Skool Daze

The Mrs. and I have been reading, watching, and listening to all the hubbub about the President's big address to the children of the United States tomorrow (September 7, 2009). Our two kids are in grade school, grades first and third. Our school district notified us that they will attend the ceremony/speech/gala and also we have found out that it will be released to the public prior to the actual display to the children.

A few thoughts...

Now I can understand how a lot of people are pulling the hair by the roots at the mere thought that he would some how indoctrinate our children during this brief period of time. Seriously, I had a short attention span when I was in gradeschool and I know my kids have as well as many others also possess this lack of interest. Remember when we were young and had to watch those safety movies? How about the movies on courtesy and manners? Remember the reel to reels stopping and burning up? I really doubt that the kids today, with a TV screen or YouTube on a PC will extend anymore the eyes glued to the screen than we did back in our time.

I am sure that regardless of what President Obama says, there will be flak from either side of the aisle. Those with right leaning thoughts might express outrage if there is dialogue that may go against a traditional point of view: family, faith, friends. Those with a left leaning point of view may find fault if he pushes for responsibility in young males, holding teachers more accountable, or perhaps challenging children to read what he says, or whatever he says.

Now I am thinking that he will be pulling a bit more towards conservative leaning points of view when it comes to education. Things like "study hard', or "do not follow my path and become a lawyer", etc. I would personally salute him if he states something like Gosh, I really wish I knew something scienty and all, but I was told that these equations are pretty important:


Then, I would appreciate what he had to say. But, it should not stop there. Why would only the President have to push this technical agenda? Why not Biden? He is a total idiot, but all he has to do is read a teleprompter and then press a button. Something like, Ya know, gosh darnit, I was told that these are the reasons we finally got to where we are now. And then, he presses a button and the following appears magically to Joe, but the rest of the crowd realize differently:


Or perhaps, Ms. Botox, Madamme Speaker, comes out to discuss how silicon is not just a sack in her various bodily areas, but the fact that it actually makes things like computer chips that make it possible to sextext or that all her investments are in solar cells which really, really, really need silicon to move forward (and the fact that it is a very expensive process to actually make the silicon ingot that is used in the process of making pretty much anything high-tech.

I really think that ALL politicians should remove themselves from the Teacher's Union, food service contracts, whatever influences for this very subject. Doubt it will ever happen.

These cowards are afraid to administer true punishment, like the smacks on the butt, or detention, or a bit of humiliation. No, they are afraid of some wrath by organizations that, to be honest, are truly weak and are only serving to better their own memories of the fact that they were spineless people that in another society, another time, they would have been left out in the cold at a very young age to be eaten by the nasties that go bump in the night. True Story. Their only existence is from a bunch of contributions and shout down rebuttals.

We have all seen lately that these tactics are failing as everyday regular mothers, fathers, grandparents, relatives, and friends are fighting back. They are fighting with the same, yet modified properly, tactics to combat rhetoric by others that is, well to put it bluntly, stupid.

I doubt the president will get any points from the young boys and girls who may or may not even acknowledge his dialogue. He will have to combat sexting, texting, hazing, and the casual spit ball. His odds are grossly outweighed, even by Vegas odds.

No, I will let my kids go to school. I am not worried. I really hate watching all this vitriol and bias, but it is a very left leaning administration. I was too young to have cared about Carter, although I was old enough to understand the effects of a nuclear bomb. I have to think that this President is just too damn young to run such a complex beast. And I am not much younger than him.

When all the wordsmithing is finally executed and we read what is delivered to us a few brief minutes before this claptrap goes live tomorrow, I tend to think of what better time could have been used towards Wednesday's event. This gigantic smoldering hulk of a health care body that is still trying to decide if it has wings, legs, or fins. I doubt any of these will sprout. I am not old enough to know, but young enough to remember others that have failed.

President Obama is a great orator. I will give him that, and that is about all I can muster. I do not hate the man, not at all. I am still awaiting some sort of Clintonian realization that he is in charge of the most complex engine the world has ever seen. An engine that has literally changed the world from a snail;s sail pace to a 24/7 jet set business that delivers the next best thing every 18 Moore Months. I may actually be stepping out of line here. Maybe the next thing the government consumes is the electronics industry. If that happens, all is lost, completely. Seriously.

No, I think that with all the awe inspiring speeches, the vernacular, the tonsorial prowess; we are still dealing with a flag burning issue. Our children, to the President's dismay and the Democrat's shock, will watch Jimmy Carter again. Sorry, but I am sticking to that end result. They will all watch, fill out some stupid questionnaire, go to lunch or PE or music class, then go home and listen to the same dissatisfaction their parents have been going through during the summer they did not get to go on vacation; the summer their parent(s) kept up looking for work; the summer that they had to move out of their homes.

Through all his golden oratory, all the beautiful words, all the hype that the mainstream media still gives him, what literally will be distilled in the end with these kids is the empty rhetoric, the goals never to achieve. And they will remember it well. They will remember it as I have.

I know this.

I know this well.

I watched man go to the moon.

I heard how we were going to be on Mars by 2000.

We stopped when Carter came about.

Lost that momentum.

I am watching it happen again.

Only on a different platform.