One of the most talked about matters in this federal election campaign is the stunning apathy of young people towards the political process. What does the future hold for us if our youth never develop an interest in public life? Who'll be the Secretary of State for Freshwater Fish Marketing thirty years from now if none of the young people of today develop a taste for the cutthroat world of politics? Here are a few of our ideas for getting young people interested in politics:

·CBC Cribs: Modeled after the popular American program MTV Cribs, in which pop stars provide guided tours of their palatial estates, this new hit television show would show viewers around the homes of Canada's political leaders. This week, we check out Stephen Harper's place, on CBC Cribs: "Over there….that's my…desk. And that's a pen…on my desk."

· A bong, affixed with the party logo of your choice, for all people under 30 when they show up to vote. Go ahead and use that idea, Elections Canada-you have our permission.

· Sure, people in other countries stand in line for hours, sometimes days, in the baking hot sun, just so they can vote. But that's in other countries. You've got hash to smoke.

· Politics isn't just for older people. Plenty of people in their 50's have made a valuable contribution to public life.

· Being in the 18-34 demographic ourselves, we know that young people have a lot to do, and short attention spans to boot…I'm gonna go play some video games now.

· Tell young people that their vote won't count. That should get them out in droves. Reverse psychology.

· Free tip for Liberal strategists: Smoking is cool. Why not a campaign ad with Paul Martin smoking?

· Hey Poli. Sci. undergrads: The Marxist-Leninists will never form the next government if you don't get out and support them on election day.

· Get a group of khaki-clad baby boomers to address young people directly in a series of television ads, telling them "it's like, totally cool to vote."

· If you don't get out and make your voice heard by voting for the no-hope NDP candidate in your affluent Montreal riding, then you won't….wait, there's a point I was trying to make here….

· Encourage parents to have frank and earnest discussions with their voting-age children about the importance of voting those goddamn Liberals out of there…

· You hardly see anything about the federal election on the major American networks. If we could just get the panel of judges on American Idol to talk about the respective virtues of Paul Martin, Stephen Harper and Jack Layton, that would definitely get young people to become more involved in the political process.

· Young people like using the Internet. Therefore, maybe we should let people vote via the Internet. That system of voting won't be prone to any kind of tampering or hacking. No way. Just hit the reload button and vote as often as you like.

· If you don't get out and vote, your university tuition is gonna remain exorbitantly high. Ah, even if you do vote, it probably won't change. Bad example.

· Developing policies and talking about issues that are actually germane to young people might help.