President Obama seemingly can do nothing right. His approval rating is falling rapidly. Health care reform, bailout of the auto and banking industries, Cash for Clunkers and now the great education debate are all examples of how the American public is outraged at the perceived “socialist” agenda President Obama is pushing. But, not so fast. What is the real issue behind the speech on education that will be broadcast into millions of classrooms today?
Certainly, Americans cannot be upset with the idea that if one will not work, they will not eat. That is a biblical principle at its finest. Americans cannot be appalled at the notion that students should work hard, take advantage of a great opportunity in receiving a taxpayer-funded education, and achieve greatness. Surely, that cannot be the issue.
Sadly, the issue is more political in nature. Side A is upset that Side B is not pushing its agenda, therefore anything outside of Side A’s political agenda is suspect and in need of great scrutiny. Side A or B can be Democrat or Republican, as both parties are guilty of tunnel vision at the expense of American society. It happened during the Bush Administration and it’s happening during this administration. It is not as surprising as it is depressing.
As this nation continues to debate health care reform, millions continue on without insurance. There is an estimated 46 million people who are without insurance. Because of the state of the economy and with joblessness hovering around 10% nationwide, it is possible that the number of uninsured people may be even higher. Yet, no real, viable solution has been put forth. President Obama and his team have proposed options. Senators and congressmen from the Republican Party have proposed options as well. Neither side can agree on a solution, so millions of Americans (many of them children) remain uninsured while each side debates endlessly.
The Cash for Clunkers program was not popular because it offered a temporary fix to a long-term problem in the American auto industry. Poor business practices, faulty production quality and a labor union unwilling to negotiate fairly all made the case for this industry to find a way out of the business-as-usual mentality.
Also, in a capitalist society it would have made perfect sense for the banking industry to either re-invent itself or collapse under the weight of its unscrupulous practices. However, in both industries, the bailout gave minimal incentive to dramatically overhauling business practices. In short, the bailout was a bad idea at the expense of the American public’s tax dollars.
But, addressing the nation’s youth about the importance of school in rebuilding America is not a bad idea. After receiving a copy of the speech, even die-hard opponents had to soften their tone. Jim Greer, chairman of the Florida Republican Party, was one who recanted his tone on the education speech. Newt Gingrich praised the President for his address to students citing that, “It’s good for America.” On the contrary, Glenn Beck has gone so far as to encourage students to skip school to avoid hearing the speech. Is this issue really such a hot button topic that it warrants such extreme scrutiny when more pressing issues exist?
We have politicians fighting for who gets to control the “agenda” kids are exposed to. And God is left out entirely in the debate. Capitalism versus socialism, Democrat versus Republican, it is all a power play for control. And while stated before, it’s not as surprising as it is depressing for the nation as a whole.
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