Wow. My daughter has just awakened.

[Avalux]

My eldest who is now 26, has never been political; never even wanted to discuss politics with me in the past and has not voted in any elections. It's not through lack of trying on my part since I've always been quite vocal and raised her to be the same. In contrast, her 19 year old sister is very involved, voted last year for the first time and is participating in Occupy Austin.

There have been many times both of us have been frustrated with the eldest for her complacency.

Last night, that all changed.

Imagine my delight as I sat listening to my eldest tell me it's time she become involved. She believes that what's happening in this country is wrong and she can't sit by and ignore it anymore; it's her time - her generation's time - to make a difference. We talked for over an hour about the economy (the US and global), the political landscape....I had no idea she'd been paying attention to me and what's been going on. But she has.

She told me she regrets not voting for Obama in 2008, but she will vote for him in 2012. She said "Mom, I remember when Obama was campaigning in 2008. I thought his message "Yes We Can" was hokey and I didn't care much about any of it since I don't like politics. But now I realize he was asking us - asking the American people to get involved and help him; he doesn't have the power to do it himself. He's only one man up against a lot of enemies. I really believe Occupy Wall St. is exactly what he wanted when he said "Yes We Can". The first three words of the Constitution are - "We the People" - we should never expect that by electing someone, they take office and magically fix our problems. We need to do it together."

We agreed that some who voted for Obama expected him to fix everything in a short period of time and when it didn't happen, became disillusioned. We do, after all, live in an instant gratification society. We both expect as time goes on and the movement grows, Obama (who is being appropriately cautious) will embrace it.

You know, my daughter's generation - which I had my doubts about, should be taken seriously. We're witnessing it in the streets, in the parks...and it's not a fad or just something fun to do for the time being. If my daughter can have a turnaround like this in what seems like overnight, I have a great deal of hope things will get better in this country.

The time is now.

[RaleighNCDUer]

1. Welcome. nt

[alcibiades_mystery]

2. My younger brother has made a near religion of his apathy towards politics

And he's now all "Occupy Wall Street" this and that, very supportive.

It really is a remarkable transformation. These folks are definitely doing something right.

[Avalux]

3. It is remarkable!

My daughter also said she sees the 'age' of the US as being in its 20's - correlating to her generation and about the age when individuals either grow up and do what's right, or sink. That's where our country is right now.

[The Doctor.]

32. A very apt analogy.

It's congruent with my take that the human race is in its 'depressed teen' years where it starts to realize what it really is and must make a choice to grow up, remain deluded and useless, or commit suicide.

Up until the last few weeks, I've been pretty sure it was the latter we were all headed for.

[Raster]

4. They are seeing the world they will inherit and realize they must act.

[lunasun]

37. same with a family member of mine

exactly same thing
with OWS charged up now
before was never political
went to rally I could not believe it
came out of nowhere but it must have been building for him
as it has been for many IMO

[roguevalley]

39. there's a 23 year old boy I work with who told my sister-in-law and

I that he never votes, never will and we can't make him care. The fucker. I told him tell me how he feels when the overloads lower the minimum wage to $1.35 like when I was working back when. Dipshit. Good on you and your daughter, OP. I am SOooooOOooooo delighted for you and your family. There is hope for your daughter but none for this idiot boy.

[tavalon]

5. While I am one of the people mad at Obama,

it hasn't been for what he couldn't accomplish, it was for who he surrounded himself with and who he threw under the bus. "Why, yes, those are tire tracks on my head, thanks for noticing."

But whether Obama really did expect us to do this or not (and I suspect he didn't care enough to notice), it is our time, it is We The People now and he will follow, whether he wishes to or not and whether this is what he envisioned or not.

And it has ended up being the youth, such as your daughters who show us that We The People are too big to fail. I'm proud to stand side by side with them.

[Avalux]

6. You are right....he, other Dems and maybe even some Republicans will follow.

And that's how it should be; how Democracy is supposed to work. Thank you for supporting our kids - they are our future. :-)

[tavalon]

9. Absolutely!

[Name removed]

15. Deleted message

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[Solomon]

33. LOL You guys really send me over. LOL

It's so much fun watching you guys take all the credit. Obama set all this up while everybody was griping at him for doing so, then, when it starts to work, you guys rush in and claim he's doing it because of all the flack you were giving him. LOL t's hilarious. You guys are leading and Obama is following.

Good to know.

[tavalon]

34. Everything is up to us

no matter what you believe.

[Name removed]

42. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[stillwaiting]

48. +1; It's unbelievable that anyone would credit Obama or ANY of his Administration officials for OWS

[UnrepentantLiberal]

50. +2; Those kids who voted for him are now in the streets for lack of anywhere else to go.

