View Full Version : obongo wants to talk to your kids
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/10582301/President-Obama%E2%80%99s-Address-to-Students-Across-America-September-8-2009
Sept 8th, while they're in school
your kids, alone with typically libtard teachers, listening to the biggest socialist this country has seen on it's shores in ages.
you know this can not go well to trust the sob.
Bailey Guns
09-02-2009, 17:25
I'd have to keep my kids at home, I think. Luckily, they're long since outta school and have grown up to be proper conservatives...that very much dislike Obama.
So what? Kids come home with stupid ideas from school (like Global Warming) every single day. Just tell them to stuff a sock in it and go clean their room. They'll forget about it in a week anyway.
So Oshithead want to indoctrinate the kiddies. Can we say Marxist Stalinist anyone?
Rampart Runner
09-02-2009, 18:00
So Oshithead want to indoctrinate the kiddies. Can we say Marxist Stalinist anyone?
That is state run public school in a nutshell.
I homeschool.
If anyone is going to brainwash my kids then it is going to be me. [Rant2]
Whatever, every single president has gone to schools to talk to kids. What do you think all those other presidents were doing on school visits? Refereeing flag football?
Even if Obama tells all the kids to vote democrat or else, 6th graders can't vote, and by the time that they can vote, everything he said will be long forgotten.
EDIT: I just read the link and don't find anything in there worth getting upset about. People are blowing this thing way out of proportion. He's probably going to go to some school and tell kids to stay in school, study hard, respect adults, don't do drugs, and balance their check book when they get older. The same exact shit that they hear for the entire 12+ years they are in school anyway. What a criminal! Boogeyboogeyboogey.
given the POS track record, he's not to be trusted. especially with my kid (not that the .gov education system isn't already fucked up and littered with libtards)
Batteriesnare
09-03-2009, 00:16
If I had kids, I'd call them out of school and take them to the range.
I can't believe the shit he keeps trying to pull and how the majority of people in this country bend over and ask for more.
Fuck.
DD977GM2
09-03-2009, 00:42
Gonna keep my kids out of school and if I can take them to the range. I think I will be traveling that day though[Bang]
I really don't understand what all the fuss is about. Someone lay out a worst case scenario for me. What could the president possibly say to some 6th graders that is so terrible?
By the way, the gun ownership analogy can't even be considered weak, it just didn't apply at all. I'm not trying to insult you, but that analogy only further confused me. What does the president talking to school kids have to do with inalienable rights?
Further, what does it matter that it is the president? There are several public speakers at schools every single year, with all kinds of agendas. How is this any different?
Kind of have to agree with Sturtle,, Granted I don't have kids So take it for what it's worth,, If you have done your job at home, Your Kids will question everything He says and be able to rebut it..
Question authority works just as well for the right side as it does the left..
Just sayin'......
There was lady who called into the khow radio station this morning. A 71 year old who came from Poland and was there during the Russian occupation after WWII. She was saying that America needs to wake up. She also said this was the same shit that was going on with Stalin during that time.
SERVE STALIN AND THE MOTHERLAND. Sound familiar?
Those who have not been over sea's to a country were it's public is controlled have no clue. I have seen it first hand as well. This is NOT a good thing.
So let me get this straight. Obama talking to kids in school about education is going to........? I can't even finish the sentence because the rabid panic in here is getting so rampant that no one even realizes that nothing is being said. Everyone is just hollering and yelling about nothing so far.
How could you have gone to school Foxtrot, and not understand why schools are liberal? Education and knowledge so one can use critical thinking skills to question things is "liberal" (and not in the bad way) in nature. I had to sit through similar crap like this all the time through out ALL my schooling. From Kindergarten through college I had to sit through presentations that I thought were biased and political in nature, yet, here I am, posting on this board.
Even if schools were run the way you think they should be run, I doubt we'd see any significant change in the general break down of which "side" people settle on as adults.
So let me get this straight. Obama talking to kids in school about education is going to........? I can't even finish the sentence because the rabid panic in here is getting so rampant that no one even realizes that nothing is being said. Everyone is just hollering and yelling about nothing so far.
