Don't you DARE let your kids watch THIS!!!

Wobbie

Be a good parent - keep your kids home from school on Sept. 8. Sorry that I posted an admittedly left leaning view here but, goddam, the hysteria is out of control.

IT'S COME TO THIS.... In 1988, then-President Reagan spoke to students nationwide via C-SPAN telecast. Among other things, he talked about his positions on political issues of the day. Three years later, then-President Bush addressed school kids in a speech broadcast live to school classrooms nationwide. Among other things, he promoted his own administration's education policies.

President Obama wants to deliver a message to students next week emphasizing hard work, encouraging young people to do their best in school. The temper tantrum the right is throwing in response only helps reinforce how far gone 21st-century conservatives really are.

This is no small, isolated fit, thrown by random nutjobs. The New York Times, Washington Post,LA Times, AP, and others all ran stories this morning about the coordinated national effort to either keep children at home so they can't hear their president's pro-education message, or demanding that local schools block the message altogether.

A Republican state lawmaker in Oklahoma said, "As far as I am concerned, this is not civics education -- it gives the appearance of creating a cult of personality. This is something you'd expect to see in North Korea or in Saddam Hussein's Iraq." Fox News personalities have adopted the same line, calling a stay-in-school message from the president "cultist" and reminiscent of "North Korea and the former Soviet Union."

I can appreciate there's a question of whether the Department of Education erred in the wording of one sentence in the supplementary materials. It's reasonable to think officials should have been more cautious.

But that's not what this is about. The administration not only edited the supplementary materials, but has offered to make the text of the address available in advance, just so everyone can see how innocuous it is. It's made no difference. Conservatives don't want school kids to hear a message from their president. Those who claim superiority on American patriotism have decided to throw yet another tantrum over the idea that the president of the United States might encourage young people to do well in schools.

This is what American politics has come to in 2009.

Michelle Cottle had a good item on this, calling conservatives' behavior "disgraceful."

...Obama is the leader of this entire nation. It doesn't matter if you voted for him -- or even if your head threatens to explode every time you think about him. He is the president, and, as such, it's a big deal that he's speaking directly to students about the importance of education. (Not teachers unions, you hysterics.) And, whatever one's party registration, the idea that any child should be kept home from class purely so their parents can make a political statement about an apolitical speech is appalling. Is the idea that we should shelter children from any contact with or knowledge of any president we personally dislike? Maybe, during the years our preferred party is out of power, we should just pretend that the president doesn't exist. That's a healthy way to run a democracy.

Admittedly, Obama is smooth. But he ain't smooth enough to wipe away an entire childhood of conservative teachings with one quickie speech about (all together now!) working hard in school. Buck up, all you deep-red wingers: Make the kids watch Glenn Beck afterward if it eases your anxiety. Have them genuflect before a poster of Rush Limbaugh or Ann Coulter. But don't be so paranoid about what might happen if they're briefly exposed to the sinister charms of a liberal president that you drag them down into your foxhole of craziness.

Even Joe Scarborough asked, "Where are all the GOP leaders speaking out against this kind of hysteria?" They are, alas, nowhere to be found. As John Cole explained, "The entire party has been taken over by crazy people."

My own hometown paper had a headline describing the "furor" over Obama's "ideology." Really? Ideology? Fuck me.

kcherub

What she said.

Lauri

This whole thing has got me so perplexed. One of the conservative "pundits" or whatever they're called these days actually had a whole complaint about the fact that Obama had called for students to create posters about their goals. God forbid! And also...what could be more capitalist than asking kids to think their individual goals?

This is the other thing, these people have to decide whether Obama is a socialist or a fascist. They're calling him both in the same breath.

Cosmo

Lauri wrote:

This is the other thing, these people have to decide whether Obama is a socialist or a fascist. They're calling him both in the same breath.

...
and don't forget the communists... he's a Socialist, Commie Fascist.
Try to get them to explain that to you... and they tell you that you need to go live in Iran if you hate America so much.

Lauri

Cosmo wrote:

Lauri wrote:

This is the other thing, these people have to decide whether Obama is a socialist or a fascist. They're calling him both in the same breath.