[dionysus]

51. lol

:rofl:

[Javaman]

49. +1 nt

[barbtries]

7. good mom

good daughter. i am so happy for you. still waiting on my three sons. one rolls his eyes, the other listens for about five minutes and cuts it short, and the last one understands, pays attention, but has not been active. yet. hope lives.

[Avalux]

8. Keep trying and be patient....

how old are your sons? I am sure they'll come around; you're a good mom for continuing to try with them...and very soon the noise will be too loud for them to ignore. ;-)

[barbtries]

16. yeah, i hope so

the oldest is 35 - he's the one who listens for a while. and the only one so far with kids of his own.
then middle son - knows and understands, goes to law school - will be 28 in 5 days
finally the youngest - 19. lackadaisical to the point of laziness, he drives me crazy! he is however the one that's lived with me through thick and thin and a lot of hardship and tragedy. i know he's paid some attention.

certainly i can never give up on these guys. the best thing i've ever done or ever will do, them and their sister. :)

[jwirr]

10. Many in my family have been silent and I felt frustrated about it. But

every now and then they would say something to me that would make me realize that they know what is happening - they are just so busy trying to support their families and keep their heads above the water that they do not have all that much time.

I use what little money I have to spare to buy magazines like "BackHome" and "The Nation". After I read them I pass them on to the grandchildren. A magazine can lay there for a month until they have a few hours of freedom to look at it unlike a tv program that disappears in a very short time.

I have a great deal of hope for the younger generations. They are awake and they are taking action. Hopefully they learn from our generation: we were awake - we took action - but we did not go far enough. Do not let them buy you off with half measures.

[Avalux]

13. Good idea with the magazines!

Whether we know it or not, the kids do pay attention. And yes now they are taking action.

[marlakay]

21. I wonder if I sent my kids the Nation if they

would read or even look at it??? I live many states away from them so its not like they would just happen to read at my house. Maybe we should all send them Funny Times, its a subscription we get of lib comics.

[mwb970]

44. I love "Funny Times"!

Especially the liberal political humor. There could never be a publication like this for right-wing nuts, since they don't "do" humor, wit, satire, etc. (though they might chuckle at a photo of Occupiers being beaten or the like).

[druidity33]

46. Try Rolling Stone... music and reporting! nt.

[gateley]

41. Movies - - get them to watch some Michael Moore and then

some real life-based stories like Fair Game.

[MadMaddie]

11. Fantastic news! The more engaged that her age group gets

the better off the country will be.

[Avalux]

23. Yep. They seem to know exactly what they're doing. n/t

[pacalo]

12. Up until OWS, I had been worried about the young generation's complacency.

The young generation has volumes more influence in shaping the future by putting on the pressure. Younger people are corporations' most desireable demographic & are viewed as being the biggest spenders for buying their goods & services.

I'm as thrilled as anyone that I was wrong to be worried. This young generation has been paying attention & has shown us that they know wrong when they see it.

Perhaps your daughter was inspired by the OWS protesters; generally, young people will listen to their age group before they listen to their parents about politics.

[Avalux]

14. It's a catch-22 for corporations who've put so much effort into influencing our kids.

They've been bombarding them with advertising, with bright and shiny things. The kids are realizing they may never be able to afford what corporations have 'promised' and ultimately, that a consumption culture is not what they want anyway. All that brainwashing has backfired.

[elleng]

17. Good to hear this!

My eldest, same age as yours, has been interested/involved for some time, and its nice to have that connection (except when we're both pissed at the same repug thing, we swear; at least WITH eachother, not AT eachother!) Younger daughter also interested. They grew up in DC, so its kind of a hometown thing, but I'm happy for it.

[Avalux]

24. We live in Texas -

so it's not very popular to be liberal here. I remember my girls coming home from school, shocked by what a teacher said (as opposed to what I taught them). We'd always discuss it. Lots of talking in my home, and sometimes swearing AT them too! :hi:

[marlakay]

18. Happy for you!

I have two daughters one who agrees with me and one who actually was the one who told me about Obama voted for him and now they are going republican because of money….I am trying very hard not to overdo my telling her that is a selfish way of life. I thought I raised her better than that. It's mostly her husband who is military. I have to admit it hasn't been easy on him for ten years being a democrat surrounded in all his offices by republicans. Now he is high up officer, they are making good money and they have convinced him to change.

So my daughter is doing it I know for her husband. She said she watched the debates and doesn't really like any of them but….

So for me now its a fine line between talking to her about greed and selfishness and keeping the relationship between her and me strong.

Lately we just don't talk about it. She knows how I feel. The last thing I said because I know she is pro choice and non religious is about how the courts which are 5/4 now would then be 6/3 and religion would take over america in disastrous ways.

