Gods no. As a matter of fact, I think we should raise it to at least 30. Or, as many states used to, require all voters to own property.

There's a reason that the constitution imposes age limits on reps, senators and the president. The framers understood that a minimum level of maturity is necessary to understand the complexities of international governance (remember that in the framer's minds the primary purpose of the Federal government was the conduct of international discourse); Likewise the voting age restriction. We have collectively decided that the obligation to vote requires a certain level of maturity. Since we do not allow poll tests, the only way to do this is to set an arbirtary age limit.

That age limit is currently 18, but used to be 21. We're saying, in effect, that we believe today's 18 year olds are as mature as 21 year olds 50 years ago. I'm sceptical. 50 years ago the average 21 year old was married, had kids and a job. They had some skin in the game, so to speak. How many 18 year olds today can say that? How many 16 year olds?

I have two girls, aged 27 and 17. The 27 year old is reasonably well informed on curent events. She can even find Iraq on a map, which is more than a lot of people can do. The 17 year old, despite a 140 IQ and an excellent secondary education, simply does not have the maturity and depth of experience to make a reasoned judgement. She is far more likely to believe the last 30-second sound byte she heard than to take the time to research an issue, discuss it rationally and come to a well-informed decision. She says things like 'There's just too many old people. They should just die and let the young people take over'. Huh?

Do you really want a baggy-panted, huge-shoed, backwards baseball cap wearing, skateboard riding slacker mall rat making descisions about how to spend your tax dollars? How about immigration, welfare, social security, the federal deficit (think any of them actually know what a 'deficit' is)?

Personally, I don't care if they feel disenfranchised. Too bad, they're kids. They act and think like kids. They're more interested in downloading the latest ring tone (on daddy's cell phone bill) or watching a podcast about what K-Fed or the latest pseudo-celeb is doing than in wrestling with convoluted problems like immigration reform.

I would have supported this when I was 16. But then again, at 16 I didn't know my a** from a hole in the ground.