If young people want to influence politics they must at least register to vote and then turn out for the elections to actually vote. That would be learned behavior for the youngest eligible voters, but perhaps the drama of our current times will be motivating for the young people today.

There is also an ever growing probability that destabilization of our complex economic structures developed to support endless growth using dense fossil fuels as energy (energy is money) will in turn destabilize our political systems. Which brings up the specter of rising authoritarianism given living force by Trump and the Trump Republicans.

It’s disorienting for me that young people, women, and some minorities have a significant representation within the Trump political push. So, obviously there are psychological forces happening in today’s chaos that I don’t identify with. But, my life may be overtaken by authoritarian political forces in the next few years. Even if there is a respite in 2024 from Trumpism the lull may not last long if civilizational collapse is pushed forward by ever more extreme climate disasters.