Got a phone call from son's high school regarding Obama speech

[Duer 157099]

While I had read about this and was annoyed by the very concept of ANYONE having an issue with schoolchildren listening to (gasp!) the President speak on something, when I just got a phone message from my son's principal regarding opting out, my blood pressure just shot through the roof!!!

First of all, I live in a really, really blue part of California, with one of the demiest of the Dems, Rep Woolsey, as my congresswoman.

That my son's school had to take the time and trouble to do this is FREAKING me the hell out!!

Someone, please talk me down, explain to me why it seemed as though the POPE were going to be talking to the students about converting to Catholicism, and so there would be a rational reason why students might want to opt out.

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!

[Ian David]

1. Of course there's a rational reason to opt-out. They hate America and our troops. n/t

[babylonsister]

2. Jeeze. How soon can you respond with your concerns? Blue? Oi. nt

[Duer 157099]

7. To whom should I complain?

The Principal? The School Board? Woolsey's office? The local newspaper?

A sign on the grass?

I am LIVID about this, after surviving 8 years under the Bush/Cheney regime, my tolerance has completely evaporated!

[elleng]

15. The Principal, directly.

Take time to construct a rational response, and deliver it calmly. Share it with others. e-mail possible?

[babylonsister]

18. I'd start with the principal, but like your thinking. Woolsey

(you are so lucky!) would be a good person to pitch a complaint to also.

[spanone]

3. i can't talk you down. i've never been so ashamed of my country.

we are hitting new lows at a phenomenal rate

[brettdale]

4. If I was Obama

I would dress up and give the speech in full Muslim gear, just to piss off the freepers.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

5. I would be at the Principal's door complaining

and my Congressman or woman.

[Eric J in MN]

6. How would you feel if this happened one year ago, with Bush...

...about to deliver a televised speech to schools?

[WeDidIt]

8. To even suggest your kid might be able to opt out

would ahve gotten you a vist from DHS and a one way trip to Gitmo.

[Duer 157099]

9. I'm not sure it hasn't happened!

I would snicker to myself, but I would never ever ever feel the level of outrage I'm feeling now.

[Butch350]

12. Well, you see what happened on 9/11 when he read to the kids.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

27. I'd encourage them to listen...

to think independently, to ask questions, and to agree or disagree as they see fit. All the while letting my views known, but doing whatever I could to encourage them to THINK.

[Merlot]

10. I hope you made it clear to the principal just how offensive this is

And if they left you a message, I'd call them back and talk their ear off. They should be ashamed to bow to rightwing minority faux inspired pressure.

[Duer 157099]

11. Fortunately it was a taped message, or I'd have really lost it

My heart is still racing, I'm trying to calm down.

I want to scream!

[Butch350]

13. What's next...I don't want my child taught by a democrat, liberal or progressive school teacher?.

[drm604]

29. You can bet that's coming.

There have already been cases of college students attempting such demands.

[MichiganVote]

14. Why? Because people in schools are getting shot nowadays or hasn't anyone noticed?

Due to the rise in violence and threats against schools, personnel play it very cool for everyone's safety.

[RagAss]

16. Maybe they fear he'll pull a Soupy Sales....LOL

New Year's Day incident
On New Year's Day 1965, miffed at having to work on the holiday, Sales ended his live broadcast by encouraging his young viewers to tiptoe into their still-sleeping parents' bedrooms and remove those "funny green pieces of paper with pictures of U.S. Presidents" from their pants and pocketbooks. "Put them in an envelope and mail them to me," Soupy instructed the children. "And I'll send you a postcard from Puerto Rico!" He was then hit with a pie.<4>

Several days later, a chagrined Soupy announced that money was unexpectedly being received in the mail. He explained that he had been joking and announced that unreturnable contributions would be donated to charity. As parents' complaints increased, WNEW's management felt compelled to suspend Sales for two weeks. Young viewers picketed Channel 5. The uproar surrounding Sales' suspension increased his popularity.

Sales describes the incident in his 2001 autobiography Soupy Sez! My Life and Zany Times.<5>


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soupy_Sales

[SmileyRose]

17. Because your school system cannot afford a lawsuit.

and make no mistake, the Republicans would rather find the lone offended person in your district willing to be their dupe to sue your school into not being able to afford books for the next 30 years rather than pass up a chance as the outrage du jour.

