We can now put our rulers and pencils back into our backpack, learn a few lessons from this current event and move on.
In response to the blizzard of controversy over President Obama's planned back-to-school speech which was announced by the DOE last week, the White House has now released the transcript of the speech and posted it online so parents, principals, teachers, and those interested can read it in its entirety at www.whitehouse.gov.…
Article comments
26 - roger nowosielski
No problem, Cindy. I just don't want you to make enemies on my a/c.
Yes, Zedd's comment was on target. Besides, I was responding to her at a level she could understand, so I didn't think it necessary to process it for her in "simpler" language. I don't use the same terms of discourse, as you know, with everyone. I believe one should always gear their communications to their audience, and that's all I was doing.
I just think that Dreadful kind of jumped the gun. No biggie.
27 - Clavos
For shame, Doc...
28 - Okpulot Taha
Clavos comments, "...he has several speech writers. The one who's been with him the longest is named Jon Favreau."
Favreau is a Jesus Freak.
Nonetheless, Obama's "school speech" is personally written by Obama, not by a ghost writer.
In the absence of a TelePromTer, Obama is well known for slaughtering our English language but not as much as George W. Bush slaughters our English language.
Too bad Obama and Bush could not have debated; this would be real comedy, a Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum thing.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Puma Politics
29 - Okpulot Taha
roger nowosielski comments, "'Talented English teachers' is a good one, though. I suppose the rest are just dumb."
There are good teachers. There are bad teachers. There are good presidents. There are bad presidents. There are good people. There are bad people.
I am dismayed you are unaware of this; your naiveté is dangerous to you and all around you.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Puma Politics
30 - zingzing
mr. taha, you're being disingenuous and condescending. i'd bet you aren't "dismayed" in the least, nor do you believe that roger is "unaware" of anything like what you suggest.
and bitching about grammar while forgetting about rhetoric, audience and the fact that this is a speech and not a piece to be read by its audience (meaning that punctuation is stressed for timing and rhythm rather than running along strict grammatical rules), suggests that you were either looking to bash obama "just because," or, and this is more likely, you just wanted to strut around like some peacock.
either way, you're making yourself look like a pretentious know-it-all.
31 - Clavos the spelling Nazi
TelePromTer
Not such a hotshot speller yourself, Mr. English professor. It's TelePrompTer
Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum thing.
Tweedledee and Tweedledum.
Serves you right.
And then there's your non sequitur:
Favreau is a Jesus Freak.
What has that to do with his position as a speech writer for Obama?
32 - zingzing
clavos, sometimes your evilness is put to a good purpose.
33 - Clavos
No one's all bad, zing.
Not even you...
34 - Okpulot Taha
Clavos comments, "Tweedledee and Tweedledum."
Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum are second cousins to those two you reference.
Twiddle, as in "standing there dumbfounded while twiddling his thumbs."
Maybe I will dumb down my language level or perhaps use a chalkboard.
I am quoted, "Favreau is a Jesus Freak."
Clavos asks, "What has that to do with his position as a speech writer for Obama?"
Seems I expect too much of readers. Favreau is a hardcore Jesus Freak. Any speech he writes for Obama will display telltale signs of Favreau being the ghost writer. Favreau cannot escape from his intense religious background.
This is rather amusing as well. Jesus Freaks are almost always conservatives. This is inconsistent with a left liberal philosophy, a typically godless philosophy.
Amuses me Obama would select a Jesus Freak for a ghost writer; this is bound to have Obama in trouble, sooner or later. Perhaps this explains why Obama flip flops like a fish out of water.
Does not matter, Obama's school speech is written by his own hand.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Puma Politics
35 - Dr Dreadful
Favreau cannot escape from his intense religious background.
Do you know him?
I thought you were an English professor, not a psychology professor.
36 - Jordan Richardson
Favreau is a hardcore Jesus Freak.
In what respect? You keep repeating this claim, which is appreciated I'm sure, but what evidence do you have to suggest he's a "hardcore Jesus Freak" beyond your own interpretation and/or smugness?
Any speech he writes for Obama will display telltale signs of Favreau being the ghost writer.
Do you have any examples you could provide or is this just a presumption?
Jesus Freaks are almost always conservatives.
An outdated and incorrect idea if there ever was one.
This is inconsistent with a left liberal philosophy, a typically godless philosophy.
Again: an outdated and incorrect idea if there ever was one.
Incidentally, I find it amusing that you go on and on about the speechwriter and then conclude your diatribe by stating that it "doesn't matter."
37 - zingzing
"Twiddle Dee and Twiddle Dum are second cousins to those two you reference. Twiddle, as in "standing there dumbfounded while twiddling his thumbs." Maybe I will dumb down my language level or perhaps use a chalkboard."
i'm not sure that using a more obscure reference to make a culture reference is the best way to go about it. "tweedledum and tweedledee" would have sufficed, as that is the commonly accepted literary reference, but i think we all got the idea anyway.
all that said, i'd like to know where these two come from, as the only place i can find any such names being mentioned as second cousins to the tweedles is on stormfront.org, and i don't even think that is actually saying they're second cousins... i think it's a spelling error. are they in carroll's book, or just in fan fiction?
