Transcript of Obama's school speech

[Popeye]

The transcript of the school speech, due to be given by Obama tomorrow that the wingnuts are all upset about, has been released. Perhaps one of you on the right could explain, without checking with Limbaugh or Beck first, just exactly what the problem with the speech is..


Arlington, Virginia

September 8, 2009

The President: Hello everyone – how’s everybody doing today? I’m here with students at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia. And we’ve got students tuning in from all across America, kindergarten through twelfth grade. I’m glad you all could join us today.

I know that for many of you, today is the first day of school. And for those of you in kindergarten, or starting middle or high school, it’s your first day in a new school, so it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous. I imagine there are some seniors out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just one more year to go. And no matter what grade you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it were still summer, and you could’ve stayed in bed just a little longer this morning.

I know that feeling. When I was young, my family lived in Indonesia for a few years, and my mother didn’t have the money to send me where all the American kids went to school. So she decided to teach me extra lessons herself, Monday through Friday – at 4:30 in the morning.

Now I wasn’t too happy about getting up that early. A lot of times, I’d fall asleep right there at the kitchen table. But whenever I’d complain, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, "This is no picnic for me either, buster."

So I know some of you are still adjusting to being back at school. But I’m here today because I have something important to discuss with you. I’m here because I want to talk with you about your education and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.

Now I’ve given a lot of speeches about education. And I’ve talked a lot about responsibility.

I’ve talked about your teachers’ responsibility for inspiring you, and pushing you to learn.

I’ve talked about your parents’ responsibility for making sure you stay on track, and get your homework done, and don’t spend every waking hour in front of the TV or with that Xbox.

I’ve talked a lot about your government’s responsibility for setting high standards, supporting teachers and principals, and turning around schools that aren’t working where students aren’t getting the opportunities they deserve.

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities. Unless you show up to those schools; pay attention to those teachers; listen to your parents, grandparents and other adults; and put in the hard work it takes to succeed.

And that’s what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. I want to start with the responsibility you have to yourself.

Every single one of you has something you’re good at. Every single one of you has something to offer. And you have a responsibility to yourself to discover what that is. That’s the opportunity an education can provide.

Maybe you could be a good writer – maybe even good enough to write a book or articles in a newspaper – but you might not know it until you write a paper for your English class. Maybe you could be an innovator or an inventor – maybe even good enough to come up with the next iPhone or a new medicine or vaccine – but you might not know it until you do a project for your science class. Maybe you could be a mayor or a Senator or a Supreme Court Justice, but you might not know that until you join student government or the debate team.

And no matter what you want to do with your life – I guarantee that you’ll need an education to do it. You want to be a doctor, or a teacher, or a police officer? You want to be a nurse or an architect, a lawyer or a member of our military? You’re going to need a good education for every single one of those careers. You can’t drop out of school and just drop into a good job. You’ve got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.

And this isn’t just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country. What you’re learning in school today will determine whether we as a nation can meet our greatest challenges in the future.

You’ll need the knowledge and problem-solving skills you learn in science and math to cure diseases like cancer and AIDS, and to develop new energy technologies and protect our environment. You’ll need the insights and critical thinking skills you gain in history and social studies to fight poverty and homelessness, crime and discrimination, and make our nation more fair and more free. You’ll need the creativity and ingenuity you develop in all your classes to build new companies that will create new jobs and boost our economy.

We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country.

Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in school. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on your schoolwork.

I get it. I know what that’s like. My father left my family when I was two years old, and I was raised by a single mother who struggled at times to pay the bills and wasn’t always able to give us things the other kids had. There were times when I missed having a father in my life. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in.

So I wasn’t always as focused as I should have been. I did some things I’m not proud of, and got in more trouble than I should have. And my life could have easily taken a turn for the worse.

But I was fortunate. I got a lot of second chances and had the opportunity to go to college, and law school, and follow my dreams. My wife, our First Lady Michelle Obama, has a similar story. Neither of her parents had gone to college, and they didn’t have much. But they worked hard, and she worked hard, so that she could go to the best schools in this country.

Some of you might not have those advantages. Maybe you don’t have adults in your life who give you the support that you need. Maybe someone in your family has lost their job, and there’s not enough money to go around. Maybe you live in a neighborhood where you don’t feel safe, or have friends who are pressuring you to do things you know aren’t right.

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life – what you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home – that’s no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude. That’s no excuse for talking back to your teacher, or cutting class, or dropping out of school. That’s no excuse for not trying.

Where you are right now doesn’t have to determine where you’ll end up. No one’s written your destiny for you. Here in America, you write your own destiny. You make your own future.

That’s what young people like you are doing every day, all across America.

