I read with real interest the guest op-ed piece written by high school senior Brittne Lunniss.
I have to say that the article was fairly well-written and articulate. Unfortunately, it was not well researched by the writer. Initially, she asks the question “do we truly require the president of our United States to advise our adolescent scholars on the importance of maintaining a successful school career?” In answer, no, of course we don’t require that of the president, but we should applaud him for doing so.
As a successful, well-educated, highly articulate adult (we finally have a president who speaks proper English) who comes from very humble beginnings, who else is better to address students on the importance of getting the most out of their educational opportunities?
The original plan for the president to propose a national homework assignment asking students to suggest improvements to the U.S. educational system was a brilliant idea that should never have been shelved. Challenging our youth to think critically, and propose feasible solutions to the problems that affect their lives – what a concept! We can only wonder why that is a scary idea for the Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh types out there. Maybe their partisan politics are better served by complaint and obstructionism, rather than constructive debate and participation.
After this supposed critique of the president’s speech to schoolchildren, Miss Lunniss strays far off topic. She refers to the growing national debt and suggests that federal dollars should be spent on education. In fact, as part of the President’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, 117 billion dollars have been earmarked for education, from early learning all the way through the college level. She states that our health care system does not need immediate fixing, perhaps because she and her family are one of the fortunate to have decent medical coverage through an employer. If she did a bit of research, she would learn that it is estimated that 57-60 MILLION Americans will be uninsured by 2010. Health care spending in the U.S. has now reached 17 percent of the gross domestic product, and the rate at which it is increasing is more than alarming. This makes health care spending an issue for the insured as much as it is for the uninsured.
It is an immediate and very real crisis that our president is trying to address.
To quote the president, “inaction is an unacceptable option”. As for the “vexatious war that yearns for conclusion”, I would suggest that she turn to the former President Bush for answers to that question.
Clearly, Miss Lunniss and I disagree about the president’s policies, but ultimately my issue with her piece is not about politics at all. When I asked a personal friend, an eighth-grade teacher, in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City, if the president had slipped any “socialist ideology” into his speech, he said no. He said there was no controversy, hidden agenda, or even a comment that might be considered politically charged.
Even Republican Newt Gingrich told the “Today” show “I would love to have every child in America read it.” Former First Lady Laura Bush also said the speech was appropriate for kids. And yet, Miss Lunniss says, “Perhaps the plan is to accidentally ‘slip in’ political encouragement toward our school-aged children who simply don’t know better.” In the end, Miss Lunniss’s most profound error is that she conflates the President’s policies with the utterly non-political address he made to our nation’s children. Criticizing our president is a right and a privilege in our great country, but we also have an obligation to know what we are talking about when we do it.
On a personal note to the obviously intelligent Miss Lunniss, I would like to urge her to stay in school, go to college, and to pick a college that promises to challenge her to think critically and analytically. She should try to see as much of the world as possible because this will allow her to view the U.S. as a member of the greater global community.
In order to provide some balance and perspective to her opinions she should supplement her viewing of the Fox News Network with the BBC or other international news sources and listening to conservative talk radio with some NPR News as well. She doesn’t have to agree with any one of these news sources, they are meant to be thought provoking. She should own her thoughts and not allow any individual or group to control them. I wish her well in the future because, to quote Bono of the rock band U2, “Every generation gets a chance to change the world.”
– Kitty Harrison
