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Saira Blair Becomes Youngest Elected Politician in US

I'm still thinking about this girl despite how long its been since I found out about her being elected. Which is very unusual for me. What she did was amazing.

I do have a few questions for all those that voted for her though...and this is in no way meant to belittle this woman in the slightest....but...Do those voters KNOW that this girl is only 18? Fresh out of high school? Is this an indication of what "low information voters" actually means? Or did they actually know and actually like this young woman this much? Or did they know but just not care because they absolutely hated what the other guy stood for?

I'm still shaking my head at this. In amazement, not condemnation.
 
I believe voters did know. She beat a two-term incumbent in the primary, so there was ample time to learn her age, and her father was a longtime state senator representing the same small district.

Interestingly, West Virginia has a "citizen's legislature" that meets for only 60 days between January and April. Will West Virginia voters elect an 18-year-old lawmaker? | PBS NewsHour Extra
 
How about more innate intelligence and achievement than a poverty pimping community organizer?

This was just a few weeks ago and local, I'd have gone if I could. PS-Carson has now registered with the republican party. I havent seen it covered in the news. Something for you to look forward to.


If you're wanting to compare him to Obama two years out of 2008, Obama had far more political experience than this guy does (and Obama had comparatively little to many traditional nominees).

Not a terrific sign.
 
If you're wanting to compare him to Obama two years out of 2008, Obama had far more political experience than this guy does (and Obama had comparatively little to many traditional nominees).

Not a terrific sign.

My point is that in the same vein as Saira Blair heres a viable alternative. And frankly he's probably overqualified. Also, dont discount the politics of being a chief resident and department chair at 33, and a world wide neurosurgery innovator. Neurosurg is still very rarified air even world wide.
 
How about more innate intelligence and achievement than a poverty pimping community organizer?

This was just a few weeks ago and local, I'd have gone if I could. PS-Carson has now registered with the republican party. I havent seen it cove red in the news. Something for you to look forward to.
Poverty Pimping. :lol: Sometimes they don't even try to hide their motives.
 
You know, it takes a pretty giant sack of balls to criticize Obama for being too inexperienced when he first ran for president, then turn around and elect an eighteen year old.

She represents a small district in the WV state legislature. I know you're now seriously attempting to correlate the WV state legislature to the office of the most powerful man in the world.

Who in her district criticized Obama for being too inexperienced and then voted for her?
 
Im with Kal and some of the others on this

Great for her, seems like an awesome and amazing accomplishment
At the same time i dont know if anybody 18 could ever get my vote in this country but thats not a knock on her

also her actual politics suck too but again that doesnt take away her accomplishment. I watched her interviews and a couple videos and she seems impressive for an 18 year old but nothing inspiring on a as a politician.

Kudos for her, no one can take it away from her!

But also scary to think about
 
She represents a small district in the WV state legislature. I know you're now seriously attempting to correlate the WV state legislature to the office of the most powerful man in the world.

Who in her district criticized Obama for being too inexperienced and then voted for her?

So putting people's lives into the hands of someone with next to no life experience is fine so long as their population is small? That seems particularly callous, especially considering as local politics affects people' lives much more directly than national politics.

I would say the mental acrobatics that conservatives are exercising n order to justify their hypocrisy is jaw-dropping, but there's really nothing surprising about it.
 
So putting people's lives into the hands of someone with next to no life experience is fine so long as their population is small? That seems particularly callous, especially considering as local politics affects people' lives much more directly than national politics.

I would say the mental acrobatics that conservatives are exercising n order to justify their hypocrisy is jaw-dropping, but there's really nothing surprising about it.

Who are the conservative hypocrites who voted for her but didn't vote for Obama because of his lack of experience?

I'm also curious how she has anyone's "life" in her hands? I have friends in the NH state legislature, and they have next to no power to do anything, much less control people's lives or have them in their hands.
 
Who are the conservative hypocrites who voted for her but didn't vote for Obama because of his lack of experience?

I'm also curious how she has anyone's "life" in her hands? I have friends in the NH state legislature, and they have next to no power to do anything, much less control people's lives or have them in their hands.

So now you're backtracking and arguing that nobody needs to worry about her because she is in reality essentially powerless. You just agreed that her age and lack of experience problematic.
 
So now you're backtracking and arguing that nobody needs to worry about her because she is in reality essentially powerless. You just agreed that her age and lack of experience problematic.

I never said that.
 
So now you're backtracking and arguing that nobody needs to worry about her because she is in reality essentially powerless. You just agreed that her age and lack of experience problematic.
Any 'power' she has remains within a group, and she serves in no leadership position.

You can relax, mate. Your life is not in her hands.
 
So putting people's lives into the hands of someone with next to no life experience is fine so long as their population is small? That seems particularly callous, especially considering as local politics affects people' lives much more directly than national politics.

I would say the mental acrobatics that conservatives are exercising n order to justify their hypocrisy is jaw-dropping, but there's really nothing surprising about it.

Would you say your life is in the hands of the local politicians?
 
I never said that.

"I'm also curious how she has anyone's "life" in her hands? I have friends in the NH state legislature, and they have next to no power to do anything, much less control people's lives or have them in their hands."

=

"Don't worry everyone! I know she's just 18, but relax, she has no power to meaningfully affect us in any way!"