...
and don't forget the communists... he's a Socialist, Commie Fascist.
Try to get them to explain that to you... and they tell you that you need to go live in Iran if you hate America so much.

that is hilarious...and scary, because it's really accurate.

I blame Fox News. For everything.

Cosmo

Lauri wrote:

that is hilarious...and scary, because it's really accurate.

I blame Fox News. For everything.

...
FOX News does have its dirty paws in this.
It seems to have originated with that whole Tea Party thing. They claimed it was a spontaneous grass-roots uprising... but, turned out to be a FOX News event.
Rush Limbaugh mobilized his minions to go to the Town Halls and 'Exercise their First amendment Rights'... which is one thing... and a good thing, in my opinion. Problem was, many of those who went there were too stupid to come up with any valid questions and just shouted out shit about Hitler and Fascism and Socialism in arbitrary, indechipherable sentences. Stupidity is covered by the First Amendment... so, i support that right. Still doesn't mean I don't think they are fucking idiots.

Wobbie

It actually makes me sad how something that could be so good (encouraging kids) is being painted as some sort of attempt at brainwashing by the conspiracy theorists. And as the author said, not a single republican steps up to stop it. Our country gets deeper into it, every day.

Lauri

Cosmo wrote:

Lauri wrote:

that is hilarious...and scary, because it's really accurate.

I blame Fox News. For everything.

...
FOX News does have its dirty paws in this.
It seems to have originated with that whole Tea Party thing. They claimed it was a spontaneous grass-roots uprising... but, turned out to be a FOX News event.
Rush Limbaugh mobilized his minions to go to the Town Halls and 'Exercise their First amendment Rights'... which is one thing... and a good thing, in my opinion. Problem was, many of those who went there were too stupid to come up with any valid questions and just shouted out shit about Hitler and Fascism and Socialism in arbitrary, indechipherable sentences. Stupidity is covered by the First Amendment... so, i support that right. Still doesn't mean I don't think they are fucking idiots.

Given that I live in one of the bluest states possible, and I still see people close to me getting sucked into the Fox News vortex, I never underestimate it's power. The Tea Party thing was crazy- one of my relatives wanted to go, and I was "that's so stupid, what does any of this have to do with the Boston Tea Party?" and she was like, "it's exactly the same, no taxation without representation." Um yeah...I couldn't explain to her that just because your party wasn't elected it doesn't mean you're not represented...

Lauri

imalive wrote:

It actually makes me sad how something that could be so good (encouraging kids) is being painted as some sort of attempt at brainwashing by the conspiracy theorists. And as the author said, not a single republican steps up to stop it. Our country gets deeper into it, every day.

Remember right after 9/11 when everyone had those "United We Stand" bumper stickers? Ever since then, it seems, the partisanship in this country has gotten way, way out of control. Us against them, them against us.

Cosmo

imalive wrote:

It actually makes me sad how something that could be so good (encouraging kids) is being painted as some sort of attempt at brainwashing by the conspiracy theorists. And as the author said, not a single republican steps up to stop it. Our country gets deeper into it, every day.

...
I agree. It's okay when the President says 'Just Say No (to drugs)... or stay in school because it's important to have an education... as long as you agree with the President.
I hope Obama's speech says, 'Kids... don't do crack'... so the Right-Wing fanatics can go off about Obama taking away their rights to smoke crack.

Wobbie

Lauri wrote:

Remember right after 9/11 when everyone had those "United We Stand" bumper stickers? Ever since then, it seems, the partisanship in this country has gotten way, way out of control. Us against them, them against us.

You're reading my mind...partisanship is going to ruin this country. What have we accomplished on any level since both sides dug into their Washington bunkers? It's about as functional (and irrational) as Northern Ireland during "the troubles."

norm

Cosmo wrote:

I hope Obama's speech says, 'Kids... don't do crack'... so the Right-Wing fanatics can go off about Obama taking away their rights to smoke crack.

obama if you are reading this, i will vote for you in 12 if this happens

Lauri

Cosmo wrote:

imalive wrote:

It actually makes me sad how something that could be so good (encouraging kids) is being painted as some sort of attempt at brainwashing by the conspiracy theorists. And as the author said, not a single republican steps up to stop it. Our country gets deeper into it, every day.