My girls are 30 & 32.

[Avalux]

25. It is a fine line and sometimes it's best not to talk about it to preserve the relationship.

All you can do is hope she comes around....I think she will. :hug:

[Douglas Carpenter]

19. this is truly wonderful......perhaps there is hope for this old world after all

[Avalux]

26. It's easy to discredit the youth...

but they're a lot smarter and perceptive than we think. There's definitely hope. :hi:

[great white snark]

20. .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztVaqZajq-I

:applause:

[Avalux]

27. Awww...love it! Thanks! n/t

[lunatica]

22. I am delighted by and proud of our youth

[Avalux]

28. Me too. It's so corny but I start crying when I see them being so brave.

And they are brave, to protest, face police, speak out against such powerful institutions. :hi:

[butterfly77]

29. Did you tell her...

WE ARE THE ONES WE ARE WAITING FOR!!!

[Avalux]

30. No....but I will! Thanks. n/t

[ZombieHorde]

31. Awesome. OWS is great. nt

[proud patriot]

35. my 15 yr old has recently become more politically invovled

[southernyankeebelle]

36. Its about time the young people are in the streets. They will have the support

of others as long as they don't start violence. The republicans are praying for that to happen and tell us I told you so. These young people will make a difference just like the kids in the 60s did until the violence started.

[fedupinBushcountry]

38. My daughter is 28

Although she has voted and has been involved in presidential campaigns, she has never pushed on other things that her generation needs to discuss and speak up about. Until the other day on FB, this is what she wrote:

"What is the point of slamming OWS? Do you want private corporations to have more power than our government? What are you gaining from joining with mass media to discredit a movement that aims to benefit the majority of people? This is not a party issue and why must we always have such a black and white vision of every movement, cause, or issue?"

That one thought started a great conversation with her friends, it was so good to see them really show what they are thinking and that they need to speak up.

I really think that they are going to change things. I have always told my kids about the 60's and 70's and if it wasn't for our age group back then, we would of never moved forward.

I hope your daughter has this discussion with all her friends.

[Tx4obama]

40. Here are a couple Obama quotes for her ...

So let me remind you tonight that change will not be easy. Change will take time. There will be setbacks and false starts and sometimes we’ll make mistakes. -Barack Obama

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek. -Barack Obama

[tomp]

43. if she's getting behind obama she's still asleep. nt

[stlsaxman]

45. Wonderful for your daughter! Here's the world "MegaCorp" has our children living in-

"Fear Of A Blank Planet" Porcupine Tree

Sunlight coming through the haze
No gaps in the blind
To let it inside
The bed is unmade
Some music still plays

TV, yeah it's always on
The flicker of the screen
A movie actress screams
I'm basking in the shit flowing out of it

I'm stoned in the mall again
Terminally bored
Shuffling round the stores
And shoplifting is getting so last year's thing

X-box is a god to me
A finger on the switch
My mother is a bitch
My father gave up ever trying to talk to me

Don't try engaging me
The vaguest of shrugs
The prescription drugs
You'll never find A person inside

My face is mogadon
Curiosity Has given up on me
I'm tuning out desires
The pills are on the rise

How can I be sure I'm here?
The pills that I've been taking confuse me
I need to know that someone sees that
There's nothing left
I simply am not here

I'm through with pornography
The acting is lame
The action is tame
Explicitly dull arousal annulled

Your mouth should be boarded up
Talking all day
With nothing to say
Your shallow proclamations
All misinformation


My friend says he wants to die
He's in a band
They sound like Pearl Jam
The clothes are all black
The music is crap

In school I don't concentrate
And sex is kinda fun
But just another one
Of all the empty ways
Of using up a day

How can I be sure I'm here?
The pills that I've been taking confuse me
I need to know that someone sees that
There's nothing left
I simply am not here

Bipolar disorder
Can't deal with the boredom...


Here's the powerful video for the strong at heart-
THIS is what our children MUST awaken from!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efsm6aJPybg

[RainDog]

47. k&r n/t

[obxhead]

52. What we are witnessing in the streets and parks is not for support

of Obama.

It think it is a product of the lack of change Obama has fought for.

[Cherchez la Femme]

53. #OWS is not FOR him

he ignored and actually reversed his campaign promises, so the people went around him.

He or any of his cronies attempt to co-opt this movement they will be laughed out of town;

for HE, as much as most other politicians

is the problem!


Further: If he had governed --did his job-- the way he said he would, there would be absolutely no protests.

Period.

[Harmony Blue]

54. You should be proud!

Don't underestimate us younglings...we have a lot of creativity, empathy, and passion to unleash upon this world.