Open Thread Monday

How many of you actually care about Obama speechifying to our nation's youth on Tuesday? For one thing, they won't listen to him any better than they do their teachers, so there's no harm in it.

Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't see this as all that big a deal. Except maybe for the assigned homework.

I do see your points. I guess I'm wondering what the precedents are for this sort of thing? Who was the last seated President who addressed our nation's schoolchildren in this manner?

I haven't been following this issue very closely, as I've been much more entertained by Van Jones' videotaped black nationalist rants on "You Tube". What was the "objectionable material" that has been excised?

http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/lessons/prek-6.pdf

http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/lessons/7-12.pdf

These are questions 'suggested' by DOE that teachers ask of their students.

Recalling the rash of news items during the Obama campaign of schoolkids in class chanting Obama's name and teachers pushing Obama as their candidate, little wonder people want no part of an Obama school speech.

They've removed the most offensive part of the program – sugesting that teachers have the children write letters to themselves about how they can help President Obama. Not that techers won't take the hint (wink, wink).

Another problem for them is that this comes on the heels of the NEA teleconference where administrators suggested that artists receiving grants should produce art in support of Obama's agenda. Is is any surprise that many people distrust their motives now?

What is surpising is that the entire Obama administration seems absolutely clueless as to how these sorts of efforts look to many Americans.

Obama himself seems a little dazed and confused at times. As a career black politician from South Chicago, it seems he's never before had to deal with any real resistance or opposition.

"What is surpising is that the entire Obama administration seems absolutely clueless as to how these sorts of efforts look to many Americans."

That's because that's how community organizers work. They grab what government money they can and use whatever they can for political purposes. It works pretty well when they fly under the radar. Not so well when a spotlight is turned on them. That's why the spotlight is important.

IMO, none of these presidents should be addressing the school children EVER (Dem or Rep)!

Teachers are not allowed to wear buttons and stuff and this is just the kind of junk the school system slides in there.

Tell the politicians to spend their time reading bills and doing grown-up activities! (That does not include sex affairs paid with our tax money!)

I think I have mention this before but, I have seven Grand kids, Nieces and Nephews I am watching tomorrow. Check it out—> http://www.hallpassonthat.com/

My topic for Labor Day:

I miss Mel Blanc.

"Obama Unravels – Day whatever this is"

Day by day, piece by piece, this clown and his 'administration' (and especially his hand picked 'party' of old lpw-life pals) are coming apart like an '89 Oldsmobile.

What thrill it is to see the evil being exposed and people slowly picking up on it.

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I know. I called the Acme Radio-Controlled Rocket Agency and they went belly up about 30 years ago.

Jean Harlow – to me, one of the most overrated stars of the 1930s. I've seen quite a few of her films and little by little she began to irk me – shrill blond, shrill voice.

As they toned her down a bit, she became more appealing to me, but she was dead by 1937. Watching her bounce around in CHINA SEAS w/o a bra is much fun in a film that is GREAT entertainment anyway. (Anyone remember the "Malay boot" scene with Gable?) She's good in WIFE vs SECRETARY (more great entertainment) and she appears semi-topless in some pre-production code MGM film where she is bouncing around on a bed likely for no other reason than having her left breast on screen.

But the hype over the years has been in excess of her worth, in my personal opinion.

Oh, my favorite!!

Thanks. One can only try.
Four kids. Two strong conservatives. One pro union, but pro gun. Doesn't even vote. And one ignorantly liberal.
That's only 50%.
In school, that would be an F.
Maybe a motivational speech from Obama would help me do better.

Duck season!
Wabbit season!

Great example. How does that happen?
But I really like your second sentence, and completely off topic, but this is an open thread after all…Ithinkofthatconceptoften, not in a political context, but that we all are actually screwed-up. We are all broken ~ to different degrees.AnditisbyrealizingGod'sgracetousthatwecanseeeachotherasfellowbrokenpeopleinneedofgracefromeachother.
Such a hard thing to do in the face of certain circumstances!

My grande parents are seventy-four and seventy-seven respectively and both are still hard to work on their farm in WV and in the case of my grande mother working her night job in the local retirement home taking care of people ten or twenty years younger. Many of them she knew when she was younger herself. They are good people.

