I mean, right now, nobody is intently inquiring about who a 12 year old is voting for. Commercials on TV don't target them for voting. They aren't asked to take positions on extremely complex issues like EFCA or stem cell research. They are spared a lot (not all, but a lot) of the most polarizing political controversies we're exposed to.
I'm not really trying to defend this argument, but if I was going to be a devil's advocate, I'd say that increased exposure to American politics might not be good for juvenile mental health.
Ahh. I see what you mean now. They aren't expected to have already taken sides, even though they might have anyway. I wish that mentality were allowed to the rest of us. Being pressured to prematurely take a side really encourages less rational and more identity-based arguments.
On the thought of them being spared all of this, I run into more than a few tweens (wife's sister being one of them), who have taken positions on complex issues anyway, and defend them using the targeted messages TV ads and pundits throw around. Obviously, I'm not implying they understand the context of their arguments -- I can't help but worry most people don't -- but they have already formed an initial opinion about things.
I don't expect you to defend this argument -- it is just me thinking out loud -- but I wonder how much we're already seeing of the juvenile mental health effect of politics, since we seem rather ineffective at protecting them from it.
I'm not really trying to defend this argument, but if I was going to be a devil's advocate, I'd say that increased exposure to American politics might not be good for juvenile mental health.