Comments on: Nebo School District Alternative Activities

By: Paul

Paul — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:39:03 +0000

I think the hatred for George W. Bush came primarily from the unpopularity of his policies. This unpopularity was not evident until about 6 months into his second term.
I do look forward to many discussions about the legacy of George W. Bush in 10 or 20 years. It will be very interesting to see how it worked out in the context of a bit more history.

By: bcrockett

bcrockett — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:28:22 +0000

Seriously, I’d have to say I saw this kind of hatred (if not more) for Bush in his final years.

It’s really too bad political debate is so polarized. I wonder if it was always this way and if it’s always going to be this way.

All presidents receive death threats. I’ve heard that Pres. Obama has had more, but have never seen any numbers on it. I wouldn’t be surprised because I don’t deny the fact that there are still racists. I just don’t think that the majority of people who oppose Obama policies are merely in opposition to the color of his skin. I think America as a whole is a lot better than that. And I doubt any of those threats have come from the Nebo school district.

On the other hand, I was surprised to see that the issue has been brought up in several other states. I’m glad I had great parents growing up—I’d be embarrassed if any of these people were in my family.

By: Jordan Atkin

Jordan Atkin — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 04:29:53 +0000

*sarcasm

By: Jordan Atkin

Jordan Atkin — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 03:59:28 +0000

No one asked for Bush’s birth certificate because we all know he was born in America. Obama, on the other hand, was born in Nigeria. This man as our president cannot stand!

By: Mandy

Mandy — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 00:31:48 +0000

Of course they won’t admit they are racist. They’ll just say he was born in Africa and he’s a Muslim. I don’t recall them asking for Bush’s birth certificate.

By: Mandy

Mandy — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:43:30 +0000

Have you ever seen this kind of hatred for a president? How many death threats have there been now?
Oh, and be nice. I’m Paul’s wife.

By: bcrockett

bcrockett — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:56:04 +0000

I meant not a bit surprising.

By: bcrockett

bcrockett — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:55:04 +0000

That is funny, although bit surprising.

On the other hand- attributing a political disagreement to racism isn’t just lame- it’s weak, simplistic, and largely inaccurate.

By: Mandy

Mandy — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:10:12 +0000

Isn’t it funny that the same people who called Democrats unpatriotic for not supporting the war are also the ones hoping that our President fails? They are just still so mad that a black man is in charge.
I wish these Republicans would just go back to Cabela’s and shut the fuck up.

By: bcrockett

bcrockett — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 17:25:39 +0000

Paul-

Good letter and good points. I think you went a little easy on him, but that might be because he wasn’t the final decision maker on the issue. Still, I think it’s ridiculous that they should even think about offering “alternative activities,” let alone not showing the speech because they couldn’t organize any in time.

Whether you like his policies or not, shouldn’t you listen when the president speaks? Is he not the leader of our country? And shouldn’t we be encouraging our kids to participate in the political process rather than encouraging them to turn their backs on it?

I find it hard to imagine someone trying to justify that position. The president is the man we look to to lead our country. The notion that we need to protect our children for him is not only ridiculous—it’s based in pettiness and personal political insecurity. If parents disagree with any of his comments to the students, that becomes the perfect opportunity for discussion and learning.

Unfortunately for all of us, it looks like they’ll learn closed-mindedness instead.