Tucker Carlson, You Can't Sit With Us

In a segment about laws that could potentially curtail your personal freedoms, Tucker Carlson of Fox News says “I have a 17-year-old, whom I love more than my own life of course, but are 17-year-old really capable of choosing an entrée at a restaurant, much less voting?” the Fox News host wondered. “I mean, for real. Do we want them voting?”

Would you like to cut my meat for me too, Mr. Carlson?

What's up with Republicans saying their own teenagers are not smart enough to VOTE?

If these remarks were made based on race or gender, Mr. Carlson would have to apologize. He should do the same thing here, if only to the many 17 year olds who've been capable enough to earn wages and pay taxes by preparing and serving food. He's talking about the very people our country's future depends on and telling us we shouldn't participate because we're not capable.

If Mr. Carlson really thinks youth civic education needs improvement, maybe he could try to reach out more to young viewers. He had the perfect opportunity to do this by having Katherine Timpf of Campus Reform on his show. Not only can Ms. Timpf order her own food, she knows things like there are young people out there who are Conservatives and even more of them in the middle who could potentially vote for Republicans. Young voters in Virginia chose Ken Cuccinelli 45 to 39 percent over Terry McAulliffe and helped Chris Christie in New Jersey.

I mean, for real.

Not only are young voters capable of choosing an entree, we can influence the choices offered. Any candidate who doesn't respect our intelligence isn't worthy of our vote. Any news person who rejects an opportunity to appeal to young viewers and instead chooses to insult us is worthy of our scorn. The people who care about the future of this country and want to see it continue to move forward will not stand for these insults to a legacy they have helped build.

You don't get to discuss who is going to pay the check if you tell us we're too dumb to order off the menu. If this is what you're serving, young voters and future voters will chew you up and spit you out.

For Whom the Bell Tolls

The Salvation Army says it opposes "demeaning or mistreating anyone for reason of his or her sexual orientation."

But then it says if you work for the Salvation Army and perform or participate in a same-sex marriage or union:

YOU'RE FIRED!

If you're gay, the Salvation Army doesn't blame you. They don't deny that you exist and feel that marginalizing you is not helpful. They have no clue why you're gay. That's complex. Even though "some Christian believers witness a reorientation to heterosexuality," they understand "this has not been the experience of all." 

Since there's no scriptural support for marginalizing, demeaning, or mistreating you, if you're an officer in the Salvation Army your job is safe as long as you "uphold the New Testament standard of marriage as articulated by the Salvation Army." This means:

IF YOU HAVE SEX YOU'RE FIRED!

If you're a Salvation Army employee who hasn't witnessed a "reorientation to heterosexuality" yet and can't "embrace celibacy as a way of life," you are subject to disciplinary action but you aren't being marginalized, demeaned, or mistreated by an organization whose mission statement says they meet human needs without discrimination. No way.

If you think that love and being treated equally are human needs and denying your employees access to these things when you exist on funding from people who probably don't know exactly what you are hiding behind all those fake inclusive sounding words is wrong:

SIGN THIS PETITION AND SHARE IT!

The Salvation Army can't exist unless it gets donations. It came up with all these fake inclusive words because it knows that if word gets out they will discipline gay people for not being celibate, a whole lot less people are going to donate to them. The sooner they get the message that the majority of people in this country are not going to stand for these attitudes from somewhere they donate to the better. Evolve or become extinct. 

What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate

Governor McCrory gave a news conference today. You can watch the whole thing here. At 31:20 the Governor is asked a question about people who disagree with him and here is how he answered it:

"I'd like them to be part of the solution. And I welcome people who disagree with our policy stances to come up with ideas. And don't just tell us. I surround myself with problem solvers and that includes critics and allies alike. And what I want to encourage them to do is...I'm glad to meet with them if they have viable solutions to some very complex problems in NC and then we can agree or disagree on the solution. But I don't think anyone disagrees with the ultimate outcome. I've had some wonderful meetings in the Governor's office with some activists and some other people throughout the state and just private meetings away from the cameras discussing some of the serious issues we're dealing with and some of the potential solutions. But I think one area we all need to improve on is dialogue and conversation and not political soundbites against each other. And I would say that not only to ourselves and to my critics, but to members of the media. We all at times encourage that. I'm a big advocate of dialogue with people I disagree with but I'm more of an advocate of solutions."

