for a small-holding farmer, or a doctor who owned his own home.


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