Young people like Jazmin Perez, from Roma, Texas. Jazmin didn’t speak English when she first started school. Hardly anyone in her hometown went to college, and neither of her parents had gone either. But she worked hard, earned good grades, got a scholarship to Brown University, and is now in graduate school, studying public health, on her way to being Dr. Jazmin Perez.

I’m thinking about Andoni Schultz, from Los Altos, California, who’s fought brain cancer since he was three. He’s endured all sorts of treatments and surgeries, one of which affected his memory, so it took him much longer – hundreds of extra hours – to do his schoolwork. But he never fell behind, and he’s headed to college this fall.

And then there’s Shantell Steve, from my hometown of Chicago, Illinois. Even when bouncing from foster home to foster home in the toughest neighborhoods, she managed to get a job at a local health center; start a program to keep young people out of gangs; and she’s on track to graduate high school with honors and go on to college.

Jazmin, Andoni and Shantell aren’t any different from any of you. They faced challenges in their lives just like you do. But they refused to give up. They chose to take responsibility for their education and set goals for themselves. And I expect all of you to do the same.

That’s why today, I’m calling on each of you to set your own goals for your education – and to do everything you can to meet them. Your goal can be something as simple as doing all your homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. Maybe you’ll decide to get involved in an extracurricular activity, or volunteer in your community. Maybe you’ll decide to stand up for kids who are being teased or bullied because of who they are or how they look, because you believe, like I do, that all kids deserve a safe environment to study and learn. Maybe you’ll decide to take better care of yourself so you can be more ready to learn. And along those lines, I hope you’ll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don’t feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter.

Whatever you resolve to do, I want you to commit to it. I want you to really work at it.

I know that sometimes, you get the sense from TV that you can be rich and successful without any hard work -- that your ticket to success is through rapping or basketball or being a reality TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.



http://www.whitehouse.gov/MediaResources/PreparedSchoolRemarks/

 

[Popeye]

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. You won’t click with every teacher. Not every homework assignment will seem completely relevant to your life right this minute. And you won’t necessarily succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter [website] book was rejected twelve times before it was finally published. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots during his career. But he once said, "I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures define you – you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time. If you get in trouble, that doesn’t mean you’re a troublemaker, it means you need to try harder to behave. If you get a bad grade, that doesn’t mean you’re stupid, it just means you need to spend more time studying.

No one’s born being good at things, you become good at things through hard work. You’re not a varsity athlete the first time you play a new sport. You don’t hit every note the first time you sing a song. You’ve got to practice. It’s the same with your schoolwork. You might have to do a math problem a few times before you get it right, or read something a few times before you understand it, or do a few drafts of a paper before it’s good enough to hand in.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit when you don’t know something, and to learn something new. So find an adult you trust – a parent, grandparent or teacher; a coach or counselor – and ask them to help you stay on track to meet your goals.

And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged, and you feel like other people have given up on you – don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things got tough. It’s about people who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.

It’s the story of students who sat where you sit 250 years ago, and went on to wage a revolution and found this nation. Students who sat where you sit 75 years ago who overcame a Depression and won a world war; who fought for civil rights and put a man on the moon. Students who sat where you sit 20 years ago who founded Google, Twitter and Facebook and changed the way we communicate with each other.

So today, I want to ask you, what’s your contribution going to be? What problems are you going to solve? What discoveries will you make? What will a president who comes here in twenty or fifty or one hundred years say about what all of you did for this country?

Your families, your teachers, and I are doing everything we can to make sure you have the education you need to answer these questions. I’m working hard to fix up your classrooms and get you the books, equipment and computers you need to learn. But you’ve got to do your part too. So I expect you to get serious this year. I expect you to put your best effort into everything you do. I expect great things from each of you. So don’t let us down – don’t let your family or your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.

Thank you, God bless you, and God bless America.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/MediaResources/PreparedSchoolRemarks/

[+] Rate this post positively

 

[Pandora]

I did not see anything wrong with the speech but I am sure he went through it line by line and decided not to say some things so people dont get upset about it. But as speeches go its ok

I found one thing in here that I just had to laugh at though


This line...

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world


Now this guy has said over and over how we are substandard in just about everything.

China has better buildings, cuba and europe has better health care, everyone is better stuarts of the world.. but we have the best schools


Our kids are so far behind other countries where education is concerned, no matter how much money you throw at schools they need more and our drop out rate is very high, though I dont know the numbers I bet we are higher than most other countries.

but at least we found something obama is proud of and thinks we are the best at... even if its not true

 

[Mare Tranquillity]

My God! That's SO evil, I can see why parents might not want their children to indoctrinated with that kind of conservative/family values/Christian work ethic/obey-your-parents 10 Commandments nonsense.

You'd think the anti-Christ could do better than this. I didn't see on reference advocating Marxism, Communism, or gay sex, he didn't bash any political party, he didn't praise Islam... I mean what's to complain about?