My mother is more of the same. But with the expection of our middle sister most of us are pretty far from the tree. Myself, I am a snarky, abrassive, uncaring jackass (proud of it). My brother is just as bad if not worse and our oldest sister? A self-loathing, narcissist who loves to play the victim. Anyway, my point is this: Parents can only do so much to keep their children on the right path. Sooner or later life will wreck a child and how they react will determine who they will be. Two out of four is a better batting avarge than many of us, you should be unendlingly proud.

Initially I thought the kids aren't going absorb a one time speech by anybody, let alone the Dear Leader. It'll just be an excuse to get out of class work. Then I heard about the White House issued "lesson plan" and, started to look into it.

I saw a previous version online Friday and went back to look at the link just a moment ago and it has been revised with some of the more objectional wording changed or even deleted. In fact, it has tomorrow's date on it, September 8.

Most of it really is fairly innocuous but there are a few points I dislike, one I really resent in the after speech portion. The portion that the White house suggested teachers have the children do.

Originally it read students could "write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president." Teachers would collect and redistribute these letters at an appropriate later date to enable students to make them accountable.

It now reads: students can "write letters to themselves about how they can achieve their short‐term and long‐term education goals. Teachers would collect and redistribute these letters at an appropriate later date to enable students to monitor their progress.

Another problem is not the speech itself, but the schools. Locally, we've been told because the speech airs during the lunch hour, it will be recorded and shown then next morning to "allow students equal opportunity" to hear it. Parents can watch the speech beforehand and it they have concerns can send a note asking their child not watch it. Sounds OK, but those kids will have to leave the room, singling them out and making it obvious in a place where 80% or more of the employees are Democrat. Plus most kids are ill-informed about why there is any opposition to Obama at all.

Our school system has created "three reflective questions" for review but they aren't telling us what those are.

So, as a parent of a middle school age kid, yeah, I have some problems with it.

Read the revised version here:
http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/lessons/prek-6.pdf

If Obama hadn't added that suggestion that schoolkids consider ways they could help him, I would not have been bothered by it, and I doubt most others would have been, either. In and of itself, for kids to see the President, whoever he is, is a big opportunity, I imagine many of them are excited by it and I wouldn't want to rain on their parade. Also I think that most kids in elementary school are only going to listen to what their parents say about politics; Obama will only have an effect on them if their parents were already supporters of him. As the son of an elementary school principal, who has heard no end of protests from parents, I feel for the administrators caught up in all this, because they're facing indirect pressure from above to get this thing rolling, and very direct pressure from below not to.

Well thanks.
You're family get-togethers must be something else.

I hope they find a replacement for Van Jones soon.

I'm very worried about the country's ability to function without a green jobs czar.

Well, at least we got a new labor czar.

As far as I know, it isn´t the first time that a President adresses schoolchildren. But when Reagan did it, I´m sure they didn´t tell fifth graders to ask themselves questions like these:

What do you think the president wants us to do?
Does the speech make you want to do anything?
Are we able to do what President Obama is asking of us?

If children have any spirit these days, "Does the speech make you want to do anything?" will provoke some hilarity. That´s really asking for it!

Yeah, as if Van Jones isn´t to blame for being an America-hating, cop-killer supporting, self-confessed communist racialist 9/11 truther. As if that just happened to him one day and if we point out the self-evident, we are wrong. But we are not. It is what it is.

"You shoulda seen her in color…"

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The Cartoon Network ran a 24 hour Looney Tunes Marathon about 6 months ago and I recorded most of them. Even the ones I hadn't seen in 30 years I could tell had been cut to remove the \”offensive\” parts. ARRGHHHHH! I have ordered the Golden Collection uncensored!!

Correct El-Gordo, I believe the Beck/Drudge/Brietbart/and others merely scraped the surface of that manure pile. He resigned because there was so much more to find and he knew it.
He beat the garbage truck out of town.

