Over-reading The Tea Leaves

You may catch a conversation going on around the blogs about the Youth Vote.

here more here

Make of it what you want. Obama got a slightly larger segment of the Youth vote out. That isn't to be ignored.

But pointing out that they appear to be more liberal (I'm shocked! Shocked, I tell you!) as a rationale to significantly change a small government, solid values party is a load of bunk, seen by people who want to see it for their own reasons.

What happens when they get older, start earning a paycheck and paying taxes and raising families and, consequently, become more conservative?

Change, again?

That isn't a party of principle, it's a finger in the wind, most often raised by political opportunists who want to win this or that argument of the political day no matter what the longer-range interests are for a strong America.

There is always a lot of hyper-analysis done by political junkies in the wake of an election, especially a losing one. Some of it is important, some of it yields nothing much than the time spent working a crossword puzzle.

Occasionally, it can be fun.

Comments

[WAHOO WILLIE]

A few moons ago I marched in the streets so 18 year olds could vote. Seemed only right that the people who were dying in Vietnam should be allowed to vote for or against the people who were sending them there. Their children (mostly) are more conservative than they were, certainly more ambitious.A great number of the ones I talk to are more libertarian in their thinking than Obamites. They voted for him because of the war. But we are right about one thing. When school is over and they go on to build their own lives, opinions will change for a lot of them. Things look a lot diiferent when you work 50-60 hours a week and see almost half your check going to the government.....Some of that going to people who chose not to go to school and can't keep a job.

[IslamoLlama]

"-- A few moons ago I marched in the streets so 18 year olds could vote. --"

A few moons ago? Thanks Hiawatha.
I think the same folks working 50-60 hours a week were tired of seeing half their tax money getting pissed into the cesspool we created in Iraq. They weren't too fond of watching Bush run up the national credit card like cash was going out of style, either.

But I'm sure when the economy finishes cratering out and all those newly graduated college students can't find work to pay off their massive student loans, they'll be really really made at the government for funding unemployment, food stamps, and social security.

When FDR implemented those programs back in the 30s and 40s, I remember the voting public running that guy out on a rail. Seriously, who wants to live in a country full of welfare queens?

"-- Things look a lot diiferent when you work 50-60 hours a week and see almost half your check going to the government --"

The highest current tax bracket (for those making over $250k / year) is 33%. Obama is going to change that to 39.6% This may come as a shock to you Willie, but 33% is "one third". Perhaps you're not doing so well on your taxes because you don't know enough math. If you can find time in your busy day, you might want to brush up. And if you're making over a quarter mil a year, but working 50-60 hours a week, why not take a lower paying job with lighter hours? Then you fall into a lower tax bracket (hurray! lower taxes!) and have more free time to brush up basic tax facts (hurray! education!). Bonus points: You can use the additional free time to march in the streets for various other civil rights that interest you.

[WAHOO WILLIE]

Smart girl, poor memory.....I'm retired and Buffett and I dont make a salary anymore. DOnt pay state taxes (income anyway). Darlin' if you think income taxes is all anyone pays, maybe you need to work a few more hours a week so that you can actually own something. It all comes out to significantly more than 1/3 doll face. Now it would seem though that somone who interned for a CPA would know slightly more about taxes. Then, that could be the reason you weren't put on full time. If you can't pay your huge college loans off in a few years, maybe tech school would've been a better idea.............

[WAHOO WILLIE]

DOH!!! "significantly more than 1/3 doll face." should have read "significantly more than 1/3, even in the 28% bracket, doll face."

smoochies

[Todd]

"What happens when they get older, start earning a paycheck and paying taxes and raising families and, consequently, become more conservative?"

Today's youth could indeed become more conservative on the issue of taxes once they start working for a living. However, this is the MTV-generation and they are likely to keep their progressive views which include being very open-minded towards same-sex marriage, and seeing the issue of race as well...much more of a non-issue than people over 45. That means if the Republicans hope to one day turn today's young Democratic voters towards their party, they will need to throw the social conservative evangelical wing of the party under the bus, and change the color of their party from vastly lily-white.

[BR]

Quote: "Republicans ... need to ... change the color of their party from vastly lily-white."

Well, if they did, they sure wouldn't be voting for any "same-sex marriages" .....

Time story excerpt:(California)"Gays came back in some polls, but they couldn't pull out a win. Part of the reason is that Obama inspired unprecedented numbers of African Americans to vote. Polls show that black voters are more likely to attend church than whites and less likely to be comfortable with equality for gay people. According to CNN, African Americans voted against marriage equality by a wide margin, 69% to 31%."
Source:http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20081106/us_time/whygaymarriagewasdefeatedincalifornia;_ylt=AhzBUM4jFtZP05qMZGPd4.Cs0NUE