This is after last month, when the Governor responded to my request to meet with him in an interview with WFMY by telling the lies that I am part of a publicity stunt, that I was outside his mansion gates hungry, and that my mom is "very strong activist" with MoveOn.

Solutions? How about we don't call young North Carolinians who are seeking the solutions and dialogue the Governor is such a big advocate of props. There's a solution.

I would love to hear the Governor's solutions on encouraging young people to take part in our government, since pre-registering to vote is a "bureaucratic burden." In case the Governor needs any ideas, the non-partisan Commission on Youth Voting and Civic Knowledge issued a report with a lot of great ideas.

The Only Thing We Have to Fear

Francis De Luca likes to call pre-registration, "the pedophilia enabling act."

From Moyers and Company, this is "State of Conflict: North Carolina"
Start watching at 32:48



"Where in the world can I go, on a government website, and find a list of 16 year olds and their home addresses?"

That's kind of creepy.

But if you call up the Board of Elections and ask them if the applications of teenagers who pre-registered, the pending applications, are included when you request a list of registered voters...

The answer is no.

You don't have to be afraid of democracy.

You should be afraid that someone would use this argument to discourage you from participating in it.

Meddling kids.

Thank You 2013. You've Been Very Good.

It's been quite a year and now that the end of it has come, many people will be reminiscing about the closing year and making plans and resolutions for the new one. Some people's resolutions are to exercise more or eat right. My resolution is to get legislation passed granting 16 and 17 year olds the opportunity to pre-register to vote and automatically be added to the voter rolls when they turn 18.

It's also customary for bloggers to make some kind of end of the year post, usually containing a list of some sort. Here is a list of people I'd like to thank for their support and encouragement in 2013. These are in no particular order and this is far from a complete list.
 



 Zack Ford

I wouldn't be writing this blog and therefore wouldn't have done anything I've done this year if it would not have been for Zack Ford. By writing about LBGT issues on Think Progress he showed me that writing can inspire other people to speak out and take action.




Have a Gay Day

Have a Gay Day published the first serious piece I ever wrote. It's entitled "What I Did on My Summer Vacation." They showed me in a big way that my words could make a difference for other people.





Senator Josh Stein

Senator Stein stood up for the ability of teenagers to pre-register to vote in the NC Senate when the new voting legislation was being debated. Even though the legislation passed and this opportunity for young people was eliminated, Senator Stein continued to talk about the issue. He also takes the time to listen and speaks to the ordinary people of his state with respect.



Reverend William Barber

Reverend Barber is leading a revolution here in North Carolina. He spoke to the young people, encouraging us to not fight but find solutions to problems. He also took the time to speak with me personally and was very kind and encouraging.





Melissa Harris-Perry

I never thought I would ever be invited to appear on MSNBC and I'm so glad my first live interview was with Melissa. Being named Foot Soldier of the Week and then a Foot Soldier of the Year are honors I hope to live up to someday.




Noah Read

Noah invited me to speak at Moral Monday here in Alamance County. He put so much work into making it such an awesome event with a great turnout and continues to work to make our city and our state a better place.





Mark Sandlin

Mark is a leader who leads with grace and writes with honesty and eloquence. He and his group, The Christian Left, were some of the first people who believed in me.




Kimberley Johnson

Kimberley is an inspiring writer and activist who has graciously read over stuff I'm nervous about. She's helped me publish some of my stuff over at Liberals Unite and has laughed and screamed with me over the craziness of politics and activism. With people like her on the job, women might just get equal protection under the Constitution in my lifetime.

Kevin Wilson Jr.

Kevin not only made a fantastic movie called Little Red Riding Hood  which gets people thinking about race and justice in the wake of Trayvon Martin's murder, he allowed me to be in the film. This was not only one of the highlights of my year, but of my life.




The Entire Staff at Fox 8 WGHP

Every experience I've had working with Fox 8 has been amazing. They've all been so fun and nice and let me say what I needed to say. They made me feel very at home and comfortable in their studio and not nervous at all before going on live television.

Molly McGowan

She was the very first reporter to contact me about doing a story and she has always reported what I've said accurately. She always contacts me to make sure she's got all the facts and stays away from sensationalism.

