Its cool to vote!

GOOD MORNING FLINT !
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Date 02/11/08
By Terry Bankert Posted full article first to Flint Talk THEN summarized, for discussion, also posted to: http://flinttalk.com/viewtopic.php?p=24474#24474
Full article at Google blog Good Morning Flint, http://goodmorningflint.blogspot.com/ with citations. also posted to MLIVE Flint JOURNAL Flint Community blogs, Flint Citizen, Craigs list, Face Book, My Space and . Please circulate and post freely. Do you have suggestions for other sites to post to. Recent BANKERT VLOGG on :Mediation #1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnHdn-Ilu0E
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It's cool to care again![CBS]

Yesterday there was a brief TV news story on the liberalization of young voters from conservative families. A Google on Young Voters found the following.
It's a common adage among politicians and pundits: Young people don't vote.But after years of low youth turnout, that trend may be changing, if the 2008 primary results are any indication.[CBS]

Young voters are on a roll this election season. They rolled right through Super Tuesday in record-breaking numbers and are poised for a remarkable, maybe election-altering, turnout in November.[KCC]

One month into this presidential primary season, the under-30 set suddenly is present and accounted for at the voting booth. [TDMN]

Political experts are calling this election the year of the youth vote--a race where voters under 30 are proving to be a crucial component for political victory. [KS]

This election year is also one of the first in which candidates have made a concerted effort to target and reach out to young voters, Morgenstern said.[CBS]

FACE BOOK, YOU TUBE, MYSPACE.....

This election cycle will be a key testing ground for the networking sites to show their political capability. Candidates should start using YouTube to their maximum abilities by posting pithy videos of their stances and lives. They need to market themselves aggressively on Myspace and Facebook and post comments. The politicians of the USA could intrigue the youth by making the political process smaller than it is currently. Chances are, the only glimpse you will ever receive of a president will be from the TV. If things can get shrink back to the days of the candidate meeting the folks and kissing babies, that will snag the youth. Their campaign staff can actively make the web pages friendly to users and to potential supporters.[H]

"This is an entirely new generation of young people," said Heather Smith of Rock the Vote, a nationwide advocacy group. "They’re finding their voice in the political process now and realizing that when they do turn out, campaigns pay attention to them."[KCC]

This year, presidential candidates have been working to woo young voters to caucuses and primaries through the use of new technologies provided by the internet as well as text messaging. Social networking and videos posted on YouTube have gotten young voters involved, which caused record-shattering youth turnouts in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primaries. And somewhat unusual appeals have also surfaced. Amber Lee Ettinger, better known as "Obama Girl", has emerged as a YouTube and music video sensation with her musical tributes to Barack Obama called "I've Got a Crush on Obama" and "Super Obama Girl."[WU]

The potential clout of younger voters has long been ballyhooed. The numbers show they might finally be cashing in, politically.[KCC]

While college students don't regularly watch the news, or read the newspaper, their universal attachment to the internet ensures access to political appeals; they can catch a candidate's speeches and debates on YouTube. They also share their thoughts though social networking groups on sites like Facebook and Myspace, which bring people together and ultimately can receive billions of hits per day. [WU]

Voter turnout tripled among in the Missouri primary, according to a University of Maryland research center. That’s compared with the 2000 presidential primary, the last time similar data was available.[KCC]

While Obama may have been the first among this year's candidates to reach out to young voters, others like Hillary Clinton quickly caught onto the trend and launched her "Students for Hillary" campaign at high schools and college campuses across California using her daughter, Chelsea, as the campaign's icon. Analysts attribute Clinton's strong showing on Super Tuesday, at least in part, to that effort.[WU]

Generation "Y", Generation "Next" or the Digital Generation will have a tremendous impact on the United States. People of high school through the Grad School level have been exposed to electronics for years. I remember that my first encounter with the Internet was in Jr. High, and through college, I have remained an ardent computing individual. I am not the exception, but more likely part of the rule. The young generations are using the Internet and technology more widely than others.[H]

YOUNG VOTER TURNOUT AT 21 % UP FROM 7%

Nearly 191,000 young voters cast ballots in the state on Tuesday, compared with 71,000 in the 2000 primary. Turnout among young people was a woeful 7 percent in 2000 and hit 21 percent Tuesday.[KCC]

