What kind of message does this send to our children?

It is setting a horrible example!! He is talking to them about staying in school & responsibility which are things that many kids are not inspired to do and be at home. I don't understand why any parent would block their kid from any learning experience about anything....even if they did not agree. If the president was talking to them about a policy that the parents did not agree with then let them hear it anyway. What a perfect opportunity to open up the communication with our kids. And with the economy as it is.....taking a day off from work?...just brilliant.

I am neither repeublic nor democratic I am just one pissed off parent that does not appreciate the fact that the government is trying to do this kids are already trying to cram in a huge ammount of curriculum in a short ammount of time and now we have to take time away from that to let them listen to the President boost his own political agenda off on children? bullshyt! I dont want my kids participating in this ridiculous display of communistic brainwashing indoctrination of children

Leave it to a little lying sack of parrot droppings like you to misrepresent the facts here. First of all, it isn't the fact that the president wants to address the students that is the problem at all. It is the follow on assignment that is the problem. It requires kids to support the president and his agenda. It encourages them to come up with goals towards supporting the president. It puts teachers in the position of making sure kids' goals conform with the president's agenda. I have read the before, during and after speech assignments, so I do know of what I speak here. Have you read them? Do you have any idea what you are talking about?

I'll be interested to see if he actually talks about staying in school and responsibility, or uses it as a platform for propaganda. You are correct that the Right is overreacting, as a visit from the President is a great honor for a child. However, he needs to keep it politically neutral.

I want to adress one thing first and get it out of the way. I noticed in multiple responses, you used the canned "where were you when Bush did it" line. I do not remember Bush ever making such an adress to the nations schools. And on 9/11, one date you mentioned him speaking to kids, it seems I remember he was reading a story to them, not adressing them on his agenda or how they cn help him further this agenda, or anything else for that matter, the man was reading stories. Now, I think you are already aware of my contempt for that administration and yes, I would have had just as many hairs raised over this, even more so since MY kids would have been in school at the time. If you can provide me with a national adress that Bush made scpecificly to school children, a video link or something along those lines, I will concede I was wrong on that point and admit I dropped the ball, but I cannot recall any of my daughters comming home and telling me about an address to them from Bush followed by a day of learning activities in the school in relation to it. Now I remember the first Bush doing something like this, I only had one kid in school at the time and I also remember people freaking out over it, including many congressional democrats, it was huge controversy ayt the time and this was with out all the planned activities and learning assesories afterwords, it was just a speech, but the response from Democrats was to loudly protest it. Now, here are my thoughts on this particular event. If Obama wants to encourage children to work hard and stay in school GREAT, I think it's a wonderfull idea. However, I do want to adress another concern of mine that ties directly in to this. I responded in a similar thread on the last page in this discussion and I think my response can be relevent here. I refer you to this discussion: http://www.mylot.com/w/discussions/2122218.aspx Again, if all he is going to do is encourage children to stay in school, that would be one thing. This just has the whole feel of something else, it's subtle, very subtle, but very concise, as is most everything with this administration, one must step back and look at it in context with thel larger picture.

The day this broke into the news it was just a copy of the Teacher's Guide document and there were many comments from people saying they were concerned about the speech and the guidelines that directed teachers to make this a focus of the curriculum. They weren't being told by anyone, including the Republican party, to take their kids out of school. This had only been on the net a few hours and people were contemplating keeping the kids home. Why? The press release from the White House was not up yet on whitehouse.gov. I know because I went looking for it. There was no information on what the president would be speaking about. No text of his speech at all. The guidelines for teachers instruct them to talk to the children about why it is important to listen to and support elected officials. It instructed teachers to ask children what they can do to serve President Obama. This is the wrong way round, isn't it? We don't serve elected officials, they serve us. They are our employees. We hire them, decide how long they work and tell them what WE want them to do. We don't serve them, this isn't a monarchy. This language was completely inappropriate. Evidence of this is that the White House has now changed that question, not enough, but they did change it. Now, I think it's fine if the President wants to encourage children to learn, take advantage of their education and set goals. What isn't acceptable is for him to use it as a platform for promoting himself. We aren't in service to him. One of the guidelines for the 7-12 grades says that goals should be "Challenging, Attainable and Needed (CAN)". This is a bit close to his campaign slogan and it's evident by the fact that "Needed" was obviously chosen to complete the anagram. We know now that we will be able to see the text of his remarks the day before he makes the speech. If he wants to talk about staying in school and studying hard, that's cool with me. But he needs to make sure this isn't about him or about his administration or about what we can do for him. I am still not crazy about his hijacking the whole day of school for studying his speech - that's a fairly egotistical move, I think. He doesn't own the kids, he can give them a nice pep talk but that should be the end of it, it shouldn't be used as a platform for trying to resurrect his dying approval ratings. I don't want my kids home, I spent the whole summer with them and now it's the school's turn. I won't keep them home but I know these kids, they aren't going to be listening anyway...