Alicia Menendez

When you're on live TV, not used to being on live TV, and get an echo of yourself in your earpiece, it's easy to panic but Alicia kept right on going and kept me right on going too.




Reverend Al Sharpton

Reverend Sharpton payed me a huge compliment on his show but at that time I didn't know about his activism when he was young. Now I realize what an honor that compliment really was.




Jamie Sohn

We might have never met under other circumstances, but will now be linked as sisters in baked goods forever.




Walter Boyd

Any time a local theater group puts on a show, Walter is always there to help in some way. He's one of the best examples of activism I know.






 The Everlasting GOP Stoppers

When they pinned the video of my Moral Monday speech to their Facebook page, I started seeing it everywhere. When I realized THAT many people cared about what I had to say, I took a chance and decided to start my petition asking for federal legislation so teens can pre-register to vote.



Too many people on Twitter to even name

When I decided to use my Twitter account primarily for politics, I started meeting so many great people who have been with me from the very start and are all working to improve things in our country. A special shout out to @LaPajamas, @ChynnaBlue5, @leslieks @Robyn780,and @OtherBecky who are just a few of the awesome everyday women I've met working for change.




 Everybody at MoveOn

What an amazing journey. MoveOn contacted me after I got a lot of signatures on my petition and helped me drive my campaign and bring my ideas to reality. It's a great honor to be MoveOn's youngest leader.

My best friend, Dominic

Because. 

Youth of a Nation

Right now, in the United States of America, land of the free and home of the brave, there are people who are arguing for raising the voting age. There are people who think that our nation's young people have no business paying attention to what's going on around us or taking action to help form a more perfect union.

The time has come to demand leadership that encourages our nation's young people and respects and values our opinions and our voices. Allowing teenagers to pre-register to vote has the ability to increase turnout among the next generation of voters. The cost to implement such a program would be minimal and there is no better investment we can make than to invest in encouraging more of our future leaders to become active participants in their local, state, and national elections.

I want to see all of America's young people have the opportunity to pre-register and be added to the voter rolls when they turn 18. I've started a petition to urge the leaders of our nation to come together and pass legislation that will give us this opportunity.
Give All of America's Teenagers the Ability to Pre-Register to Vote

Now, I need your help. I need you to sign this petition and share it with everyone you know. I would also like to see other people contacting and even starting petitions to their state lawmakers, urging them to get this done. I am just one voice and we will need many voices, especially the voices of our young people, in order to get our lawmakers to pay attention.

If you decide to start a petition or get a response from one of your elected representatives, please come and share it on my NC Youth Rock Facebook page.

It's time for America's children, young and old, to be seen and, more importantly, heard. Even the youngest citizens can take part by drawing a picture and sending it to their representatives.

Keepin' It Real

People can express a wide range of reactions, emotions, and moods. I made a funny video with my Friend Bryan O'Kelly Cox showing how some of these things are reflected in internet culture.

I read an article about Pat McCrory the other day. He said, "I want to speak to people while looking them in the eyes, so I can see their reaction." He wasn't looking me in the eye when he said this on a radio show and in response to me wanting to sit down face to face, "This is all very liberal groups using children as I think, um, props, to push a very far left agenda."

Pre-registration for teenagers to vote. That's the very far left agenda I'm pushing. My reaction, as screen captured from the above video:

Really?

                                      

McCrory also said in his recent interview, "I recognize that sentences can be parceled, things can be taken out of context and my political opponents and sometimes the media can run with that."

I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he just got caught up in the party politics. Many of us have been guilty of this. He doesn't know me. Maybe he doesn't have much experience with teenagers. Maybe he thinks politics is too confusing for us, like certain members of the North Carolina General Assembly.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/11/10/4455483/talking-off-the-cuff-mccrorys.html#.UoQdbfkWIeo#storylink=cpy

Governor McCrory also said, "If I make a mistake, I'll own up to it and say we made a mistake." 

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/11/10/4455483/talking-off-the-cuff-mccrorys.html#.UoQdbfkWIeo#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/11/10/4455483/talking-off-the-cuff-mccrorys.html#.UoQdbfkWIeo#storylink=cpy

The royal "we" hath made a mistake. I want no apologies from him. I think the young people of North Carolina deserve one though.