In elementary school, my whole class had to sing about George Washington.

how'd he do in teh last election?

you're being obtuse

jerseyhoya wrote:

philliesphhan wrote:

jerseyhoya wrote:

philliesphhan wrote:Singing a song about the President of the United States!?? That will not stand!

Uh, like did you see the video?

It's beyond $#@! up.

They're kids.

Singing a song.

Hooray, Mr. President we honor your great plans
To make this country's economy number one again!

I don't often verge into wingnuttery, but I guess I am here. Oh well. Other people don't find the lack of judgment in doing something like this disturbing? This really pisses me off.

I thought the school speech controversy was stupid. The office of the President of the United States should be respected, but not venerated and held up on high like he's some king or Dear Leader sort. Make our country great again, great plans, great accomplishments.

I feel like PtK. I'm frothing at the mouth with anger, and no one else is smart enough to agree with me.

I'm with you, jh. Without listening to the song, it sounds painfully stupid (politically and otherwise), for one thing; for another, anything that contributes to the Cult of the Presidency--a bipartisan and seemingly inexorable trend that's gone on for seventy-five years now--is something we should be worried about.

The song was over the top, but it's pretty easy to see how this happened. Some teacher who thinks he or she has a flair for "song writing" and like Pres. Obama a whole lot wrote a song. And once that song was written, it would be a shame if no one ever sang it. And, well, no matter how bad or how in appropriate, that song was going to be sung.

And yeah, it's propagandistic I suppose, but if the typical couplet goes like this,

Hooray, Mr. President we honor your great plans
To make this country's economy number one again!

we're not talking Leni Riefenstahl here. Is that shit supposed to rhyme or scan rhythmically?

jerseyhoya wrote:l. Other people don't find the lack of judgment in doing something like this disturbing? This really pisses me off.

I thought the school speech controversy was stupid. The office of the President of the United States should be respected, but not venerated and held up on high like he's some king or Dear Leader sort. Make our country great again, great plans, great accomplishments.

I feel like PtK. I'm frothing at the mouth with anger, and no one else is smart enough to agree with me.

Where I live schools are subject (in theory) to local political bodies, and local political decisionmaking. I'm guessing that's the same for the school in question.

What they do there is (in theory) their business.

You're saying you have a problem with that.

So if a school district decided to teach homosexuality was evil or a state decided to teach creationism as science you would say good for them and not express your disdain for their decision?

Not to mention this school is like a half hour from me in the same county, and I've probably contributed a half a cent of my income tax dollars to it this year.

jerseyhoya wrote:So if a school district decided to teach homosexuality was evil or a state decided to teach creationism as science you would say good for them and not express your disdain for their decision?

of course not. I'm simply doing my part to whip you into a paroxysm of fury.

philliesphhan wrote:In elementary school, my whole class had to sing about George Washington.

I remember having to do this, too, except in preschool. The difference here is, I guess, that George had been dead for almost 200 years and is generally regarded, in a bipartisan way, as a great symbol of our country. This, on the other hand, isn't anything like that. Even if the intentions were innocent, it comes off like a gentle indoctrination process. I'm not going to say we need a federal law against singing songs about current Presidents, but leaving the Barack Obama Songbook at home is probably a good idea.

Honestly, JH, if schools want to celebrate a President, or governor, or mayor, police chief, elected official, soldier, or anyone who is serving the public, I really don't have a huge problem with it. I understand the particular lyrics in this particular case may have been a bit heavy handed and maybe even inappropriate, but I'm pretty sure if Bush, or Clinton, or Reagan, or the other Bush went to visit a school, you'd here a band performing a clumsy rendidition of "Hail to the Chief."

Why not more celebration of public servants? I may not agree with everything an elected official does, but I think that in most cases, they really are trying to make this country a better place. I believe that of Bush, and I believe it of Clinton. Aside from the most corrupt most people in politics really want to do good. I believe that even someone like Rangel or that Top Gun guy in CA.

There is a TREMENDOUS difference between Hail to the Chief and singing that song to 6 year olds.

That said, it's not THAT big of a deal. There's no larger issue at play (teachers, as members of unions, are trying to teach our kids to worship Obama). The teacher should be disciplined and we all should move on.

jerseyhoya wrote:So if a school district decided to teach homosexuality was evil or a state decided to teach creationism as science you would say good for them and not express your disdain for their decision?

Not to mention this school is like a half hour from me in the same county, and I've probably contributed a half a cent of my income tax dollars to it this year.

Why not agree that it's screwed up, but it's a local issue? Hard to believe, but there are some pretty dim education majors out there, and the teacher and superintendent should be taken to task by their community.

I just don't see it as emblematic of anything.

swishnicholson wrote:

jerseyhoya wrote:So if a school district decided to teach homosexuality was evil or a state decided to teach creationism as science you would say good for them and not express your disdain for their decision?