How could you have gone to school Foxtrot, and not understand why schools are liberal? Education and knowledge so one can use critical thinking skills to question things is "liberal" (and not in the bad way) in nature. I had to sit through similar crap like this all the time through out ALL my schooling. From Kindergarten through college I had to sit through presentations that I thought were biased and political in nature, yet, here I am, posting on this board.
Even if schools were run the way you think they should be run, I doubt we'd see any significant change in the general break down of which "side" people settle on as adults.
it is not about "sides", politicians have no business talking to kids, teach the kids about history of politicians and their actions, about our forefathers, and the bill of rights. dont have a presidential address geared specifically toward our children no matter how positive the message may be, focus on important presidential matters. they cant vote, they don't pay taxes, leave them the fuck alone.
they cant vote, they don't pay taxes, leave them the fuck alone.
This is what I'm talking about. People who talk to kids are wasting their time, why get so upset about it? It's not illegal either.
On the other hand, what better motivational speaker to tell kids, "Hey, if you stop being a piece of shit and do your homework, you could actually be president. Look at me? I did it and I'm not even white!" than the president?
Kids like to feel involved, even when they aren't. I still don't see the big deal. I think every president should have a speech just for kids every year. It would be fun for the children, and there will always be so many "watch dogs" on both sides just itching to call out the president on some BS (real or imagined) that it would be largely impotent.
Rampart Runner
09-03-2009, 15:26
This is what I'm talking about. People who talk to kids are wasting their time, why get so upset about it? It's not illegal either.
I disagree.
The leadership, world view, morals, and morays of our nation are not static. They are constantly changing and being influenced by, among others, those with an agenda against personal liberty/freedom/responsibility and who realize that the malleable minds of children are the key to their social engineering agenda.
All one has to do is read the writings of these folks. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, authors of the Communist Manifesto listed 10 conditions necessary to have a valid socialist society. The last one reads: “Free education for all children in public schools.”
Why?...because they understood that the enemy of implementing their agenda and ideology would be the parents who would never swallow it. In order to break the parents hold and sway over the next generation it becomes necessary to implement a system where by the parents influence is diminished.
A child in public school spends more time with the educators and their system/ worldview than with the parent(s). The voices of their peers, TV (they call it 'programming'), and school are often in direct opposition to what the parents wish to impart to the kids...they have stiff competition.
Public education has been , is, and most likely will continue to be headed by socialists, communists, and statists. Look at the key historical figures, like Dewey and his "progressive education", in the history of public education to see our future if something is not done.
...so yeah I disagree with your premise that talking to kids is a waste of time. My political and philosophical enemies are wise and dangerous. They have a long term view. They know that to steer a big ship requires only the pressure on a little rudder.
RR
Just because children have malleable minds, doesn't mean that they are malleable only once.
cleaner72
09-03-2009, 20:35
We asked today about this and was told Jefferson county would have an OPT out for it...and our kids will be opting out of it or staying home
Jumpstart
09-03-2009, 21:56
We asked today about this and was told Jefferson county would have an OPT out for it...and our kids will be opting out of it or staying home
I prefer my children stay home and watch Glen Beck during that time. Or watch today's episode tommorrow before Glen is on again.
theGinsue
09-03-2009, 22:43
What I haven't seem mentioned in this thread, but was being discussed all over Fox News today is that, by direction of the White House and in preparation of the President's piped in speech to all of the children, students across the country are supposed to be coming up with "a way they can help the President". What caught my attenion was that they haven't been directed to come up with ways to help the nation, but HELP THE PRESIDENT. THIS is exactly what Foxtrot, RRD, and others are afraid of with this programming. The whole thing reeks of a continuation of the "I Pledge" [to serve the President] video put out by Hollywood that is covered in another thread.
I'm sorry, but that IS liberal brain washing and is just one piece of the larger puzzle. Perhaps some of you feel that I should be donning my tin hat about now, but think back to how many parents were killed in Nazi Germany by children indoctrinated under the Hitler Youth program. Don't you believe that THOSE parents tried to counter the indoctorination their children were receiving in school?