38 - Jordan Richardson
By the way, Okpulot Taha, is this your website?
39 - Okpulot Taha
Problem here is young kids and to a measured degree, teenagers, are highly impressionable. An example. Third grade children typically absolutely adore their teachers. Whatever message a teacher imparts, whatever lesson, those children take this into mind and into heart. This establishes, in part, thinking and personality for life.
A teacher says, "Ain't Obama the greatest man ever!" Those third graders now have burned into their minds, "Obama is a great man." Subsequently, all which Obama says, writes, imparts, will be viewed by those third graders as true and "great" unless taught otherwise by a responsible person, perhaps parents.
Political indoctrination of children is very easy and very insidious; children are yet to develop skeptical critical thinking. Children are easy prey.
I would write the same critique whether a conservative president or a liberal president when this event is at a "national" level, when an event like this is not arranged with a teacher or is not monitored for content, one-on-one.
Bush Jr. reading about a Goat to a single classroom of kids while New York is being destroyed, this is not a problem, setting aside this destruction of New York.
Bush Sr. lecturing kids in a classroom to stay away from drug abuse, this is OK.
Laura Bush, she is to be welcomed into a classroom without hesitation, without thought; she can be trusted.
I cannot write the same compliment for Michelle Obama because of her prior slip-of-the-tongue revealing her black nationalist thinking; she cannot be trusted.
Obama has well proven he cannot be trusted and his "national" level address to kids is highly inappropriate; he is grandstanding for America and using our American children to do so.
Almost all of this issue is about trust. Many Americans mistrust Obama and their mistrust is justifiable. Obama should display respect for those folks. He does not have to cancel his speech but he should have released his speech a month back, sans an unlawful lesson plan, so American parents could discuss and decide what is best their children rather than have Obama impose what he believes is best for American children, at the last moment.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Puma Politics
40 - Jordan Richardson
an unlawful lesson plan
In what way is the "lesson plan" aspect of this "unlawful?"
Furthermore, reading the speech now as it is, what would you say would have changed regarding the public's interest in it had they read the innocuous, boring thing MONTHS in advance??
41 - Jordan Richardson
Nevermind that, who the hell wants to hear about Obama's "back to school" shit when they're still on summer vacation?
42 - zingzing
hey taha--what about reagan preaching reaganomics to kids? was that ok?
43 - El Bicho
"Political indoctrination of children is very easy and very insidious; children are yet to develop skeptical critical thinking. Children are easy prey."
So then you are against them saying the Pledge of Allegiance in school?
44 - Jordan Richardson
Incidentally, Okpulot Taha, I'm going to need a few weeks advance notice before you comment so that I can prepare myself to avoid indoctrination. I just can't handle this "at the last minute" shit.
You talk about trust, which is amusing because your diatribes do more to facilitate mistrust in EVERYTHING, including but not limited to our children's ability to comprehend and think for themselves. Your idea simply presents an opportunity for you to indoctrinate them first before somebody else with a different point of view gets in there and messes about with the wiring.
It's shameful, wrong and dangerous to leave kids so unprepared for the world around them and so unequipped to handle discussion and debate with those with differing ideologies.
We shouldn't not "trust" someone simply because they hold differing views, nor should we subject our children to such moronic thinking.
45 - zingzing
oh jeez, that website's awesome!
46 - Okpulot Taha
You boys need to perform your homework on Favreau. Holy Cross seems a fitting hint.
On Obama's unlawful lesson plan, you also need to perform your homework on this. U.S. Code Title 20, Chapter 48, Section 3403 seems a good hint.
How are you boys to intelligently debate while not performing your homework?
You are not giving attention to Obama's school advice!
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Puma Politics
47 - zingzing
"You are not giving attention to Obama's school advice!"
paying?
48 - Dr Dreadful
You boys need to perform your homework on Favreau. Holy Cross seems a fitting hint.
Graduating from a Catholic college automatically makes one a Christian fundie?
U.S. Code Title 20, Chapter 48, Section 3403 seems a good hint.
Funny. I thought Obama was the President, not the Secretary of Education, whose department this section is concerned with.
49 - Jordan Richardson
Holy Cross seems a fitting hint.
I was well, well aware of that. Google's hot.
But what you're not seeing is the jump in logic you make from someone attending the same school Clarence Thomas and Chris Matthews went to (are they also "Jesus Freaks?") doesn't lead to the conclusion you infer. As I asked you before, what are some "clues" in Obama speeches that they were written by this so-called "Jesus Freak?" Or, as I asked also, is this line of thinking a figment of your prejudice/improper logical conclusions?