Not to mention this school is like a half hour from me in the same county, and I've probably contributed a half a cent of my income tax dollars to it this year.

Why not agree that it's screwed up, but it's a local issue? Hard to believe, but there are some pretty dim education majors out there, and the teacher and superintendent should be taken to task by their community.

I just don't see it as emblematic of anything.

Did I miss the post where I called on Congress to draw and quarter the teacher that did this? What the hell does this being a local issue have to do with the price of eggs?

It's fucked up. It should be mocked and ridiculed. The teacher should apologize. Then we can all move on to important things like ACORN giving tax advice to pimps.

jerseyhoya wrote:It's $#@! up. It should be mocked and ridiculed.

I myself frequently, tho privately, bemoan the diminished application of ridicule in the public square. It's subversive & has great potency. It's a shame people & organizations seem to have shied away from it.

Of course it's more effective somehow when aimed at the organized & powerful, rather than the well-meaning but addled &/or ineffectual.

jerseyhoya wrote:[Then we can all move on to important things like ACORN giving tax advice to pimps.

It was stupid on the teacher's part. At least half the population is going to be pissed at something like this, no matter who the President is. People would have said the same thing if it was a (complimentary) song about Bush or Reagan. It has no place in the classroom. I get a song about Washington or Lincoln, and I even remember hearing Abraham, Martin and John in school when I was a kid. A sitting President - not smart.

Joe Hoeffel in the PA Governor's race.

cshort wrote:It was stupid on the teacher's part. At least half the population is going to be pissed at something like this, no matter who the President is. People would have said the same thing if it was a (complimentary) song about Bush or Reagan. It has no place in the classroom. I get a song about Washington or Lincoln, and I even remember hearing Abraham, Martin and John in school when I was a kid. A sitting President - not smart.

See, I really don't think a song celebrating a sitting President or other public official is so bad. I do think that we need to think about celebrating public service. I don't think it's so terrible to tell children that our political leaders (people elected by us) are doing their best to solve our country's problems.

We would do well as a country if we could get back to the idea that there is a nobility in public service, in dedicating one's life to politics even. The level of distrust in elected officials makes it more difficult for this country to confront its problems honestly.

Furthermore, I think it's good for children to sing patriotic songs (though I can't stand "You're a Grand Old Flag" but that's just me) and talk about all the things that make America great.

There is a big difference between celebrating the general office of the Presidency, and having kids sing that Obama, specifically, is the answer the economic crisis

I'm a hardcore Obama supporter and I think that this teacher crossed the line. It gives unnecessary fuel to the right wing to characterize Obama as some sort of wannabee Fascist-Communist dictator(though that idea makes no sense to rational people). And I would be irritated if a teacher made children sing a similar song about George W. Bush or Ronald Reagan.

I'm an education major and my professors constantly emphasize that if your lesson plan could cross ethical boundaries, it is better to find an alternative activity. Most of us agree that Washington and Lincoln are American heroes and perhaps it would be better to sing a song about them rather than the current President whose legacy and place in history is still undetermined.

TenuredVulture wrote:

cshort wrote:It was stupid on the teacher's part. At least half the population is going to be pissed at something like this, no matter who the President is. People would have said the same thing if it was a (complimentary) song about Bush or Reagan. It has no place in the classroom. I get a song about Washington or Lincoln, and I even remember hearing Abraham, Martin and John in school when I was a kid. A sitting President - not smart.

See, I really don't think a song celebrating a sitting President or other public official is so bad. I do think that we need to think about celebrating public service. I don't think it's so terrible to tell children that our political leaders (people elected by us) are doing their best to solve our country's problems.

We would do well as a country if we could get back to the idea that there is a nobility in public service, in dedicating one's life to politics even. The level of distrust in elected officials makes it more difficult for this country to confront its problems honestly.

Furthermore, I think it's good for children to sing patriotic songs (though I can't stand "You're a Grand Old Flag" but that's just me) and talk about all the things that make America great.

I absolutely agree with TV's thoughts on public servants (especially being one myself). They often work for nothing other than the satisfaction of doing good for our communities and they deserve to be celebrated. My town actually hosts a party every year for volunteers and servants to say Thank You.

I think the main point here, though, is that the singing itself is not a problem. The problem is that it took place in school with a group of kids. What if one of the kids refused to sing? Would they have been disciplined? If so, that school would have attorneys lined up around the block.

Bottom line for me is that the teacher probably had the most innocent of intentions but really used poor judgment. Like Hoya suggested, slap the teacher on the wrist and move on. But you can bet your ass this episode is far from over. Wonder what the Vegas over/under is on lawsuits filed regarding this event?