If you think that this type of activity is harmless then either you are ignorant of history or shamefully [mis]placing your trust in our government.
ETA: Regarding the tin hat... In my service to this nation I've been an insider on far too many things to ever trust what I'm being told, at least taking nothing at face value. My experience has given me enough insight into how the truth is spun to see lies, deceipt, and misdirection (if not to see THROUGH these thing to the truth) when the government puts it out. I wasn't a truth-spinner, but I worked first-hand with their products every day for a period of time - I KNOW it happens - and there's ALWAYS an agenda.
I saw that and viewed it as a classic move by adults to make children feel like they are involved when they really aren't.
I don't want to be wrong about this stuff, just as much as you guys don't want me to be wrong about this stuff, but it just seems a little over blown to me.
I don't like it. I had a hard time telling the BS from actual facts in schools and it still haunts me to this day. I remember a hippy teacher told me that washing my clothes without detergent was better then hurting the environment. And he couldn't answer a question about why he became a teacher. I think the truth was to warp fragile little minds. What a dipshit now that I think back.
best move, IMHO, is for everyone to keep their kids home (away from school) and do something productive, just on principal alone.
we warned everyone of the cost of electing that POS. we were right, but we UNDER estimated how much of a mess he was (is) going to make (already).
mark my word, nothing good will come of his 'speech' to the kids.
we need to crush the lib...err..socialist movement in this country. leaving your kids in their control, especially on a day like that, is not going to help.
Show your kids you love them and our country and do the right thing.
Good ol' Stu. You really are a pretty good ague-er, lol.
Since, to me, no one has hit the nail on the head, I'll tell you why.
Because, as a parent, you try to keep your children from those that would do them harm. In any way, shape or form. You try to protect them from the "POS" in the world.
Barak Obama is all that and more. And less.
Would you, or anyone else, like a drug kingpin from the cartels talking to your kids? How about a muslim crazy who believes in this whole jihad shit? Or maybe a convicted baby raper.
Don't know about you or anybody else, but I don't and never will want these fuqs anywhere near my children.
It's all about who he is, what he represents, his viewpoints, agenda and that he is a lying, cheating, thieving arrogant bastard. I don't want my kids talking to someone like that. As a parent, I have tried all my life to keep the exposure of such to a minimum.
Unfortunately, young minds are very impressionable. And, as a race, we tend to try and believe what someone in authority tells us. If a doctor tells you you're sick and need this, that or the other, then you tend to believe it. etc. etc.
It's really quite simple. In my eyes, and an awful lot of others', BO is a BG. And I don't, nor will I ever, want my kids or anyone elses' kids anywhere near a BG. And the fact that he would use his authority to such end is absolutely appalling.
Sorry, but I love my children and want the best for them. And BO definately is not it.
GunTroll
09-04-2009, 08:06
My wife is a teacher and a conservative. We are in TN now. She hasn't heard anything about this.....yet. I pointed it out to her but nothing from her school. TN is a fairly conservative state. Not to mention, without saying it "old south" I don't think they will be watching it here! The local talk radio is the most non PC thing I have ever heard on the waves. Whites are outraged here! I wouldn't send my kid to school if he was school aged.
This makes a pretty good point.
They think we're crazy. "They" are the sneering defenders of Barack Obama who can't fathom the backlash against the president's nationwide speech to schoolchildren next Tuesday. "We" are parents with eyes wide open to the potential for politicized abuse in America's classrooms.
Ask moms and dads in Farmington, Utah, who discovered this week that their children sat through a Hollywood propaganda video promoting the cult of Obama. In the clip, a parade of entertainers vow to flush their toilets less, buy hybrid vehicles, end poverty and world hunger, and commit to "service" for "change." Actress Demi Moore leads the glitterati in a collective promise "to be a servant to our president." Musician Anthony Kiedis pledges "to be of service to Barack Obama."
The campaign commercial crescendos with the stars and starlets asking their audience: "What's your pledge?"
