Recently, I’ve been giving some thought to the capabilities of the human mind and the meaning of intelligence. The common perception is that human intelligence grows as we age, that young children start off stupid and it is adults’ job, through the various institutions of education, to implant the right “knowledge” into children’s brains until they’re intelligent like us. I think that’s very, very far from the truth.
As part of the lengthy, ongoing debate about the voting age on Facebook in response to NYRA-Southeast Florida’s awesome voting age ad, one person (trying to sound much smarter than he is) posted something about women & youth. While this isn’t the best articulated version of this argument it is one that we get quite…
Someone on Yahoo Answers recently asked a question to the effect of, “Do you consider 16-year-olds to be adults?” As of this writing, I’ve not been able to get my rather lengthy response through Yahoo’s wall of technological uselessness to actually post it, but I was rather pleased with myself, and Alex agreed, so I…
Wednesday the New York Times printed an op-ed written by Anya Kamenetz entitled, “You’re 16, You’re Beautiful and You’re a Voter”. Kamenetz makes the case that the voting age, drinking age, credit card ownership and other age restrictions should be lowered to 16. She also describes competency testing as a more flexible standard than “increasingly…
Becoming a more egalitarian individual in respect to age is a continual process. It requires constant examination of all the habits, ideas, and attitudes we develop in life. In general we learn how to behave and how to think from the people around us. Our thoughts on politics, our mannerisms, our religious beliefs, our tastes…
A new book by Dr. Robert Epstein, The Case Against Adolescence: Rediscovering the Adult in Every Teen, argues that young people are more competent than most people think. Epstein’s research led him to the conclusion that teenagers are essentially as competent as adults, and treating them as children just leads to behavioral problems. NYRA is…
There appears to be absolutely no evidence whatsoever that the light or moderate consumption of alcohol by persons under the age of 21 causes any brain impairment or harm.
The Innocenti Research Centre at UNICEF recently put out a lengthy report that interprets the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and explores many issues pertaining to youth and children’s rights. The report, titled “The Evolving Capacities of the Child,” finds that age does not directly correspond with competence and capacity, and cites numerous…
In a 5-4 decision handed down yesterday, the US Supreme Court ended the death penalty for people under 18. NYRA members are encouraged to read the full decision of this case, Roper vs. Simmons. While good for ending the sick hypocrisy involved in applying the heftiest adult penalty on minors with few adult rights, this…
