Apathetic Youth: Why We're So Oblivious

I`ve heard it all, lazy, unintelligent, reluctant and of course apathetic. All of these things may seem to clearly define a teenager`s involvement in politics within Canada. I mean, most of us can`t vote and wouldn`t even if it was an option, an embarrassing minority keep up with government news and an even smaller group actually participate in campaigns. Adults give up on us, members of parliament don`t even bother trying to rile us up anymore, it`s quite a sad situation, but I`m not here to bash my peers but instead to provide some reasons as to why we care so little.
The first reason is undelivered promises. We aren`t the wide eyed, innocent, cherub faced youth people think us to be. When people promise us lower tuition fees and more liberal policies we are sceptical because of undelivered ideals of the past. We may be young, but in our few years, a simple lesson has made its way to us and stuck more fiercely than any other; that lesson is that no matter who is in power, nothing ever changes. Shockingly, you begin to realize that we may be on to something.
Second, the attempt of politicians to talk to us is often condescending. Polls see us as unreliable voters and many representatives treat us as though we have brittle minds; speaking in slow careful sentences, laced with horrible clichés and obvious claims to win us over with ridiculous ideas most of us care not to even entertain. Maybe we would support someone more if they happened to treat us like functioning human beings.
Lastly, there is a distinct lack of young decision makers represented or even clear issues that students and youths care about. There seems to be a disconnect or a perception that the old chose government and that the young have no business in that realm. We need not to see young people as simply a means to get to office but instead a valuable resource and part of the governing process. A shift needs to take place if they want to shake us out of our socially induced slumber.