I’d been accustomed to driving a well used Mini and so I was ready for one of the affordable new cars which was not too big and so I wouldn’t have too much hassle parking. In the end I came across an offer to buy a Ka, I considered would be just right in my opinion. I wrote a note of the particular seller’s number, took a huge breath and made the contact. I explained to the owner that I’d been looking at cheap new car deals and could I come and take a look at the vehicle he had available. We arranged an occasion and so I arrived, anticipating a test out drive with the new automobile. The man wasn’t willing to permit me to take a test drive, not even combined with him, that I could not fully grasp. Even though the car looked to be in good shape plus the vendor was requesting a lot less than the list selling price, I thought better of buying it without getting a test drive. Many individuals in the UK come across great, affordable new cars through offers in their neighborhood newspaper, and some, just like me, wind up back at their neighborhood supplier where they understand they’ll go for a test drive. If you are looking at best new car deals in your local paper, you might want to get a support strategy for buying, just in case.

This is election year and often, as parents, our conversations turn to politics. Our beliefs, our fears, our tolerances or our impatience. Are our kids listening? Are they being influenced? Who is the bigger influence: Parents or Hollywood? Mountain Dew and suddenly little Timmy wants it. Not a big surprise. Most of these impressions are harmless, as long as parents maintain the final buying/consumption decisions. But more and more these days, celebrities are using their power to voice their personal political opinions. Which would be fine, but when their statements are bias and lean to the left or (occasionally) right, is that the message we want sent to our children? Does it follow our beliefs? And, how does it influence children? When George Clooney goes up to accept his Academy Award and gives a long speech on how liberalism is basically the wave of the future, he's molding his fans' minds.

Fans may or may not have already felt that way but his opinion seems to have an impact on society. George Clooney is just an example. More and more politicians are using actors to be their voices. You need not be politically active nor even agree with a political side to feel the influence. As adults/parents, chances are we have already formed our core beliefs. But, what about the kids? Raising children today is much different than generations prior. Kids do talk about policies and elections. They live in the same world we do and are affected by many aspects of the political fall- out. There is no way to completely isolate your children from differing political opinions. Even if you never let them watch tv or listen to the radio, there are still the playground, school and neighborhood friends that have been influenced and now feel empowered with their new viewpoint. What you can do though is teach children how to become an informed American citizen and voter.

When your children turn 18 and go to the voting polls, hopefully you will have instilled in them a sense of responsibility to vote their minds based on research. Instead of a movie star influence. Wouldn't it be great if Hollywood help send the message out to children to go research and find out for themselves what they truly believe in? Sad to say, some adults don't even do that. They, too, succumb to well paid messages. Voting is an extra ordinary privilege and shouldn't be taken for granted. Each vote does count and it is our children we are handing over the governing to, all too soon. Include your children in appropriate political discussions. Encourage them to ask questions and assist them with research on issues that are of interest to them. There are plenty of websites and books out there speaking from a mutual standpoint so they can be educated and learn to vote for their own reasons on a subject.