The numbers — and the zeal — are expected to grow through the November election.[KCC]

According to a recent article in The Buffalo News,David Burstein, who has recently released a documentary called "18 in '08" said, "What these technologies are doing is they're giving young people an unprecedented amount of power and access to the political process."[WU]

ROCK THE VOTE

Smith said Rock the Vote helped register a half-million young voters in preparation for Super Tuesday and is on track to register more than 2 million this year. Most will vote in November, she said.[KCC]

So far, young voters are playing a strong part in the narrative of this presidential primary season, a trend that started in 2004. Youth voter turnout had declined in all but one presidential election year between 1972, when 18-year-olds first voted and 2000.[KCC]

2004 MARKED A CHANGE

"In 2004, something changed," said Emily Kirby, of the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning & Engagement. "And again in 2006. Now we’re seeing this a third time with the primaries and caucuses."[KCC]

On Super Tuesday, the "youth vote" also tripled in Georgia and Oklahoma and quadrupled in Tennessee, Kirby said. Earlier, Florida and Iowa also saw a tripling in youth turnout, although not every state has had increases. Kirby said her center can’t crunch numbers from the Kansas Democratic caucus Tuesday or Saturday’s Republican caucus because of a lack of exit poll information.[KCC]

THE UNDER 30 VOTER

What’s going on with under-30 voters?[KCC]

Technology — specifically the ease and allure of the Internet — is part of what’s fueling participation.[KCC]

Meghan Whelan of Kansas City, Kan., did her part in upping the numbers, and she doesn’t plan to stop now. She’s a Barack Obama supporter and is using her MySpace page to keep 240 "friends" informed.[KCC]

MY SPACE

"It’s my own MySpace campaign," said Whelan, 26. "I talk about how Barack Obama inspires me and how we need to show people that as young voters we do care, that we need to go against the stereotypes."[KCC]

YOU TUBE

Then there was the YouTube video called "Yes We Can," a musical adaptation of an Obama speech. Made by a member of the Black Eyed Peas, the video has been watched more than 2 million times in the last week.[KCC]

"It was really powerful, so I made sure I put it up for everybody to watch," Whelan said. "We don’t necessarily have the money to donate, but we can put time and energy into this."[KCC]

YOUNG REPUBLICANS

Nathan Lipsky, 17, was one of hundreds of Kansans waiting in line Saturday to get into the Republican caucus at the Matt Ross Community Center in Overland Park. He is eligible to vote because he will be 18 come Election Day in November.[KCC]

His choice: John McCain.[KCC]

"I like his stand on foreign policy, and I think he’s the best candidate for the party," said Lipsky, a student at Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy in Overland Park.[KCC]

Farther back in the line, Lauren Cantril, 18, of Overland Park said she dragged her mother to the caucuses with her. Cantril said she’s for Mike Huckabee because of his anti-abortion stand.[KCC]

She also was motivated by how she regards the Democratic candidates. "I don’t like the Democratic people," Cantril said. "I just don’t believe in what they stand for."[KCC]

INCREASED NUMBERS

The 18-to-29-year-olds have something else: a big — and growing — head count.[KCC]

The year 1990 marked the highest number of births since the baby boom, which officially began in 1946, and those babies are turning 18 this year. Some 44 million people between 18 and 29 are eligible to vote in 2008, according to Rock the Vote, the young voter advocacy group.[KCC]

UNDER 30 ARE 25% OF THE POSSIBLE VOTERS

"That’s nearly a quarter of the electorate," said Smith, executive director, "and there’s a huge surge just waiting at the gates. By 2012, it will be nearly a third of the electorate."[KCC]

The strength of the youth vote is tipping elections, she said. An estimated 70,000 young voters cast ballots for Obama in Missouri’s Democratic primary, which he won by just 10,000 votes.[KCC]

IMPACT OF SOCIAL NETWORKING

Besides online factors — social networking sites, blogs, candidate Web sites, YouTube and so on — here are some of the reasons experts cited for increases in youth voting:[KCC]

•In the 2004 election, campaigns began hiring youth directors, who were charged with pursuing this untapped pool of voters.[KCC]

