But in Philadelphia and Los Angeles, the big political conventions weren't the only games in town. An array of smaller gatherings attempted to bring attention to issues that get left out of the ``mainstream,'' themes too hot for the major parties to touch. When the teen-age members of the National Youth Convention met in both cities during the Democratic and Republican confabs, they put the stock position papers drafted in the First Union and Staples Centers to shame.

``Over the past several years, America has seen a definite increase in the need for an active, grass-roots community involvement in towns and cities across the country,'' the youth convention's Philadelphia statement began. ``1.5 million children have parents in jail, and 75 percent of women in jail are mothers.'' The statement emphasized reform in a section on criminal justice. ``Juvenile incarceration further compounds the problem as the fundamental unit of communities -- the family -- is ravaged, with seemingly no end in sight. We, the young people of America, feel municipalities across the country must actively engage youth and families to reverse this dangerous trend.''

The youth ``delegates'' were primarily high school and college students. Like 21-year-old Philadelphia resident Matt Markhart, they are willing to be ``a ripple in the pond,'' doing good works and setting a tone of conduct for other young Americans. But considering that only a third of eligible young voters show up at the polls in most presidential election years, they could use some help in motivating their peers.

The issue-oriented focus of the National Youth Convention may highlight a failing in most get-out-the-vote drives targeting young people. Most groups have focused just on registering voters, not educating them about the issues and the process. But why should people vote if they don't understand the nature of politics, know who the players are or what they stand for?

The problem, of course, is that it's difficult for nonpartisan groups to do voter education. Each side becomes convinced the nonpartisan group is really out to get him. Perhaps that's why neither Vice President Al Gore nor Gov. George W. Bush showed up to speak to the kids at the youth meetings.

One person who did was Green Party nominee Ralph Nader. Undeniably, he has more to gain and less to lose by attending virtually any media-op than the two big guns. But he kept his message to the convention participants in Philadelphia clear: ``You've got to have a sense of urgency. It's time for you to say to the adult population, `Stop trivializing us and our issues.' ''

In an interview I conducted, Nader emphasized the need for a new type of civics education in this country.

``I think a lot of youngsters will learn more if they learn how to be skilled citizens studying real-life problems,'' Nader said. He offered the example of a book called ``Kids and Social Action,'' written by a fifth-grade teacher whose student discovered a hidden waste dump on the way to school. That student helped motivate her classmates to petition the city and get the dump shut down. ``They learned about city government,'' said the environmental and consumer advocate. ``They learned about how they had to present their positions, so they had to write to learn how to present arguments. They eventually testified for the state legislature on the state Super Fund Act.

``Millions of youngsters are coming out (of schools),'' Nader continued. ``They know nothing about democracy, nothing about their rights, nothing about how to use rights to improve justice in their country. They become cynical, they withdraw, they don't vote, and a huge power vacuum occurs, and the vested interests move in.''

The same, I'm afraid, could be said about us adults.

Chideya, a New York journalist, is the editor of ``Pop and Politics'' (www.popandpolitics.com), an online journal of news and opinion. Distributed by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate.

© 2000 PioneerPlanet / St. Paul (Minnesota) Pioneer Press