...
I agree. It's okay when the President says 'Just Say No (to drugs)... or stay in school because it's important to have an education... as long as you agree with the President.
I hope Obama's speech says, 'Kids... don't do crack'... so the Right-Wing fanatics can go off about Obama taking away their rights to smoke crack.

Here's the thing- I think that only people who live in some sort of bubble where all kids have access to a fantastic education and rich parents could be making these complaints. My mother's job involves processing drop outs and failures at a high school and the stories she has are ridiculous. Kids just disappear out of the system. They fail, then they don't show up for summer school, then they just don't show up in the fall. And it's not just a few kids, it's a huge percentage of this high school! They just seem to have no reason to care. And yet the President isn't allowed to encourage or try to inspire these kids? It makes no sense and is very sad.

Wobbie

Why do we have "outrage" and "furor" over both an attempt to reform health care and give our kids a pep talk, yet the outrage and furor over an unjust war, firing US Attorneys, outing CIA agents, etc. never seemed to get SO angry?

I actually saw some looney woman crying over the prospect of her kid listening to Obama. :?

g under p

imalive wrote:

Why do we have "outrage" and "furor" over both an attempt to reform health care and give our kids a pep talk, yet the outrage and furor over an unjust war, firing US Attorneys, outing CIA agents, etc. never seemed to get SO angry?

I actually saw some looney woman crying over the prospect of her kid listening to Obama. :?

I saw that too and I couldn't believe what I was seeing, I thought someone had abducted her child. I think I saw that on Fox News?

Peace

Wobbie

g under p wrote:

I saw that too and I couldn't believe what I was seeing, I thought someone had abducted her child. I think I saw that on Fox News?

Peace

Nope.... real news.

JaneNY

I'd like to hear the explanation of why some people think its bad for their kids to see a talk that has the message work hard and stay in school. What do they want? to have their kids told - drop out, be a bum and live on the dole?

Jeanwah

JaneNY wrote:

I'd like to hear the explanation of why some people think its bad for their kids to see a talk that has the message work hard and stay in school. What do they want? to have their kids told - drop out, be a bum and live on the dole?

Acoustic guy may be able to shed some light on this...but hasn't yet.
viewtopic.php?f=13&t=109323

WaveCameCrashin

IMO I think its crazy also but the thing that freaked people out was the language of one of the lesson plans before they changed it. What it said was that Obama wanted students K -6th to write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president. and the other assignment was for them to discuss after hearing his speech was what the president wants us to do.


And not evrybody at Fox is anti Obama
http://www.parade.com/news/2009/08/09-what-obama-can-teach-americas-kids.html

JaneNY

prfctlefts wrote:

IMO I think its crazy also but the thing that freaked people out was the language of one of the lesson plans before they changed it. What it said was that Obama wanted students K -6th to write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president. and the other assignment was for them to discuss after hearing his speech was what the president wants us to do.


And not evrybody at Fox is anti Obama
http://www.parade.com/news/2009/08/09-what-obama-can-teach-americas-kids.html

Nice piece. That raised my opinion of O'Reilly quite a bit.

_

prfctlefts wrote:

IMO I think its crazy also but the thing that freaked people out was the language of one of the lesson plans before they changed it. What it said was that Obama wanted students K -6th to write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president. and the other assignment was for them to discuss after hearing his speech was what the president wants us to do.


And not evrybody at Fox is anti Obama
http://www.parade.com/news/2009/08/09-what-obama-can-teach-americas-kids.html

Help the President do what, though? Help him get re-elected or help him lead our country in a positive direction? To me, it sounds remeniscent of "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." I think that's a positive message and can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want their kids to hear it.

Additionally, even if he spouted off a bunch of liberal propaganda, the kids who are old enough to understand it need to learn to think critically and this would be a wonderful opportunity to help learn that lesson. They're going to - and they already do - hear propaganda for the rest of their lives and they can't be shielded from all of it, so the best thing we can do for them is to teach them how to decifer it.