From her website:

I’m living proof that you can get a good education in West Virginia if you choose to but it’s very difficult to find a good paying job and I want to change that.


If she has "next to no" power, how does she plan on doing this?

Lower taxes, limited government and a fair, predictable court system will encourage economic growth which equates to more good paying jobs. I believe West Virginians deserve better! Enacting sound economic principles will solve virtually all of West Virginia’s socioeconomic woes.

If she has "next to no" power, how does she plan on doing this?

Go to Issues - dev and you'll see some other issues she wants to tackle. How, if she has next to no power, can she do this? Because reading through her website, she certainly seems to be under the impression that she'll have the power to effect change, one that directly affects her constituency. Is she wrong?
 
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Would you say your life is in the hands of the local politicians?

The more local the politics, the more directly they affect your lives. Anybody who belongs to a HOA (which is about as local as it gets) knows exactly what I'm talking about.
 
Any 'power' she has remains within a group, and she serves in no leadership position.

You can relax, mate. Your life is not in her hands.

So her power is symbolic?
 
"I'm also curious how she has anyone's "life" in her hands? I have friends in the NH state legislature, and they have next to no power to do anything, much less control people's lives or have them in their hands."
"Don't worry everyone! I know she's just 18, but relax, she has no power to meaningfully affect us in any way!" If she has "next to no" power, how does she plan on doing this? If she has "next to no" power, how does she plan on doing this?
You appear to be confused in the differences between 'power' and 'influence'. She now has the 'influence' to perhaps win others over to her point of view but does not have the 'power' to act unilaterally..
 
"I'm also curious how she has anyone's "life" in her hands? I have friends in the NH state legislature, and they have next to no power to do anything, much less control people's lives or have them in their hands."

=

"Don't worry everyone! I know she's just 18, but relax, she has no power to meaningfully affect us in any way!"

From her website:




If she has "next to no" power, how does she plan on doing this?



If she has "next to no" power, how does she plan on doing this?

Go to Issues - dev and you'll see some other issues she wants to tackle. How, if she has next to no power, can she do this? Because reading through her website, she certainly seems to be under the impression that she'll have the power to effect change, one that directly affects her constituency. Is she wrong?

None of what you quoted and posted here changes the fact that I never once said what you claim I said in post #85.

You just agreed that her age and lack of experience problematic.
 
The sad thing is, there's nothing she could say or do that would make her seem less out-of-touch or knowledgeable than half the people in Washington.
 
The more local the politics, the more directly they affect your lives. Anybody who belongs to a HOA (which is about as local as it gets) knows exactly what I'm talking about.

Can you name the members of the city council and county board of supervisors where you live?
 
I'm still thinking about this girl despite how long its been since I found out about her being elected. Which is very unusual for me. What she did was amazing.

I do have a few questions for all those that voted for her though...and this is in no way meant to belittle this woman in the slightest....but...Do those voters KNOW that this girl is only 18? Fresh out of high school? Is this an indication of what "low information voters" actually means? Or did they actually know and actually like this young woman this much? Or did they know but just not care because they absolutely hated what the other guy stood for?

I'm still shaking my head at this. In amazement, not condemnation.

This was my thought too, but could this be a good thing? A case where people are voting for somebodies policies, rather than their face? I don't care if somebody is 'low information' on somebodies personal information, as long as they are 'high-info' on the policies? Of course this is an extreme case, as age can affect someones suitability for positions of authority, but this is an interesting case study of whether we vote for the politician or the policy. I'd love to see some kind of poll to the voters to glean some data but I don't think many would admit to not knowing she was 18!

As far as the candidate herself, fair play to her and all her efforts, although I must admit my first thought was nepotism (how many teenagers can hire public affairs companies). I'm pretty much diametrically opposed to her views and think it's a shame that one of the tenets of our youngest elected politician is that "it's ok to have the same views as our grandparents" (seems a bit of a waste too me, what's the point of having a young politician if she thinks like an old one). But of course this is just making me sound bitter, she absolutely smashed it in the elections and I hope that her appointment can give some of the other politicians (including her defeated opponent) a sorely needed kick up the backside.
 
I'm pretty much diametrically opposed to her views and think it's a shame that one of the tenets of our youngest elected politician is that "it's ok to have the same views as our grandparents" (seems a bit of a waste too me, what's the point of having a young politician if she thinks like an old one).
Because there are some 'views' which deserve to be remembered and respected. Many of them are in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and other agreements and literature written centuries ago.

Opinions or political movements can come into fashion and, often after an unsuccessful and bloody trial, soon disappear among others into 'the dustbin of history'. We can learn a lot from those who came before us, just as succeeding generations may learn from our follies.
 
Because there are some 'views' which deserve to be remembered and respected. Many of them are in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and other agreements and literature written centuries ago.

Opinions or political movements can come into fashion and, often after an unsuccessful and bloody trial, soon disappear among others into 'the dustbin of history'. We can learn a lot from those who came before us, just as succeeding generations may learn from our follies.

I agree that many old views should be remembered and respected, however this rememberance and respect should be reasoned, not just there for the sake of it. As many have noted here, one of the great things about having young people in politics is that they can rock the boat a little, mix things up with youthful enthusiasm and passion (not to say that these qualities are necessarily exclusive to youth). I don't see that being the case much in Blairs appointment, which IMO is a shame.
 
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