This same "Do Something" ethos infected the U.S. Department of Education teachers guides accompanying the announcement of Obama's speech — until late Wednesday, that is, when the White House removed some of the activist language exhorting students to come up with ways to "help the president." Education Secretary Arne Duncan had disseminated the material directly to principals across the country — circumventing elected school board members and superintendents now facing neighborhood revolts.
O's bureaucrats can whitewash offending language from the Sept. 8 speech-related documents, but they can't remove the taint of left-wing radicalism that informs Obama and his education mentors. A spokesman maintained that the speech is "about the value of education and the importance of staying in school as part of his effort to dramatically cut the dropout rate." But the historical subtext is far less innocent.
Obama served with Weather Underground terrorist and neighbor Bill Ayers on the Chicago Annenberg Challenge education initiative. Downplaying academic achievement in favor of left-wing radical activism in the public schools is rooted in Ayers' pedagogical philosophy. Obama served as the program's first chairman of the board, while Ayers steered its curricular policy. The two oversaw grants to welfare rights enterprise ACORN and to avowed communist Michael Klonsky — a close pal of Ayers and member of the militant Students for a Democratic Society.
SDS served as a precursor to the violent Weather Underground organization. As investigative journalist Stanley Kurtz reported, Klonsky and Ayers teamed up on the so-called "small schools movement" to steer schoolchildren away from core academics to left-wing politicking on issues of "inequity, war and violence."
A cadre of like-minded educators and national service administrators across the country share the same core commitment to transforming themselves from imparters of knowledge to transformers of society. The "change" agenda trains students to think only about what they should do for Obama — and rarely to contemplate how his powers and ambitions should be limited and restrained.
Ayers preached his education-as-"social justice" agenda to his "comrades" at the World Education Forum in Caracas, Venezuela, three years ago:
"This is my fourth visit to Venezuela, each time at the invitation of my comrade and friend Luis Bonilla, a brilliant educator and inspiring fighter for justice. Luis has taught me a great deal about the Bolivarian Revolution and about the profound educational reforms underway here in Venezuela under the leadership of President (Hugo) Chavez. We share the belief that education is the motor-force of revolution, and I've come to appreciate Luis as a major asset in both the Venezuelan and the international struggle — I look forward to seeing how he and all of you continue to overcome the failings of capitalist education as you seek to create something truly new and deeply humane."
Ayers continued:
"I walked out of jail and into my first teaching position — and from that day until this I've thought of myself as a teacher, but I've also understood teaching as a project intimately connected with social justice. After all, the fundamental message of the teacher is this: You can change your life — whoever you are, wherever you've been, whatever you've done, another world is possible. As students and teachers begin to see themselves as linked to one another, as tied to history and capable of collective action, the fundamental message of teaching shifts slightly, and becomes broader, more generous: We must change ourselves as we come together to change the world. Teaching invites transformations, it urges revolutions small and large. La educacion es revolucion!"
This is why informed parents do not trust the Educator-in-Chief and his "comrades." You can take Obama from the radicals in Chicago. But you can't take the Chicago radicalism out of Obama.
http://www.creators.com/opinion/michelle-malkin.html
cough cough
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/09/03/flashback-1991-gephardt-called-bushs-speech-students-paid-political-a
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/09/04/politics/washingtonpost/main5288013.shtml
Rampart Runner
09-04-2009, 15:12
cough cough
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/09/03/flashback-1991-gephardt-called-bushs-speech-students-paid-political-a
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/09/04/politics/washingtonpost/main5288013.shtml
Cough...your posts make the point of hypocrisy on the part of our elected officials. The fundamental objection remains regardless of the party affiliation of the perp.
Pistol Packing Preacher
09-04-2009, 15:16
¡Oprima el botón numero una para Ingles!
My post makes the point of the hypocrisy of every single person who said, "No president has ever done this before! panicpanicpanic"
A Bush just did this same thing a few years ago, and not surprisingly, the other side complained.