I agree with those who have opined that we should not get too worked up about this – At least until we see what The Leader actually says. To me this "children's hour" smells of political gamesmanship on the part of the White House staff. They want an over-reaction from conservatives so they can do their best Mrs. Lovejoy impression and scream "But what about the children.?" It's also a good way to divert attention from the health-care imbroglio and other unpleasant events. On the other hand I don't have kids and, if I did, I would be sorely tempted to keep them home or demand the right to personally observe how the teaching staff handles the after-speech follow-up. The teacher's unions are so in the tank for the Democrats that they certainly don't need any study guides to encourage students to adopt "the right attitude" concerning Obama's address.

The speech isn't that big a deal, just a pep talk, and heaven knows the kids could use one. However, the "suggested teaching guide and homework" put forth by the Ed. Dept. is extremely objectionable. How dare they try to indoctrinate the kids–"how can you help Pres. Obama accomplish his goals? Write a paper about Pres. Obama…etc." Bunch of kooks.

Initially I thought the kids aren't going absorb a one time speech by anybody, let alone the Dear Leader. It'll just be an excuse to get out of class work. Then I heard about the White House issued "lesson plan" and, started to look into it.

I saw a previous version online Friday and went back to look at the link just a moment ago and it has been revised with some of the more objectional wording changed or even deleted. In fact, it has tomorrow's date on it, September 8.

Most of it really is fairly innocuous but there are a few points I dislike, one I really resent in the after speech portion. The portion that the White house suggested teachers have the children do.

Originally it read students could "write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president." Teachers would collect and redistribute these letters at an appropriate later date to enable students to be accountable.

It now reads: students can "write letters to themselves about how they can achieve their short‐term and long‐term education goals. Teachers would collect and redistribute these letters at an appropriate later date to enable students to monitor their progress.

Another problem is not the speech itself, but the schools. Locally, we've been told because the speech airs during the lunch hour, it will be recorded and shown then next morning to "allow students equal opportunity" to hear it. Parents can watch the speech beforehand and it they have concerns can send a note asking their child not watch it. Sounds OK, but those kids will have to leave the room, singling them out and making it obvious in a place where 80% or more of the employees are Democrat. Plus most kids are ill-informed about why there is any opposition to Obama at all.

Our school system has created "three reflective questions" for review but they aren't telling us what those are.

So, as a parent of a middle school age kid, yeah, I have some problems with it.

Read the revised version here:
http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/lessons/prek-6.pdf

or here:
http://www.ed.gov/print/admins/lead/academic/bts….

Whatever the kids write, it's bound to be better than Obama's unreadable college thesis.

Gene Harlow…whose new neighbor at her final resting place at Forest Lawn is…Michael Jackson. Also: I know Oliver Stone is beyond persona non grata in these parts, but I watched "Any Given Sunday" over the holiday, and if that movie isn't one big, sweaty, piece of fun from start to finish! Helluva cast, too, with Ann-Margaret and Charleton Heston being sweet icing on a very cheesy cake. And I recommend Hayao Miyazaki's Ponyo for the young 'n young at heart. A lot more accessible (easier plot) than "Princess Mononoke," "Spirited Away" or "Howl's Moving Castle," all of which I loved, but Miyazaki's amazingly lush animation is still mind blowing. "Up's" CG was dazzling, but there's a warmth and soul to old-fashioned 2-D that it just can't match.

Ethereal beauty – Getz and Gilberto – THE GIRL FROM IPAMEMA – 1964

If you have never heard it, you are about to enjoy 3 minutes you will play over and over all your life.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9U6URQSF6U

I'll tell you what my problem is. It's not the finished product that will be distributed today. It's the original concept cooked up by the President's hyper-partisan administration. I don't doubt for a moment the original idea was to try to bring kids on board for the president's policies for cap and tax and socialized medicine. And if that required propaganda, fear, and trying to turn them against their parents, so be it.

The fact that they got tripped up by their own outrageous egos is hardly surprising. So they back pedaled as fast as they could. But does anyone honestly think Axelrod had the kids' best interests at hart over the goals of the President?

I concur.

Maybe they can promote the light bulb czar?

Huffington is nothing more than a partisan political hack, getting rich off the ignorance of the left. She used to be a far righty, but I guess she figured she could fool the left easier and make more money.

She was right.

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