Welsh 16 year olds get the vote

[Mr K]

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

No, they are not. They may be physically strong, but mentally they would not have fully developed.

Choosing who runs the country is an important matter and we cannot afford for young people to have the vote when they can so easily be influenced by adults close to them.

If there is an issue here, it should be the minimum age at which you can fight for your country that is raised, not the voting age that is lowered.

Lol, you can't afford them to have a vote when they might not vote the way you want them to more like!

Youngsters today are better educated and more informed than ever. I'm afraid it's older generation that tend to be more bigoted and influenced by tabloids. There should definitely be an IQ test before you're allowed to vote, age should be irrelevant.

[papa smurf]

Originally Posted by Mr K

Lol, you can't afford them to have a vote when they might not vote the way you want them to more like!

Youngsters today are better educated and more informed than ever. I'm afraid it's older generation that tend to be more bigoted and influenced by tabloids. There should definitely be an IQ test before you're allowed to vote, age should be irrelevant.

You should stop doing yourself down,i'm sure if you try you can actually listen to others points of view.

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

No, they are not. They may be physically strong, but mentally they would not have fully developed.

Choosing who runs the country is an important matter and we cannot afford for young people to have the vote when they can so easily be influenced by adults close to them.

If there is an issue here, it should be the minimum age at which you can fight for your country that is raised, not the voting age that is lowered.

Best think about taking the vote from over-65s, then, as their cognitive functions can decline by 10% from that age...

The study found a 9.6% decline in mental reasoning in men aged 65-70 and a 7.4% decline for women of the same age.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16425522

[Carth]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Best think about taking the vote from over-65s, then, as their cognitive functions can decline by 10% from that age...

Does that also apply in the case of Judges, MPs, Musicians etc etc?

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

No, they are not. They may be physically strong, but mentally they would not have fully developed.

Choosing who runs the country is an important matter and we cannot afford for young people to have the vote when they can so easily be influenced by adults close to them.

If there is an issue here, it should be the minimum age at which you can fight for your country that is raised, not the voting age that is lowered.

Excuse me but that's my area of expertise being a retired secondary teacher..My experience is most teenagers will ignore their parents.

Originally Posted by Carth

Does that also apply in the case of Judges, MPs, Musicians etc etc?

Judges and MPs, yes - why musicians?

[TheDaddy]

Originally Posted by OLD BOY

No, they are not. They may be physically strong, but mentally they would not have fully developed.

Choosing who runs the country is an important matter and we cannot afford for young people to have the vote when they can so easily be influenced by adults close to them.

If there is an issue here, it should be the minimum age at which you can fight for your country that is raised, not the voting age that is lowered.

What raised from 18? The UK doesn't use child soldiers. That said I think the voting age should be lowered, people bang on about young people not voting and being disenfranchised, wonder if being told they can't participate when they're enthusiastic ish about it has anything to do with it

Originally Posted by Hugh

Judges and MPs, yes - why musicians?

Because nearly always a musician is more creative and produces their best work when they're young er

[OLD BOY]

Originally Posted by Mr K

Lol, you can't afford them to have a vote when they might not vote the way you want them to more like!

Youngsters today are better educated and more informed than ever. I'm afraid it's older generation that tend to be more bigoted and influenced by tabloids. There should definitely be an IQ test before you're allowed to vote, age should be irrelevant.

I don't care about how they vote. What concerns me is that most young people are unduly influenced by their teachers and lecturers, and do not have sufficient life experience to understand that views of Utopia are just fairy tales.

This is too important to muck about with. I am prepared to accept 18-year olds having the vote (despite my instinct, which tells me that 21 is more appropriate), but 16 is one step too far.

---------- Post added at 20:23 ---------- Previous post was at 20:19 ----------

Originally Posted by Hugh

Best think about taking the vote from over-65s, then, as their cognitive functions can decline by 10% from that age...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-16425522

But despite some elderly people suffering mental decline, most still have sufficient experience of life to make better choices than those with no real experience of life.

I shouldn't think that there are many people with dementia would want to vote, let alone remember to do so.

---------- Post added at 20:27 ---------- Previous post was at 20:23 ----------

Originally Posted by Maggy

Excuse me but that's my area of expertise being a retired secondary teacher..My experience is most teenagers will ignore their parents.

As a parent, I was always careful not to influence the political views of my children, something they have thanked me for since they became adults.

Unfortunately, parents are powerless to influence the crap that they are fed by teaching staff. And students are more influenced by them than their parents.

I am sure that you would never have fed these hungry minds with your political views, Maggie, but could you honestly say the same of your colleagues?