But Bush wasn't the "one". He never got on Oprah's book of the month list. I have never watched an entire speech of his. And I don't think kids have the will to turn the TV off when he starts BSing everyone. Bush is not in office anymore, the people sticking up for Obama is going to have to get that thru their heads.
Rampart Runner
09-04-2009, 16:08
My post makes the point of the hypocrisy of every single person who said, "No president has ever done this before! panicpanicpanic"
It would only be hypocrisy if...if they were aware of the previous event and they approved.
I know you meant the panicpanicpanic as hyperbole but that is not the sense I get from people's reaction. One does not need to panic to have a well reasoned objection or concern.
But Bush wasn't the "one". He never got on Oprah's book of the month list. I have never watched an entire speech of his. And I don't think kids have the will to turn the TV off when he starts BSing everyone. Bush is not in office anymore, the people sticking up for Obama is going to have to get that thru their heads.
So this is an issue of you being mad that Obama got treated like a celebrity? What president doesn't?
Rampart, it would take 2 minutes doing a google search to check and see if another president has ever done something like this before. It has happened before, and the world didn't come crashing down then either.
Rampart Runner
09-04-2009, 16:22
Rampart, it would take 2 minutes doing a google search to check and see if another president has ever done something like this before. It has happened before, and the world didn't come crashing down then either.
Every day things happen that I neither approve of or endorse. The fact that the world didn't come crashing down does not change my position on these things.
So this is an issue of you being mad that Obama got treated like a celebrity? What president doesn't?
Rampart, it would take 2 minutes doing a google search to check and see if another president has ever done something like this before. It has happened before, and the world didn't come crashing down then either.
He wasn't treated like Bush was/is. I don't care for other people's crush on him either.
And the world doesn't have to be coming to an end in order not like this. They don't opperate in vast sweeping changes anymore. We are to aware of an external threat anyway. It has to be done in baby steps. The end is a micro step closer is a better description. But just like fighting gun control in its ever shifting way even if it doesn't sound that sweeping or bad is just as worth fighting. Hell the Brady bill had an experation date too. And it was slipped in as an amendment to begin with. Now we can't get away from it and its just getting fatter. They want a background check on private sales too.
I think we're going in different directions here.
Are you upset that Bush and Regan directly addressed school children in the past? Yes or no, and please explain why.
Rampart Runner
09-04-2009, 17:10
Have my posts been unclear? Do you need Rosetta Stone® like dear Preacher?[Flower]
http://www.co-ar15.com/forums/showpost.php?p=131337&postcount=6
You keep taking the position that you, "don't find anything in there worth getting upset about. You say you, "really don't understand what all the fuss is about". You say, "People who talk to kids are wasting their time, why get so upset about it?" And you say, "it just seems a little over blown to me".
Then you post links to articles that show it has been done before and that the world didn't come crashing down. The logic being that it is acceptable.
Well I couldn't disagree with all of your statements more strongly.
RR
I understand that people want to separate State from State. I agree that the only time religion or politics should enter the class room, is during a specific religion or politics class.
What I DON'T agree with, is that just because Obama wants to perk up some kids, that this is some sneaky communist agenda. That is total crap, and anyone who believes so should be embarrassed.
Rampart Runner
09-04-2009, 17:54
I agree that the only time religion or politics should enter the class room, is during a specific religion or politics class.emphasis added
I never said that religion or politics should never enter in to the classroom. They are an integral part of our family's daily class activities and discussions. The freedom to engage in those topics in the way I wish them to be presented is one of reasons I chose to be the primary educator for my children.
What I DON'T agree with...that this is some sneaky communist agendaThe statists, socialists, fascists, communists, and nationalists are rarely sneaky. They all have clear and well defined agendas as well as publicly stated means to achieve them.
You are free to engage in what I believe to be blissful ignorance and assume this is of the purest and most innocent of motivations solely to "perk up the kids". I'll choose to be "embarrassed".
You have attempted to discredit those who do not wish Obama to address their children as illegitimate since Bush did so during his term. I point out that perhaps the objection is not that the children are being addressed as they object to the ideology of the addresser, and the impact that may have on their children in the absence of the parent. I find that sufficiently valid for protest.