The Republican hoard sees Americans only as cannon fodder and economic liabilities. Using the kids as a political hostages means nothing to them.

[Mythbuster]

19. I may have to borrow this one.

"Using the kids as a political hostages means nothing to them."

That is so to the point of what they are doing. Great comparative!

[aquart]

20. Did you call the principal and ream out his gutless ass?

[Duer 157099]

21. Not yet. The call came after 7pm on a Friday prior to 3-day weekend

Not that it was cowardly or anything.

My voice will be heard, though. I guess they wanted to provided sufficient cooling-down time.

[aquart]

23. Don't cool. Make him sorry he was born.

Just for fun.

[demodonkey]

31. Call your elected School Board members TODAY, at home.

My late father was a Superintendent of Schools and I can tell you he got many such calls, at home, over holiday weekends and sometimes at all hours.

And our School Board members still do. Get your blue-minded friends to call as well.

[Crunchy Frog]

22. My children are just babies, but it's nice to know

that in the future, if there's a president that I hate (a near certainty I'm afraid), I will have the absolute right to opt out of having them listen to him or her give a school speech. At least that principle is being firmly established.

[kelly1mm]

24. If I understand you correctly the call said that the school would

be playing the speech but parents who wanted to could have their children not hear it by opting out. I don't have a problem with this. I would have opted out my kids if bush had done something like this. I would be upset if they were not playing it at all or it was an "opt-in" system instead of opt out but this - not so much.

[Duer 157099]

25. My problem with it is multifold

1) using ANY time/resources of a public school that is already strapped to the max financially, to administrate this opting-out, I have a real problem with. In fact, I'd rather that NO resources be used to even show the speech, but I can see how it is a civics-related activity.

2) knowing that there are parents in my area who feel that way, makes me ill. As much as I hated and detested Bush, I would NOT have done this if the school were to broadcast a speech by him, because like it or not, he was the President of the country.

[kelly1mm]

26. I see and agree with your point # 1. As to point # 2, I grew up

in Berkley, CA, about as liberal as it gets. Even in the Bay Area RW radio had/has lots of followers. Michael Savage got his major start there and still lives there I think. (I actually listened to him a couple of times when he would fill in on KGO before he went completely off the rez!) Point is that there are RW's everywhere just like there are progressives everywhere.

If bush was giving a speech that was like what the President is supposed to be giving about working hard and staying in school then I would let my kids see it. But I would want to read it first. Apparently President Obama's speech will be released on Monday so maybe the RW will chill out. The proposed additional teaching materials were the problem most had which have been revised due to criticism already. Probably would have been good to review those first so the RW did not have anything even remotely sane to scream about - not that that would have stopped them!

Thanks for your thoughts.

[noamnety]

30. I would spend less of your own resources

and energy trying to dictate what other parents do or how they feel. My blood pressure does a lot better when I remember I can't control how others react to things, only how I react to them.

The school's resources are already being strapped by being put in this situation, whether you realize it or not. They are having to deal with angry parents no matter what they decide to do - the speech is both a blessing and a shit sandwich all wrapped into one in that regard, at this point more leaning toward shit sandwich, speaking as a school employee. It's up to you if you want to lessen the strain on their resources at the busiest time of year, or add to it. I can only tell you that right now my school is overwhelmed trying to get the last kids scheduled, trying to get supplies so classes can start smoothly, trying to get emergency notification cards and all the enrollment requirements in still for all the students, a thousand things. A hundred parents tying up administrators and teachers with angry phone calls makes it very difficult for them to do the things they need to get done so your child can have the best education from day one.

It sounds like a statistically significant number of kids are going to be kept home for the entire day if the speech is forced on them. As an educator I can see that having a kid miss the speech but attend the rest of classes for the day is better for everyone than missing the speech AND missing a full day of classes. It sounds like your school made the best possible choice for benefiting the students, and maybe you can get to a place of understanding that their responsibility to the kids includes doing what they feel is best for those students as well as for yours.

[elleng]

28. Again, write Principal, like this:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x6469538