Monday, November 02, 2009
My daughter, the voter
Luanne Traud
Recent columns
- Marking a difficult anniversary
- A few new Voices would be nice
- A rush to legislate
- An elementary problem with SOLs
From the RoundTable blog
As the teenager rambled on about her day, I was only half listening until I caught, " ... and, oh yeah, I found out today at school I'm a Libertarian. What I couldn't figure out is why they asked what we thought about pornography and sex between consenting adults. Do you know?"
Huh? Libertarian? Porn? Sex? Who's "they"?
They, it turns out, is the very same school that yanked a book off the library shelf because a father was upset by his son reading it. I've since read "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" and found it a deftly told tale of difficult, sensitive subjects. We would all wish to shield our children not only from incest and sexual assault but from the knowledge that such horrendous crimes occur. But, ignorance is not in anyone's best interest. The book handles the topic and adolescent dalliances into sex, drugs and "Rocky Horror Picture Show" with great care.
One parent's knee-jerk reaction should not keep this book long off the school's shelves, as there is nothing presented as gratuitous or titillating. The book could be helpful for troubled teens grappling with problems, thinking they alone feel a certain way, and for the blessed teens with good, safe lives as a way of recognizing that others have demons to confront.
Books and classroom lessons often help teens figure out where their place is in society, how they view their country, government and world, where those views might lead them after graduation, and, hopefully, with an understanding that not everyone shares their values. Some teens don't seek advanced education, so high school might be the best, last chance to open their minds, to cause them to think beyond their comfort zones.
That is what I discovered was going on in my daughter's government class when she was asked her views on sex and porn. As it turns out, the class took an online quiz at www.politicalcompass.org to help them understand their political leanings, and to figure out how their leanings fit in with those holding other views.
Students were asked a series of questions to gauge how they view their country and the world, the economy, social issues, society, religion and sex. The sex questions were posed to determine what role the respondent saw the government playing in the lives of consenting adults.
Overall responses are then graphed onto a quadrant to note whether the respondent leans left or right on economic issues and holds an "authoritarian" or "libertarian" view on government involvement on social issues.
On viewing the site, I was able to help her understand that she really wasn't a capital "L" libertarian, as in the party. The quadrants help to sort out the left's murderous Stalin from the pacifist Gandhi and the right's fascist Hitler from its much-heralded economist Milton Friedman. The graph helps to show how far one's views fall from more moderate ones.
I can see why her teacher thought the Web site would help explain extremes and centrists and the nuances. Perhaps these students will grasp what seems to escape too many adults: that it is foolish to label anyone left of center a liberal loon or to the right of center a vapid right-winger. While some of us may disagree on some issues, we might find that we share common ground on others.
At least I hope that is a lesson she and her classmates are learning.
Already some of them are eligible to vote, my daughter among them. She's packing a voter's registration card that she looks forward to using Tuesday to help select Virginia's next governor.
We talked about the need to not only vote, but more importantly to be an informed voter. Much to my surprise, she has latched on to this rite and is capable of sifting the pandering and ridiculous promises from the positions and records of candidates.
As her mom, I've found it interesting to watch her make the connections and to see how some of the questions asked on the www.politicalcompass.org test are things she should be asking of the candidates. She can now think about issues important to her -- funding of public education and treating all people, regardless of sex or origin, fairly -- and match those to candidates' views.
She might vote exactly the same way I do on Tuesday, but it won't be because she aims to please me or fears deviating from my values. She's recognizing her own value set, and I thank her teachers -- especially ones I disagreed with -- for causing her to think.
Traud is a member of The Roanoke Times editorial board.