What I'm trying to point out is that Bush did it, Regan did it, probably some other presidents have done it and will do it. This is not something Obama came up with. It's not new. It's not evil. Using the POTUS for a motivational speaker for children shouldn't be frowned upon any more than having a movie star, sports star, or some charity, or church group come in to talk to your kids.
It just seems pretty stupid to me, to hear people wanting to pull their kids out of school for this. Give me a break. If anyone wants to pull their kids out of school just because a democrat is speaking to them, those kids never should have been put into public school in the first place.
Rampart Runner
09-04-2009, 18:35
It's not new. lack of novelty != harmless
It's not evil.I am not making a moral judgment. I am making a qualitative judgment.
Using the POTUS for a motivational speaker for children shouldn't be frowned upon any more than having a movie star, sports star, or some charity, or church group come in to talk to your kids.emphasis added
Are you saying that the parents shouldn't make judgments between types of speakers on the basis of their ideology, philosophy, or their agenda?
The change to the published notes on curriculum after the controversy brewed gives me pause. This coupled with the philosophy and actions of this current President are more than sufficient for me to stand in strong opposition to his addressing my children without my supervision.
You have posted so many of your opinions while freely engaging in dismissing and belittling others who would hold well reasoned opinions contrary to you own.
I'll let you have the last word.
RR
DD977GM2
09-04-2009, 20:50
Just read a letter sent home for my boys school. They are giving them the option of watching it or not. I will be sending a note to my boys teachers and asking for them to do the other activity that will be available during this socialism sermon.
It just seems pretty stupid to me, to hear people wanting to pull their kids out of school for this. Give me a break. If anyone wants to pull their kids out of school just because a Radical Socialist is speaking to them, those kids never should have been put into public school in the first place.
There.... fixed it for ya. [Beer]
Thinking some of you may have the tinfoil on a little tight..
I'm thinking that You have a great oppertunity to Educate your own child..
As stated before, I have no kids so, take it fwiw...
I still agree with sturtle,, not for the reasons He has cited. You should let them watch it then discuss it with them after and point out why the man is full of crap, and why they need to be involved and ever vigilent so that his brand of politics doesn't take root and grow.. They are the future..
Frankly at this point,, I really don't think He is going to get too political..
His numbers are tanking,, He's not going to push this too far because of healthcare.. He still wants to push that through... I heard Friday that the "essay" question, which I might add, was My big objection to it, has been cut.. If, He goes much beyond "Stay in school and study" I'd be really surpised
Honestly,Those of you that think that teachers have more influance over your kids than you do,, are kind of making me think things are already lost.. If you have raised them to be independent thinkers, Nothing that that illegitimate wanna be says, or what their teachers say is going make a bit of differance to them..
The more they know about the enemy,, the easier it is to destroy them..
My 2 cents,, tear Me apart if you want,,,
Rampart Runner
09-06-2009, 07:18
I'm thinking that You have a great oppertunity (sic) to Educate your own child..
I can do this sufficiently without devoting time for my children to listen to Obama.
Honestly,Those of you that think that teachers have more influance (sic) over your kids than you do,, are kind of making me think things are already lost..
When a child spends more time involved with, listening to, and following the authority of a teacher than the parent(s) then there is a real palpable possibility that this can occur. It takes real effort on the part of the parent to be the overriding guiding force in the life of a child when the child spends so much time away from them.
Here's something. We have no idea what this douche bag is going to say.
We constantly tell our kids to listen to your teachers. So if they hear something we don't like and the teacher say something along the lines of ....
"see even president Obmam says so" then we now are put in the position of tell our kids that the teacher and Obama are wrong? Why should we be put in this situation?
My distrust is in Mr Obama, I have no idea what he is going to say and I couldn't give a fuck less. Every world that comes out of his mouth is either complete bullshit or some Socialist/Communist view. I do NOT want to get into it with MY child over this. Again... this is MY child to bring up as I see fit... not the government, not mr socialist himself, But ME and I will do what the fuck I want to in raising my child with the values based on respect, the rights we have in this country, and the Constitution as our founding fathers passed to us which this president knows nothing about. PERIOD!