And how the establishment of the Department of Education clash at all, in any way, with "Obama's activities?" It doesn't and you know it.
You chastise people for not doing their homework, but nobody can dig around inside your head and reach the conclusions you reach without wandering through a maze of paranoia and logical fallacies first.
Try, try again.
50 - Glenn Contrarian
Now, now, my fellow liberals - we must be circumspect about how we discuss matters of the English language with Mr. Taha - because if we're not careful, we might misunderestimate him.
51 - STM
Please tell me I'm not the only one who smells a rat here of prodigious proportions.
And, seriously, is Okpulot Taha a fair-dinkum name or a pseudonym for someone named Purl Gurl (or should that be the other way around)??
Remember, this IS the internet. Nothing is as it seems.
52 - STM
Or, could MR be baaaaack??
53 - Ruvy
Please tell me I'm not the only one who smells a rat here of prodigious proportions....
"What of the rat, then?"
Sherlock Holmes took a folded paper from his pocket and flattened it out on the table. "This is a map of the Colony of
Victoria," he said. "I wired to Bristol for it last night." He put his hand over part of the map. "What do you read?"
"ARAT," I read.
"And now?" He raised his hand.
"BALLARAT. "
54 - STM
Lol. Very funny Ruvy. You'd have loved it there once, though, Ruve - Ballarat was absolutely awash in gold.
(On June 10th 1858, the great Welcome Nugget was found. It weighed 68,956 grams and contained an estimated 68,272 grams of pure gold). Not bad, eh, for one rock stuck in the ground?
On Holmes' trick: You could the same trick with WANGARATTA (which isn't far away from BALLARAT), except you'd need to use two fingers.
Which is the salute I offer Ms Taha.
55 - Mark
Christine. ooops! you did it again.
U.S. Code Title 20, Chapter 48, Section 3403 seems a good hint.
Oy! How does one read this Code and come up with the lesson plan's illegality?
Surfer dude, Taha doesn't hold a candle to MR's righteous anger.
56 - Clavos
zing,
i'm not sure that using a more obscure reference to make a culture reference is the best way to go about it. "tweedledum and tweedledee" would have sufficed, as that is the commonly accepted literary reference, but i think we all got the idea anyway.
"Obscure" indeed. Entirely made up within the noxious depths of his (her?) fevered "mind."
57 - Clavos
"Professor,"
Maybe I will dumb down my language level
It couldn't get any dumber.
But you have succeeded in one thing: you have united the conservatives and liberals on this site, if just for a brief interlude.
58 - Cindy
(snicker)
59 - Mark
Here's the most offensive part of the speech, imo:
...God bless you, and God bless America.
60 - zingzing
"But you have succeeded in one thing: you have united the conservatives and liberals on this site, if just for a brief interlude."
*clinks his glass on the computer screen* to taha!
*pours some out onto the keybzzzzoardzzzz* tozzzzxxx allzz zzz myzxzx deadzxzzzzzz homiezzzzzz.
61 - Baronius
BC is like the angry overweight girl at the high school dance. We're desperate for someone to pay us attention, but whenever a new person wanders by we drive him away. Or maybe we're like the New Yorkers in Atlantic City in the movie Rounders. We're so versed at destroying each other that it holds no interest for us anymore. We just wait for a stranger to sit down at our table.
The text of Obama's speech was everything I would have hoped for. Yes, it had flaws, but the tone and the message were excellent.
62 - roger nowosielski
I ain't that desperate, B-man. I have no idea what planet our Mr. Taha materialized from, and I don't want to know. You can always get a sympathetic ear in the agora - among the lame and feeble-minded and intellectually challenged. That kind of response I don't need, and I'm certain neither do you.
Mr. Taha appears more intent on displaying his rudimentary knowledge of English, along with that of the Western culture - to the detriment, no doubt, of his national/ethnic origins - while forgetting all the while that true mastery comes with breaking the rules, whether in literature or ordinary discourse.
That said, he's got a long way to go.
63 - Okpulot Taha
This red skinned girl is flattered you boys elected to render me the hot topic of discussion rather than Obama's school speech.
I am simply irresistible.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Puma Politics
64 - zingzing
gettin' out me double bass n' playin' you a tune...
(and there are other threads about the school sppech, which was a non-issue to begin with. you just made this one a lot of fun in itself.)
65 - roger nowosielski
Well, Mr. Taha, I can't but agree with zing in that the whole matter of president Obama's speech was a non-issue. But you have surely made it interesting. So why don't you just enjoy your time in the sun.
66 - roger nowosielski
STM's comment is a gem: Nothing on Internet is as it seems. For all we know, Mr. Taha could be a transvestite with stiletto heels.
Or a hemaphrodite.
67 - zingzing
roger, there's a hyperlink to a website up there in the comments. go find it. it's taha's. it's... incredible. just cruise around there for a while.
68 - roger nowosielski
Yep, I've seen it, zing. Jordan posted it in #38. Talking about freaks?