President Obama's National Address to Students

Of the ten minutes I caught, I'm not thrilled by President Obama's exhortation to succeed for "the country" and to do new things, like volunteering. But other than that, he made a good speech with a powerful message of personal responsibility. I agree with Newt Gingrich that students should be encouraged to read it. There's a powerful utility in sharing those stories of hard work and perseverance, and I imagine with Obama the drill will go down better coming from a "brother," especially in disadvantaged communities.

Reading the text yesterday, Joanne Jacobs called it an excellent speech; and she addressed the concerns I noted above:

Should he tell students they have a duty to their country — not just to themselves — to become the problem solvers and innovators of the future? It’s not what I would call a radical idea. These are old-fashioned American values.

Yes, they are old-fashioned. But we can't take those ideas away from the personal context in which they are presented. Parents don't like this president pitching personal responsiblity to them because they don't like his agenda of radical change. It doesn't help when Obama's allies in the entertainment/media industry push authoritarian "pledge drives" or when the White House itself launches "snitch" campaigns to track dissenters. Previous presidents did not have that baggage. So the Obama speech to students can never be as effective as was true for President Reagan or President H.W. Bush. Obama's HopeAndChange agenda has created an unprecedented regime of conformity, and the administration's "goals for students" learning packet indeed takes on a disturbing "Obama Youth" aura amid the ugly school-age intolerance the president has engendered.

See also, Michelle Malkin, "Obama’s Sept. 8 Speech to Schoolchildren":

Will Obama be able to resist issuing a call to youth arms to marshal help in passing his legislative agenda?

The thing is: He won’t need to make the call explicit.

Obama zealot teachers like this one across the country will do all the extra-curricular bullying and haranguing for him.

See also, The Western Experience, "President Obama’s Back to School Speech."