I was amused, but not surprised, by an article I read from the Washington Post claiming most people are too ignorant to vote. This study was done by the Intercollegiate Studies Institue (ISI) on civic literacy, which included 2500 college students, elected officials and citizens which were selected randomly. They were given a 33 question test on basic civics and 1800 failed. Sadly, only 27 percent of elected officeholders surveyed could name a right or freedom guaranteed by the First Amendment. The ISI feels the problem lies in watching too much television and talking on the telephone. The solution they feel lies with education reform, which should start in high school. Students should be reading newspapers and being quizzed weekly on current events.
The lack of knowledge was also evident during the whole election process, when the news would interview people on the street. Alot of people had no idea who was running for vice president or even what the views of the presidential candidates were. Alot of people based their vote on who was cuter or cooler. Pretty scary when the country is facing two major problems with the economy and the war on terror.
Robert Rozycki
POS1601
Tuesday, 6 P.M.
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5 comments:
I was aware of this during the election. I realize that this election got more people involved than ever before but I think it was for the wrong reasons. People are under the impression that Obama is some sort of savior and in reality they have no idea about his policies or what he stands for or even who his running mate was.
Emily Pullen
POS 1601
Tuesday 6pm
That’s the problem with today’s society; we have become lazy and ignorant of the things that matter. Many other places like Asia and Europe have higher standers of education, and their youth are more aware of the things around them. With all the different video games and TV shows, all that has done is make the children of the future become lazy and not want to leave the house. This is a problem we have to fix soon, because I do believe in this past election many people did not vote on policies, only reasons that were not relevant.
Joseph Otte Pos1601
Tuesday 6pm
Ugh it was so annoying how everyone's facebook status was 'to vote no matter what'. I think it is just as ignorant to go and vote for a candidate you know nothing about, as it is to not vote at all.
April Pingol
CPO2001
TR1135
Seriuosly i dont know rather they were not voting because it was a black man running and because they hated McCain .Because i've heard plenty of people say i hate john and don't want Barack to win,not thinking about their future and what we need to improve on;i thought that it brought out how everyone really felt.I also think kids should be tested on current events , i know i barley watch tv dont have time i dont stay focused to it when i do. I Dont read newspapers or articles but i did always keep up on the canidates who where running for president.I guess when i hear about big things that i think will affect me i research them.
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