 

[Popeye]

I did not see anything wrong with the speech but I am sure he went through it line by line and decided not to say some things so people dont get upset about it. But as speeches go its ok

I found one thing in here that I just had to laugh at though


This line...

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world


Now this guy has said over and over how we are substandard in just about everything.

China has better buildings, cuba and europe has better health care, everyone is better stuarts of the world.. but we have the best schools


Our kids are so far behind other countries where education is concerned, no matter how much money you throw at schools they need more and our drop out rate is very high, though I dont know the numbers I bet we are higher than most other countries.

but at least we found something obama is proud of and thinks we are the best at... even if its not true

So, you see basically nothing wrong with the speech. Neither do I, it's apolitical...and about what you would expect when a president of either party speaks to schoolchildren.

Then why did Florida Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer claim Obama is trying to "indoctrinate America's children to his Socialist agenda?"

Why are some schools, mostly in the South (big surprise) refusing to show it?

Why are some conservative parents keeping their children home?

And a real oddity...why is this mother crying?

 

[asur]

It's all about Obama propping himself up:
Count the I's in the above, this dude is full of himself:

I know
I imagine
I know
I was
I want
and I are
I'm wo
I want
I want
I know


Fixated on himself, getting the kiddies to think he's God without saying it directly.
Subtle but maybe effective!

The kiddies need to ask Obama, will I ever get a job
while you are around?

 

[Mare Tranquillity]

I did not see anything wrong with the speech but I am sure he went through it line by line and decided not to say some things so people dont get upset about it. But as speeches go its ok

I found one thing in here that I just had to laugh at though


This line...

But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world


Now this guy has said over and over how we are substandard in just about everything.

China has better buildings, cuba and europe has better health care, everyone is better stuarts of the world.. but we have the best schools


Our kids are so far behind other countries where education is concerned, no matter how much money you throw at schools they need more and our drop out rate is very high, though I dont know the numbers I bet we are higher than most other countries.

but at least we found something obama is proud of and thinks we are the best at... even if its not true

It's not up to your usual standard to take something out of context like that, Pan. You should have posted the whole sentence and then your post would have been very different.
"But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities."

As you very well know, the point he was making was that without the students taking responsibility, the rest of the system is useless.

 

[Pandora]

So, you see basically nothing wrong with the speech. Neither do I, it's apolitical...and about what you would expect when a president of either party speaks to schoolchildren.

Then why did Florida Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer claim Obama is trying to "indoctrinate America's children to his Socialist agenda?"

Why are some schools, mostly in the South (big surprise) refusing to show it?

Why are some conservative parents keeping their children home?

And a real oddity...why is this mother crying?

They complained before they saw what he plans to say. I personally say let your kids hear it and then have them watch it again with you and you can point out the problems if there are any problems.

Now that the stuff is in writing as long as he doesnt stray from those words, then I think people are silly to be upset about it. I am only upset at one school district who is forcing the viewing of this. I think it should not be forced.

I know you like obama but you just have to try and understand so many of us do not trust him or his judgement. I also think had there not been a huge stink about it, he would not have posted his words and his words may have been a bit different. I know after a stink was made about this, the "homework" portion is deleted.

 

[Pandora]

It's not up to your usual standard to take something out of context like that, Pan. You should have posted the whole sentence and then your post would have been very different.
"But at the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world – and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities."

As you very well know, the point he was making was that without the students taking responsibility, the rest of the system is useless.

Oh I am not disagreeing with you, I am actually happy that we finally found something that obama is proud of when it comes to our Country.


Even if he is only half proud "due to kids not fullfilling their part" heck its something!

The speech was fine, I have no problems with it at all

 

[Mare Tranquillity]

They complained before they saw what he plans to say. I personally say let your kids hear it and then have them watch it again with you and you can point out the problems if there are any problems.

Now that the stuff is in writing as long as he doesnt stray from those words, then I think people are silly to be upset about it. I am only upset at one school district who is forcing the viewing of this. I think it should not be forced.

I know you like obama but you just have to try and understand so many of us do not trust him or his judgement. I also think had there not been a huge stink about it, he would not have posted his words and his words may have been a bit different. I know after a stink was made about this, the "homework" portion is deleted.

Got a link to the "homework" section?

 

[Pandora]

Got a link to the "homework" section?

Well it was on the white house website but they took it off. I supose you could google the topic and find information about it.

It was a thing for 7-12 grade like added homework to write a paper on how you can help the president.

most kids are probably pro obama and would have no problem writing something worth while. But really what would someone like me say? I dont want to help this president. If a kid had to write something and especially return it to a pro obama teacher it could be difficult, so I am glad they took that portion out.

