I've Been Watching You Dad Ain't That Cool?

I know as a daughter I have a certain amount of influence over my mother. I can tell her that an outfit does not look nice on her, and she will not buy it. I can tell her that a certain drink at Starbucks is amazing and she needs to try it, and she will. But I do not think that I would ever be able to tell her who to vote for and have her actually do it.
It has to be one of the shocking articles I have ever read in the New York Times in my life, Young Obama Backers Twist Parents' Arms. The article was about how kids are influencing their parents into voting for Obama, simply because the child believes in his policy and wants him to get more votes. Now to be honest, I am an Obama supporter and always have been, I refuse to have him get votes by people who do not support him or his policies, but rather voted for him because their little girl begged and held her breath until her father said he'd vote.
The article said that it maybe because of the close ties that kids have these days with their parents that maybe a factor in their influence in their parents vote. "Parents now are exponentially more entwined with their offspring, inclined to place their children’s emotional well-being ahead of their own. Even when students live away at college, many parents call them and send text messages every day."
Again I am all for students having a close relationship with their parents, I don't think anyone is against that, but to have the power to influence voting takes away the meaning and spirit behind democracy as a whole. A vote is supposed to be a persons voice being made. It is a personal choice, not one made by anyone else. It is upsetting that parents are so desperate these days to be closer to their kids that they will vote for a person their kid supports and in some cases even change party affiliation.
Having a college student help in a campaign is fine, having political talks with parents is wonderful too because it opens generational dialogue but voting for a person without that choice being your own... that is UnAmerican.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/08/us/politics/08kids.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=todayspaper