The public school system and common core curriculum has failed our generation in more ways than one. For this article though, I will be focusing on a particularly important subject that does not get treated as such. This subject, when neglected can affect our nation more so than having an adult populous that doesn't understand chemistry or geometry. Every high school student has to take a government class, just one, the topic that runs our country, and affects everything that our nation stands for. We are a country founded on democracy, and lead the way for the rest of the world to move towards the democratic process. Yet, the majority of our society has little to no understanding of the political system which we are all a part of whether you believe it or not. Millennials are becoming apathetic when it comes to voting and expressing their political views in the ways that count. They are more than happy to post about their opinions on Facebook or Twitter, but when you ask them if they are registered to vote, participate in any local elections or understand what a voter initiative is, their answers are usually, no. Some high school students get great government teachers and come out with a great understanding of our democracy, but others are not so lucky.
Before I get going on a tangent about our messed up education system, let's get down to why I am really writing this article.
Recently, a friend posted on Facebook the following status, "Pro-tip: If the presidential race is between Trump and Hillary, do not vote for a third-party candidate or write in Bernie Sanders if you don't want Trump to win. Why? Because if you really, really, really, really don't want Trump (a.k.a., me and most of the people I know) you can't write in a candidate or vote for a third-party candidate because it splits up the vote. If Bernie doesn't get the nomination, then I'll definitely be sad, but don't make a terrible decision people! Please."
No matter your political opinions, there is an important message here that far too many people often forget. When we are unaware of the rules and processes of democracy, we can make decisions that can hurt us more than help us. Example: voting for a third party or writing in a candidate, would split your parties votes. Using the democratic party as an example, with confused opinions among the party it is becoming a hot topic for people to suggest writing in Bernie or having him run as a third party. The truth about this situation is that it would separate the democratic delegate votes and cause a split among the party. This weakens them and allows the opposition to win, in this case Trump. If you want to take down the other candidate, then that can't happen if you don't vote for the actual name on the democratic ticket.
This brings us back to my first thoughts. A topic as important as this should be taught in schools, and I am sure that is, but perhaps in one day of class whilst getting skimmed over quickly. This is just one example of a broken system and the lack of importance that our schools put on the foundation of our democracy. I think that certain people are glad that half of our country is under educated when it comes to politics. It is time for a revolution. We need to have an educated populous so that we can be electing the appropriate people to office and voting for the right changes. It is not fair to have only the informed making decisions for us. We all need to be informed. Education is free and can never be taken from you. Knowledge is power and our nation is getting weak.
As the election gets closer and closer, it is time for the millennials, and all others who are trying to stay out of the political sphere, to start making educated decisions. Don't blame the system; prove the system wrong.
