By Semperpapa
It was just two weeks ago that the White House spokesman stated that the reason Obama had not expressed a position on the situation in Libya was that he had to fit it in his schedule.
While American sons keep on dying in Afghanistan, the Middle East is on the brink of disaster, the economy is on the ropes, union thugs show they did not get the civility memo, gas prices keep on climbing and the border with Mexico remains open, I am happy Obama found time to spend a whole day addressing the pressing issue of "bullying".
Surely an important issue on the playgrounds of American schools, but one that is hardly deserving of so much attention on the part of the President of the United States.
The issue should be a local one, not one that the most powerful politician in the world should take too much time to personally address. I guess Michelle ordered him to.
Ironically, on the same day Obama is declaring "war" on bullying, his union minions in Wisconsin and elsewhere are engaging in exactly that very activity.
So bullying is actually bullying as long as the bullying is not done by liberals! Got that?
What a pile of bullshit!
Just my thoughts!
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*hmm...ponders*
ReplyDeleteBullying is bullying no matter WHO is doing it. I won't sit and pretend that all of the VERY important issues you note are significant...but marginalizing bullying while it has become a national issue is not something I'm keen on agreeing with. When we have kids committing suicide because of bullying, it's something that needs to be addressed. Yes, by the President, too.
The President is going to be criticized no matter WHAT he does, and not matter what he doesn't do. That is true for any president. But this sort of reminds me of the foolish criticism that is directed at the First Lady for committing the godawful "sin" of suggesting kids get outside and play...and maybe throw in a celery stick with their tubs of McLard meals. I'm really glad she's addressing childhood obesity - and cannot fathom how a topic SO NONcontroversial has drawn such harsh criticism from the President's detractors. The President addressing bullying is another one of those things that I fail to see what there is to criticize. Yes, other MAJOR problems need to be addressed...but bullying in this country isn't limited to the playground. It's gotten ugly --REALLY ugly. I probably wouldn't be as aware of it as I am if I didn't have kids in school, and one who is out of school and in the workforce --where the bullying from school has carried over. It's atrocious, SP. Atrocious, appalling, and very VERY sad.
My problem is not one of marginilizing bullying, but more of having the government, the federal government, descending into such level of micromanagement. I was bullied as a kid and as an adult and I always took care of myself and was always ready to stand up to bullies even if I was not the victim.
ReplyDeleteChildren suicide is always a sad issue, but why is bullying being singled out? What it comes down to is a complete failure of the majority of a society that has become spineless. So much emphasys has been placed on the "right" of each one of us not to be "offended" that any form of insult is considered as a devastating occurrence, worth of depression and suicidal tendencies.
In any case, I am not ready to accept that bullying is a "national issue". Illegal immigration is, terrorism is, unemploymont and deficit are, border security is, but not bullying.
I also do not have an issue with Michelle having a personal crusade. All First Ladies do, and if the notoriety of the person helps, that's even better. What I have a problem with is the imposition of rules and regulations that affect the individual operation of schools, for example, like the killing of bake sales and pizza parties for fund raising purposes. Ultimately, parents should be the ones being held accountable.
I will listen to a suggestion, but I reject the government imposition on what I or my children should eat.
Again, just my thoughts! :)
Bullying is being singled out because of the nature of the suicides...the fear of kids talking to their teachers...and often, parental complacency (especially in adolescent years). It's gotten a helluva lot worse since you were a kid and since I was a kid. I had a loooong talk with my daughter and her friends...(and they go to a VERY GOOD school). The bullying scene is MAJOR. The President *addressing* it does not equate with micromanagement. That's a leap that has no proof to bear it out.
ReplyDeleteFurther, the government (at the federal level) has not imposed anything different since Michelle Obama took on this challenge. There have LONG been nutritional standards (generally set forth by the Dept of Education - federal and state levels) ~ but when is the last time you went to a school cafeteria? (Be it elementary, middle, or high?) Seriously...I send my daughter with a brown bag, so I *KNOW* what she eats, because every school I've been to...across the country, without exception...the menus are appalling, and truth is, most parents just are unaware. :)
(On a sidenote giggle ~ word verification "zingly" ~ I thought that was funny...lol)
You just make my point. In the first paragraph you mention the complacency of some parents, and in the second that you make sure about what your daughter eats in school.
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly the problem: parental responsibility!
We have gotten away from it. We expect the government to have the answers when the answers are in our own home. The government should expect parents to take responsibility for their children by not facilitating and fostering dependability. And if parents fail it should step in to punish the culpable.
Sure nothing has been set federally about Michelle's crusade, but the guidelines are transmitted to the school districts where six digit salaries fools are all about forcing the "new rules" upon the system. Liberal school district administrators are always ready to take control of the "situation". And I have not seen the nutritional credential of the First Lady that would give credence to dictate what she wants us to eat.
Maybe they should change to the system I grew up with: no food provided by the school. Parents had the responsibility to send food with us. And if you cannot afford it, maybe you should cancel your I-phone.
Parents that care would take the shirt off their backs for their children and insure their welfare.
:) I have long taken the position that there should be a team approach, with parents being *parents*, schools doing what they are required to do (based upon regulations and common sense). There is a big push (school level) so far as bullying goes, and parents are becoming more aware of it (as a result of the horrific tragedies) ~ but what do you do when a person is singled out because they are (or even perceived to be) gay? What if that kid comes from an extremely religious home where turning to the people they *should* be able to trust can turn into domestic violence? Top it off, as reported by my daughter and her friends, reporting bullying to teachers or faculty results in more in-depth retaliatory bullying that is (often) far more subtle and damaging? There has to come a point where, without *relying* on the government...certain rules are in place (my thinking here - anti-discrimination policies, particularly with our young LGBT kids who shouldn't see suicide as an only way out...but really, kids discriminate for a variety of reasons).
ReplyDeleteAs for the meals...making suggestions and consulting with parents and school boards does not equate with legislating or mandating what parents "must" feed their kids. At the very least, raising awareness is equally important. Making parents who might not otherwise be aware in the first place what is in the content of what their kids are receiving...those weekly menus sent home by the schools? They're a joke. I am persnickety, but I'm that way because I really & truly care about what my kids eat (and what we all eat)...and much remains unknown societally about how our food industry operates. Raising awareness about that is really important - and people getting all in a bunch over it, to me, is just silly. Because what has started to happen is an increased recognition of the dangers of coupling food regulations & drug regulations (don't even get me started on an FDA soapbox LOL), and that much of what is happening with childhood obesity is directly related to *poverty* ~ which is a frustratingly sad issue, given how many necessary programs are being stripped of funding. Even just bringing attention to the issue helps. *nod* More than people seem to realize. :)