Recently, I sat down with my 17 year old son and chatted about politics and his belief on current political topics; mainly taxes, redistribution of wealth and the AHCA. I am very proud of him and agree to disagree with how he would like to see things. Like I told him, our national strength is our diversity in this country. If we lose the diversity and everyone becomes carbon copies of one another… we will not grow. I believe we all can agree to this… no one wants anyone else to fail, but everyone wants everyone to take individual responsibility for their actions. As an example, if I am doing my part and you are not doing your part, why should I give what I earned to you who haven’t earned it?
As an example he could relate to...
Take your school grades, I told him (by the way he is a 4.0 student and is in AP and Honors classes)... If, I came to you and asked you to give some of your GPA earned to a student who was failing and you knew that that particular student didn’t put forth any effort, was constantly missing school partying, smoking, drinking, sleeping in class, etc… would you do it? He said no of course not.
What if you were made to do it from the school, would you be upset? Yes, he said.
Do you think that would help people, including yourself to try harder, want to learn and make good grades? He said No and Dad I see where you are going with this (taxes and redistribution as it relates to social programs) and it makes sense.
Now what if it was your choice to give some of your GPA to a student who you knew was trying their best and needed it, would you do it? Maybe he said. EXACTLY, I said. It would be a choice we made not taking from us. (Taxes and redistribution as it relates to giving to charity).
For all that take the time to read the analogy above… my 17 year old got it… why can’t you? It didn’t change his opinion of what party he wants to support… that wasn’t my purpose in teaching him. The life lesson I want him to learn is for him to do his home work on who he wants to vote for. Instead of what most people do; listen to a political campaign slogan, ad, punch line or someone else. I also told him I don’t mind if I am in the minority opinion and the majority opinion rules, so long as everyone has a seat at the table and can discuss political based opinions on things openly… Let’s face it; I am human and not perfect.
I still believe that our vote is the equalizer to all discussion. Right, wrong or indifferent, I informed him that when an individual is running for public office they now have 3 bosses:
1. Their constituents (Majority Rules)
2. Their financial backers/ allies in congress (Quid Pro Quo)
3. Their political party affiliation (Platform Agenda)
All the debate of who will be president, control the senate, and house will be answered come Election Day. No one can accurately 100% of the time predict the future. With that being said, when he turns 18 and able to vote, I asked only one thing of him, just like in school…
DO YOUR OWN HOME WORK!
Yes, being a responsible voter is that simple. I don’t care how much you respect someone else’s opinion… you have a brain, so use your own. Don’t let a party or anyone else decide how you should vote.
Just some fatherly advice, thanks for reading.
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Comments
I think your "analogies" are off base.
I admire your style...the fact that you wanted to be sure he is awake rather than trying to shape his thought. Good for you.
I wish he were trying to shape yours...and if he were, I would be wishing him lots of luck.
Good post, SA. I suspect I know your wish for the election...and I am more and more convinced that you and others of like mind will find that you have won.
But the victory will be at huge cost...to you...to your fellows...to our country...and to the world in general.
I am really proud of him. I want him to have his own mind and look at things from all perspectives; that includes not just listening to me. It makes us grown when we understand multiple points of view. It has always been my opinion the answer is somewhere in the middle.
(BTW, I only used the title as a catch phrase to influence people to read the post, just like mainstream media does to mislead its viewers - I neither consider myself a democrat nor a republican)
I always am willing to learn from all ages and walks of life.
My wish for the election is that whomever is the elected the next POTUS they understand "We" the people. As an independent, I am leaning toward Romney... have been disappointed with the current POTUS lately.
I look forward to a time when our congress is moving instead of sitting around and pointing fingers at one another.
Again thank you for your response.
Would that most parents feel that same way.
Tough going right now for America and Americans...and for all the peoples of the world. We gotta be a lot brighter about how we deal with survival...and many of the things you advocate for helping your son find his way through life are needed by the masses.
Stick with it.
You mentioned the "residtricution of wealth", and taxation, as if they are linked. I am infrerring from what I have read here that you mean to say that the Democratic perspective on taxation is to advocate "residtricution of wealth", and yours is different.
You used the example of grades as wealth, and asked if giving grades earned to another who had earned less would be acceptable. I have inferred from this that you are making high grades analogous to wealth, and giving the grades to someone who earned less as some form of taxation. The analogy does not fit in a variety of ways. I'll mention only two. The taxes are designed for system maintenance, not competition. Grades are a measure of competition within a maintained system. You are comparing apples and oranges.
A more analogous comparison would be to ask the student if he is willing to work more, or do extra credit in order to receive more, higher grades. This is what compares in a competition model. A system maintenance model, presuming that the child is a student at a public school, would be to ask, are you willing to pay x% property tax to attend that school? If it is a private school, are you willing to pay $X.00 in tuition. That is the system maintenance model. To switch the models in the analogy is structurally deceptive. Competition in a classroom which grades on a curve, which is the standard, is a zero sum game. There is a limited number of grade point to give, and the highest achievers receive the highest amount. Down the scale studenets are penalized. Attending the school itself is a different matter. The more who attend, presuming people pass levies and pay taxes, the cheaper it is to attend. The competition exacts a cost on the lower performers, not the high achievers. Your model is not a proper analogy.
In this hypothetical scenario the grades/income earned with respects to taxes or charity works and is not at all deceptive. Think about it, do you have a choice on what taxes you get taken from your pay check? No you don’t. Do you get to tell the government how to use them? No you don’t. However, do you have the ability to control charitable donations? Yes you do. That is why I donate to programs I believe are successful; The Fisher House and Make a Wish Foundation to name two.
I used the grades as something he can relate to (he is a senior in High School) in order to prove an overall point and he understands. This analogy in my opinion is perfect.
Thanks for the post.