Tuesday, April 07, 2015

Federal Election Rising...Do The Kids Even Care About #Duffy?

AllTheProMediaHysteria
ThatFitsVille


My hunch is that they don't.

And, regardless, I'm almost certain they won't give a hoot-'n-heckfire about the entire Senate schmozzle six months from now once the coming Con-Offensive has convinced all those not paying the closest of close attention that 'Everybody does it'.

But here's the thing...

As we were discussing the other day, if the kids were to vote en masse, even if it were just in the swingingest of swing ridings, they really could change the course of the coming election. 

But will they?

A couple of snippets in a very good bit of reportage and analysis by a gaggle of Ryerson journalism suggests it will be as difficult as all get-out, because:

...Only about 39 per cent of people aged 18 to 24 showed up to cast a ballot in the last Canadian federal election, the lowest turnout of any age group in the country...


Additionally, in a pretty comprehensive poll at their own institution the Ryerson kids found that 41% of their fellow students (i.e. university students in the center of a large, urban, liberal/left-leaning city) are already signalling that they likely won't vote in the upcoming federal general.

****
Now.


In my opinion, the key here will be to get as many boots (i.e. Doc Martens, not just Florsheims) as possible on the ground, and not all over the place but concentrated in those ridings, going door-to-door, bar-to-bar and yoga studio-to-yoga studio dragging the pledges out of all the young'uns they can find.

Because clickativism only counts for Facebook and Patreon.

Not elections.

OK?


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And don't think I'm dissing Patreon here in a general karmic sense because I am most definitely not....In fact, I actually think it is a super fantastic way for folks to directly fund other folks (most of whom are also youngish-type folks) to make art and other things sustainably over the longterm...Here, for example, is a good one on of those young folks, in my opinion at least.
And for the new-mediasts out there who have a dream and no capital....As we mentioned recently, Patreon is also how Jesse Brown is making his nut.
Lastly, I really dig the fact that Patreon was started, not by a software developer looking to get bought out by the Google but instead by a musician, Jack Conte of Pomplamoose, one of the first of the truly independent YouTube video song making super-groups...And now he's joined forces with those other sharp young still kinda/sorta kids...The Green Brothers...(Yes E. and e, 'those' Green Brothers)...


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10 comments:

Dana said...

Even if the youth vote were to double it wouldn't be a significant enough number to make a difference.

It's a blind alley.

Anonymous said...

if they did they would vote most likely for a peer JT.

never trust anyone over 30?



Dana said...

That supposedly would be a bad thing, right? Voting for JT?

So you figure, whoever they are, they would all live in Papineau, Quebec where the could, in point of fact, vote for JT. By whom, in an unfamiliar spirit of generosity, I will assume you mean Justin Trudeau.

Or maybe they would cheat in their local ridings and write his name onto their local ballot - thus nullifying their selfless, valiant effort.

Is it necessary to display your ignorance of the political system in which you live everywhere you go online or only in certain places?

If you could, I would appreciate you maybe letting me know where you plan to post in future so I can avoid those places and don't have to read you?

Sorry if you find this offensive but you started it.

Anonymous said...

Actually I am voting for MP Justin Trudeau.

Dana said...

So you live in Papineau, Quebec then.

RossK said...

Anon--

I don't have a problem with that

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Dana--

Do you really think it wouldn't make a difference if it were to happen in targeted ridings?

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e.a.f. said...

if young people care about the environment they might want to get out and vote and not for the Cons. They might want to give the Greens a try. they don't have to like the mainstream parties, but the Greens are about the environment and that is where the young people of today will be living tomorrow, an environment which was destroyed by the Cons.

Now young people might want to vote because there is a rumour going around that Harper wants to bring the Israeli model of military conscription to Canada. yes that is right all 18 yr olds, after high school, into the Canadian military.

It is being alleged the discussion took place in Jan 2014, while harper and his 100 or so best buddies went to Israel on the taxpayer's dime. The rumour says the meeting was between the Israeli P.M. bennie, canadian P.M. stevie, and now departed cabinet minister, John Baird. So is that why Baird left? well we should know before the election whether stevie wants a conscription for Canada's young people.

Anonymous said...

by peer I meant youthful leader might attract young votes.nothing else

RossK said...

Got it Anon-

Thanks.

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eaf--

Wouldn't that be a most interesting discussion point during an election campaign.

Might be something Tommy could make a little hay on, even if only to state emphatically what his position is as he lays out a youth training program/entrepreneurial fund.

Or some such thing.

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scotty on denman said...

Trite analysis is the adolescents' calling card. Regards politics it goes double because the oldest of the demographic were only nine when an era of internal faction preoccupied every party, which pretty much excluded young voters, and turned them off politics. It's thus been 15 years since any of us had an entirely satisfactory party to support. Young voters are an inexperienced blank slate as a result. The question is whether or not this boring, uncool era (from the young person's POV) has ended and parties are ready to engage with youthful aspirations. It would seem, for example, the Liberals have survived their own internal war; the NDP seem to have tamed their own T-Rex dinosaurs, and become more centrist; the Greens have passed their most important milestone in winning a few seats. Come to think of it, the party most likely to tear itself apart happens to be the governing one. That means 3 of the four major federal parties have survived their respective struggles, which, I think, finally invites new (young) voters to participate in policy politics, instead of ideological politics. I don't think young voters are near as ideological as they've been characterized---that's why they claim to be interested in the environment, a practical issue that they see affects them.

Yet I wouldn't pigeon-hole young voters as being narrowly interested in environmental issues to the exclusion of everything else---like many pundits have. We have to realize young voters are most often being called upon to participate in order to maintain their parents' political wars---to get rid of Harper, for example---which I don't think really respects what young voters might have in mind.

Been quite a few characterizations of young voters lately, and a lot of it is pretty self-serving. Probably the most encouraging thing one could say to young voters is that not one single party has been able to define, corral or manipulate the youth vote, such as it is, and that whatever relevant evolutions have happened have been more like coincidence---like JT's age, or the NDP's surprise Quebec caucus who were so wet behind the ears, some of them spent the campaign on holidays.

The fact remains: more and more people are calling upon young people to vote---not on principle (as previously, however weakly), but for real, serious reasons. This is new.