Yup. It's called "T-O-M-A"....."Top Of Mind Awareness" in marketing.
It all starts with a seed.......
theGinsue
09-07-2009, 13:08
So, from http://www.whitehouse.gov/MediaResources/PreparedSchoolRemarks/, this is what Obama is supposed to be saying to our kids. I guess this isn't a bad message and it doesn't have any political cr@p in it like most of us expected - IF he keeps to this script (let's face it, he NEEDS to keep to the script or he'll flounder all over the place).
Prepared Remarks of President Barack Obama
Back to School Event
Arlington, Virginia
September 8, 2009
The President: Hello everyone – how’s everybody doing today? I’m here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we’ve got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I’m glad you all could join us today.
I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.
I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday – at 4:30 in the morning.
Now I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, "This is no picnic for me either, buster."
So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.
Now I’ve given a lot of speeches about education. And I’ve talked a lot about responsibility.
I’ve talked about your teachers’ responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn.
I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.
I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working where students aren’t getting the opportunities they deserve.
But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.
And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.
Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.
Maybe you could be a good writer – maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper – but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor – maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine – but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.
And no matter what you want to do with your life – I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can’t drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You’ve got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.
And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.
You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You’ll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.
We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.
Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.
I get it. I know what that’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in.
So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.
But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.
Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.
But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life – what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home – that’s no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That’s no excuse for not trying.
Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.
That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.
Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.
I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three. He’s endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer – hundreds of extra hours – to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he’s headed to college this fall.
And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.
Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same.
That’s why today, I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education – and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn. And along those lines, I hope you’ll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.
Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it.
I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work -- that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.
But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. You won’t click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.
That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."
These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.
No one’s born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song. You’ve got to practice. It’s the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust – a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor – and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.
And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.
The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough. It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.
It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.
So today, I want to ask you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country?
Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you’ve got to do your part too. So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don’t let us down – don’t let your family or your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.
Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.
He lost me at "Hello". I don't get the rest it sounds so insincere. Almost like he's lying is ass off.
theGinsue
09-07-2009, 19:33
I don't get the rest it sounds so insincere. Almost like he's lying is ass off.
Now that shouldn't be a surprise to you or any of us.
As with anything in politics, he has an agenda. My guess is that this is an attempt to win back many of the lib's he's lost over the last few months. Sort of a "see, I'm really a nice guy and I care about your kids."
He is...
Only the hardcore fanatics are going to be awake at the end..
Even that might be debatable...
Dear Leader is a TREMENDOUS liar, and he isn't above using children to promote his lies. Utterly shameless.
I count only 7 where the word "we" was used, and a whopping 55 "I".
now tell me what this message is really about.
he talks a lot about all this great shit he is doing. the mother f&(ker is a hypocrite in everything hes say's and does.
this is typical of the libtards. they wanted more control over education, and they have it.. and it's gotten progressively ...no make that exponentially worse over the years. and when libtard plans go wrong, what's the explanation/solution? "well we didn't spend enough or have all the power we needed to make it happen" (~) AND/OR... well, the people (YOU) didn't let the system work like it was supposed to.
tell me you can't see that in the letter he'll be reading off the TOTUS and everything that is going on around us in this country today.
Pistol Packing Preacher
09-08-2009, 09:33
I count only 7 where the word "we" was used, and a whopping 55 "I".
Hmm. 7 to 55....
I think the "I"s have it!
"Out of the abundance of the heart... the mouth speaks"
I count only 7 where the word "we" was used, and a whopping 55 "I".
I think someone needs a hobby :).
I don't mind so much that a person is narcissistic. Maybe he used "I" so much because he is realistic and realizes that no one gives a shit about his sister and probably doesn't even know her name. Heh.
Well, you know, dictators like Obongo don't have 'we' in their vocabulary, anything they do is ALL them, nobody else - unless it goes wrong and then it's just the opposite.
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