Obama on schools: explain the controversy, please
September 08, 2009 By: almostgotit Category: Obama, Obama on schools, education, parenting, school speech controversySince when did “Do your best at school” become a coercive, politically-biased message?
Barack Obama, the man we legally and democratically elected to be our president, wants to support education by speaking in our schools today, as both Bill Clinton and GW Bush did before him.
“Special interest groups” are protesting Obama’s speech. For real? I’m struggling to believe it, and even wonder if the media might be making up a controversy that doesn’t exist. What’s even remotely controversial about “do your best at school?”
The president is not going to talk about health care or anything else of a political nature. He even made the text of his speech available ahead of time, so parents and educators could be assured of that.
Mr. Obama is a black man who was raised by a single mother, who nevertheless managed to be an educational success: he knows what he is talking about. Moreover, he has already proven to be an inspiration to an entire socio-economic class that desperately needs role models.
I have no patience with people who only love democracy and freedom of speech when it serves their own interests.
And I have no patience with people who are apparently so afraid of the man himself that they can’t let their children hear ANYTHING he has to say… and yet remain willing to raise those children among the dangerous electorate who chose this man as their leader.
Perhaps it’s not Barack Obama we’re afraid of at all, but rather the specter that he might actually help someone — or even a whole class of someones — succeed, when we’d rather they didn’t.
September 8th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Amen. Very nicely stated.
September 9th, 2009 at 12:51 am
Around here several schools issued instructions to their teachers not to air the speech. Some parents kept their kids out of school to prevent them from hearing the speech. And they all seem to be pretty proud of their behavior. Go figure.
September 9th, 2009 at 1:02 am
You’re kidding…
Right?
Sometimes the world is just too bonkers, I mean come on, what’s he gonna say to kids with so much press & attention on it, hardly likely to start trying to marshall them into some scary underground youth movement.
September 9th, 2009 at 1:27 am
@David: Thank you. Don’t read too much into it, though. Politics drive me crazy, because — as my sister said today, so it must be genetic — “I don’t agree with anybody.”
@Dennis: Don’t get it. But go figure.
@Mrs. Dirty Boots: wish I were. Someone must have spiked the water over here.
September 9th, 2009 at 9:06 am
Kids report that they were inspired by the speech. Huh.
September 9th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Wow. Inspired by the President. Go figure.
September 9th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
@Kathy: Sorry to hear. This could be bad.
@Ron: GO FIGURE! (hey, next time, write something in Italian, too.)
September 9th, 2009 at 9:00 pm
You got it, almost got it! I think it is part of the president’s job description to give inspirational speeches to kids – I see nothing in the text which could be in any way seen as political. As a physician, I especially like his reference to handwashing and staying home from school if you are sick. Perhaps I’ll read it to my kids anyway.
September 9th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
Radioholiday, you rebel, you.