When Carter was president I was in like 2d or 3d grade or something and I was so excited and happy and I just loved him and would have been honored to write about him. But when Reagan became president I would have been livid if I had to write something about him and I would have had a fit if any one suggested I should help him.

So it seems to me its a good thing it was taken out.

 

[Mare Tranquillity]

Well it was on the white house website but they took it off. I supose you could google the topic and find information about it.

It was a thing for 7-12 grade like added homework to write a paper on how you can help the president.

most kids are probably pro obama and would have no problem writing something worth while. But really what would someone like me say? I dont want to help this president. If a kid had to write something and especially return it to a pro obama teacher it could be difficult, so I am glad they took that portion out.

When Carter was president I was in like 2d or 3d grade or something and I was so excited and happy and I just loved him and would have been honored to write about him. But when Reagan became president I would have been livid if I had to write something about him and I would have had a fit if any one suggested I should help him.

So it seems to me its a good thing it was taken out.

The fact that you don't want to help this President is interesting. That would suggest that you don't believe that he has the best interests of the country at heart, that he lied when he took the oath of office--is that true?

I was not above helping George Bush everytime he did something that was of value to the nation, he wasn't my enemy, he was just a guy who I didn't agree with very much. It's frightening to think that we have reached a point where people will hope for the President's failure, that implies not trying to solve the problems of the country in hopes that things will get worse and worse, ending up in a collapse of the administration (as Italy has had about 100 times since the end of WWII) or the country descending into chaos so that your party can capitalize on the suffering to get into office. It's like we're at war with each other. We cannot last long divided against each other this way, we're becoming like the Balkans.

 

[ASPCA4EVER]

It's all about Obama propping himself up:
Count the I's in the above, this dude is full of himself:

I know
I imagine
I know
I was
I want
and I are
I'm wo
I want
I want
I know


Fixated on himself, getting the kiddies to think he's God without saying it directly.
Subtle but maybe effective!

The kiddies need to ask Obama, will I ever get a job
while you are around?

There was once upon a time in this country that speaking the way that you just did would be consider an act of 'TREASON'...depending on which faith you followed you would be considered a 'heretic'/Satan possessed person to be watched with consternation & concern...but you must thank those forefathers for allowing you the 'freedom of speech' to spew that B.S. that you do so well.

It is a sad, sad day in America when 'OUR' newly elected president {not even in office 200 plus day} and you deride/chastise/ridicule him for speaking in the first person and wanting to promote education and the importance of education to our young people.

WTH happened to your supporting our {ANY} President...I took quite a verbal beating for having voted for G.W.B. in that last run for office and I feel & felt; used/abused and highly cynical about the lies that he used to promote his war agenda...and President OBAMA has done none of that and yet you'll speak about him in this way!!!

NOW THAT IS JUST SAD AND PATHTIC The deepth to your bitterness knows no boundaries and that is just a shame!!!

 

[Pandora]

The fact that you don't want to help this President is interesting. That would suggest that you don't believe that he has the best interests of the country at heart, that he lied when he took the oath of office--is that true?

I was not above helping George Bush everytime he did something that was of value to the nation, he wasn't my enemy, he was just a guy who I didn't agree with very much. It's frightening to think that we have reached a point where people will hope for the President's failure, that implies not trying to solve the problems of the country in hopes that things will get worse and worse, ending up in a collapse of the administration (as Italy has had about 100 times since the end of WWII) or the country descending into chaos so that your party can capitalize on the suffering to get into office. It's like we're at war with each other. We cannot last long divided against each other this way, we're becoming like the Balkans.

I do not think obama has America's best interests at heart, I think that he thinks he does though. I find it strange that you find it interesting that I would not want to help obama. Would you want to help President Bush? Is there anything at all you would agree with President Bush with that you would want to help him? I have a hard time picturing you helping President Bush in just about anything he tried to do, and I do not think its odd or interesting or strange that you would not help him or want to help him... when you do not agree with him.

I don't think we have that long really, I donk know if we will be come like the Balkans but we wont last long at the rate we are going.

I do not think those who disagree with obama are going to budge anymore than those who disagreed with Presient Bush budged.

If the left wanted civil compromise they should have though about that before they acted the way they did for the last 8 years because I do not think anyone who is a conservative, or constitutionalist or on the right side of the issues will ever believe them. Hell the left is still demonizing President Bush every single chance they get.

these things that are being said about coming together and getting along would never be said if someone center or right of center were the current president.

 

[pocketfullofshells]

I did not see anything wrong with the speech but I am sure he went through it line by line and decided not to say some things so people dont get upset about it.

it must be nice, you set it up so no matter what you can claim he would have...if he said anything you attack if, if he says nothing, you just attack that he would have but backed off to appease people...what ever you do, dont ever give the benifit of the doubt that something may not be some deep commie plot...