Our children are really receiving plenty of mixed messages these days! I guess if this President tells kids to stay in school and get a good education it must be bad. They're also learning that it's OK to boo a woman in a wheelchair at a town hall meeting and keep her from asking her question. I guess I should be really messed up since apparently everything I was taught as a child by my "liberal" parents is now evil. You know, socialist ideas like respect, responsibility and tolerance...lol! Annie

All dictators do this kind of thing. Should we really be surprised?

MasterDebater, Why is everything that Obi does compared to what Bush did? If Bush was so bad why do you want to see BhO act just the same? There is a HUGE difference between Bush and Obi. Bush for the most part supported the Constitution. Not in every way but he wasn't like Obama who simply wants "Change" when it comes to American Freedom, Sovereignty And Rights. Here are Three good reasons why I for one would like to see Obama and this countries' children kept apart. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3GjPNzHmJw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qr3v7Vsg3uY http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awR8MKbnXM4

Kids pre-K to sixth are the least likely to listen. Especially the younger ones who have a hard enough time sitting still. Thank god, this will just pass over their heads. If it is simply to tell the kids how important an education is and to stay in school, that's one thing. Anything other than that should be questioned as to what Obama's reasons are.

These 'people', as you refer to them, have a right in what their children see/listen to in school, and that includes propaganda by the president of the United States. The children are not 'owned' by the statists. Why are you afraid of Sarah Palin?

Well my issue is he is talking to the wrong people. He should be talking to the parents not the students. So the president tells them to take school seriously. Then they go home to parents who do not make them do their homework or helping them with classes they are having problems with. Parents that are not reading to their kids everyday or making their kids read everyday. Parents that do not go to parent teacher conference. It will not have any lasting effect. It is not something teachers or the president can change. THe parents can. Parents need to be more involved with their children's education. On a daily basis. That will effect "change". In my opinion parents are the only ones who can really fix the educatoin problem in this country. If parents won't make their child's education a top priority in their lives....then their children won't either no matter what teachers or the president says to them. I am fine with the President talking about the importance eduaction (as long as that is all he talks about). But he would do more good talking to the parents instead of the children. Parents are the ones who can make the necessary changes needed to make sure their child is learning to the best of their ability. So I feel he is wasting his time.

Wasn't these the same republicans that stated that they would reject any effort for there state to get what money was coming to them from the stimulus package? Anyways, I think that this is just another way for the republicans to try to say that what the president is doing is not fair. And to some it might not be, but everyone knew what he would be doing when he got into office so how much of this is actually surprising anyone. I done my research before I voted for obama. I personally would have thought that hillary clinton would have done a better job than obama. Look at her experience in the white house. I think for me it was just the lesser of two evils and obama seemed to have a better grip on his plans in general and overall. I would like to see more in the health care part on preventative measures such as extending dental care to older adults not just until they are 19 and lowering the age of being able to receive benefits without counting your parents income. These are just issues important to me and so because none of that is being talked about I'm just not really interested in it at all. i've been keeping track of what's going on but if it come down to it I would have to say that the stimulus package was even disappointing to me and every plan he has brought seems to be more oposition than the one before. I also think that he is doing this so he can get the children's reactions on the community service deal. I think it's important for them to work. But they shouldn't be forced to do it. i was working at 16 and I remember mom telling me that the only way we would be able to get what we wanted and sometimes what we needed was if we got a job and started to work. My dad was that tight with his money. I had to pay out of my own pocket for things that I got for school, for prom, and even some pictures that we got and I don't think it's fair for them to be put in a position to have to take time out of there school work and there extra curricular activities. I was pulling 30 or more hours a week and doing school and taking private lessons and doing tennis and other activities. I think that he needs to put the community service on hold and focus more on the physical activities that these children get while they are at school. Why not have the hours they put into extra curricular activities go towards the hours for customer service. I put in countless hours with highschool band and choir and chorale going to clinics and doing competitions and football and other stuff and really they should focus on that because the accomplishment they feel for giving back in an activity like that will be far greater than forcing someone to do community service.