The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
"There is nothing you or anybody else can say or do that would get me interested in the politics of this country." The speaker was an earnest-looking young man, sitting with his buddies at the back of a lecture hall at the University of Calgary. They had just endured a 45-minute lecture (by me) on "Remedying the Democracy Deficit in Canada." Obviously, it had failed to impress. This particular student was reacting to my expressed concern that voting levels among 18- to 22-year-olds in recent elections in Canada have dropped to below 20 per cent. And he was saying that, as far as he and his friends were concerned, nothing could kindle or rekindle their interest. "Well, let's see," I thought. Albert Einstein used "thought experiments" to change his students' perceptions of the physical universe, so perhaps a little thought experiment can change this fellow's perception of the political world. "If I were prime minister, do you know what I would do?" I asked. He stared at me suspiciously, and I continued, "I would institute national conscription - two years of compulsory national service, especially for young Canadians like you." I paused for a moment to let the concept sink in, then added. "And I'd even abuse my prime ministerial powers - that's easy to do in Canada - to make sure that you and your buddies spend your two years on Baffin Island asserting Canadian sovereignty over the ice cap and the polar bears." He smiled a little, and began to scratch his head as I continued. "Why national conscription? First, because Canada needs your generation's energy and talent to restore the capability of its military to do everything from disaster relief at home to international peacekeeping abroad. And second, to teach you and your friends that governments - whether you appreciate it or not - have the power to reach into your lives and screw them up royally, even if you have no 'interest in politics' whatsoever. See 'Today's' P.# Con't from P.# "You don't like the idea?" I queried, sensing less than enthusiasm for my conscription proposal. "Well then, just to be fair - and democratic - I'd do one more thing. Before actually proceeding with a conscription law, I'd hold a national referendum on the issue, just like Prime Minister Mackenzie King did in 1942. So, if you and your buddies don't want conscription, you'd have to get involved up to your eyeballs in the democratic process to convince the electorate that conscription would be a bad idea." The comment and question period moved on to other topics, but when it was over, the student who had stimulated the above exchange came up to me for a chat. He again expressed his frustration with the seeming irrelevance of Canadian politics to him and his friends. But he also grudgingly conceded, with a laugh: "If somebody actually did that - instituted national conscription with a referendum first - I suppose we would have to get involved in politics, at least for a while." Conscription may be too drastic a measure for provoking the involvement of young Canadians in the politics of their country, but something dramatic needs to be done. When we ask, "How can we stimulate the interest of the younger generation in politics?" we are probably asking the wrong question. Today's young people do have interests - personal interests, legitimate interests, big interests - interests in their future, in relationships (especially with their peers), in pop culture, in the conservation of the environment, in international politics, and in coping with the positive and negative events of globalization. But they see little connection between those interests - their interests - and national, provincial or municipal politics as currently practised. The challenge for political leaders and teachers is to make that connection, and to make it real, explicit, challenging and action-oriented. Come to think about it, perhaps conscription for national service, and a national referendum to approve or reject it, isn't such a bad idea after all.