•Campaigns altered tactics, using more canvassing and other one-on-one appeals. Research shows that the more personal the appeal the better, especially when one young voter contacts another.[KCC]

•Contested elections feel more important, especially to young voters who are more likely to question whether their votes matter.[KCC]

75% OF THE YOUNG VOTERS THINK THE COUNTRY IS GOING IN THE WRONG DIRECTION

•This year’s issues seem particularly relevant to young voters. In a recent Time poll, 75 percent of under-30 Americans felt the country was going in the wrong direction, with particular concern about jobs, health-care affordability and the war in Iraq.[KCC]

YOUNG VOTERS ARE GOING FOR OBAMA OR HUCKLABEE

•Obama is attracting young voters. In most states so far this primary season, Obama has outpolled Hillary Clinton among young voters.[KCC]

In Missouri, the youth vote was 65 percent for Obama and 30 percent for Clinton. Among Republicans, 43 percent of young people chose Mike Huckabee, compared with 27 percent for John McCain, 18 percent for Mitt Romney and 9 percent for Ron Paul.[KCC]

Exit polls from South Carolina and Iowa show that Obama received more than half of the youth vote helping him to win both states. Last spring, Obama hired Hans Riemer, his youth vote director, which benefited Obama the most out of all the other candidates, according to an article posted by the Morris Daily Herald.[WU]

On the Republican's side, Mike Huckabee won Iowa, because of his "young evangelicals," a part of his campaign called "Huck's Army," which netted 37 % of young voters. Young voters also helped John McCain win New Hampshire, and to some extent South Carolina[WU]

Conversations with young caucus-goers and voters last week affirmed the analysts’ conclusions.[KCC]

Sara Parton and Annie Fulsom, both 17, were among the youthful Obama supporters who participated in the caucus at Mill Valley High School in Shawnee. They will turn 18 before the general election.[KCC]

Both said they feel well-informed about the presidential candidates. They read the candidates’ Web sites and watched debates. Parton likes Obama’s stands on health care and Social Security. Fulsom said she’s also drawn by his personal and political skills.[KCC]

"I like how he can move people with his speeches and how he can talk about change," Fulsom said.[KCC]

Laurie Gallagher, a 19-year-old University of Kansas freshman, said many students are fired up by Obama but also by, what they consider, the mistakes of the Bush administration. To stay informed, she joined a Facebook group called Barack Chalk Jayhawks.[KCC]

Mary Opie of Blue Springs, who was a Romney supporter and now undecided, said the wide-open race and the weight of current issues are drawing in the under-30 crowd.[KCC]

A study from last year at the Students' Public Interest Research Group, which works to turn out votes nationwide among college students, found that sending a text message asking students to vote a day before an election resulted in a 4 % increase in student turnout at the polls. [WU]

My generation wants people who are real. Using the Internet can help bring about that sense of reality to the generations. The youth can be brought into politics, through the collaborative force of a candidate being honest, real and open-minded. These things can be achieved through the alternate world of cyberspace. [H]

"They jst really need to appeal to (young people)," she said. "They have to feel a connection with (a politician) - I think that's really important." [CBS]

But Mr. Obama is developing a new political calculus, one that doesn't depend only on old-timers. And if early results are any indication, voting might actually be cool. [TDMN]

"It's cool to care again," he said. "It's fun and interesting and exciting."[CBS]

—end---

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Posted here by Terry Bankert 2/10/08
http://attorneybankert.com/

—where did this stuff come from—
[WU]
Wilkes University
http://media.www.wilkesbeacon.com/
[KS]
TV 27 Kansas
http://www.ksnt.com/home/ticker/15481711.html
[H]
Heilum, Ellend Heath
http://www.helium.com/debates/sbs/71960-political-polling-links-youtube

[CBS]
CBS News
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/02/06/politics/uwire/main3799902.shtml

[trb]
Comments of Terry Bankert
http://attorneybankert.com/
http://goodmorningflint.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/people/Terry_Bankert/645845362
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=113559892
http://www.youtube.com/user/terrybankert

[TDMN]
The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/opinion/editorials/stories/DN-turnout_07edi.ART.State.Edition1.45bbddf.html

[KCC]
Kansas City . Com
http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/483306.html

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