We survived the day where our President, with the assistance of some of those spinning hypnosis wheels from ’50′s movies, and subliminal commands (“I love the leader” – h/t Simpsons fans) was going to turn our children into drones eager to force-feed Socialist medical care down the unsuspecting throats of true American patriots. Early dispatches seem to indicate that we are still a fairly safe nation in that regard, and that our kids still could really not have cared at all, except that theyprobably hoped they might get a snack, or perhaps an additional 15 minutes of recess while the a/v department sets up the tv’s.
Because its in vogue for some to assume that anything President Obama does is part of the Official Oxymoronic Communist-Fascist Conspiracy, a few true-blues on the right of the Greenwich political spectrum called up Dr. Sidney Freund, our Brooklyn-born, Dobbs Ferry seasoned new School Super, to complain. General talking points consisted of the usual complaints heard out in the newsworld these days; it was a waste of money, it was Socialist indoctrination, the “study materials” would force the kids to register Democratic if they wanted to live, the State didn’t make it part of the official curriculum, it took away from study time. In my mind, these were not sincere comments meant to help Greenwich schoolchildren become better and more productive members of society, they were political statements made by partisans to achieve a goal that really, truly has absolutely nothing to do with education, hand-wringing comments notwithstanding.
Something happened in reaction to 10 emails to the saidsame Dr. Freund in the Havemeyer building that, as a parent, disturbs me greatly. Because first he dictated that the Obama speech wouldn’t be shown at all, then he flipped completely and said it would, then split the baby and said it would be shown later in the week in its entirety. In any event, his response pleased absolutely nobody. I know the man is new to town, but just who is advising him? Is he a go-it-aloner like Betty Sternberg, making his mistakes all on his own? Is he Larry Leverett, content to let the unaccountable Havemeyer administration make the calls all on their own? How about the School Board, being that entity’s only employee, what did they advise him – if anything? And what does this say about how these people think about all of our kids?
I think everyone fell down at the job here. I want my two children to respect America and its institutions. And no institution is more important to the nation than that of the Presidency. I couldn’t stand the policies of George Bush from the first day to the blissful last, but I made sure my kids respected our President. I would have accepted a GOOD reason for cancelling this speech. But when our school administration appears to be playing politics, either through cowardly obeisance to a few Republican supposed “political leaders”, nonsensical comments about not being able to get the tv’s out to the classrooms (when they did it for the Inauguration this past January), or the ultimate insult to a true Greenwich person, the “State” won’t let us. This is not respect, it is foolhardiness, a terrible example for our kids, a disturbing sign of the future at the Board of Education, and just plain dumb.
Frank,
Gotta agree with you on this one. I registered Republican on my 18th birthday and am generally opposed to Obama, but he is the President, and keeping school kids from hearing him sends a really bad message. It’s this kind of nonsense, I’m referring to the furor in the press about this speech, that will lose the 2010 elections for Republicans. If there’s any Greenwich tradition worth fighting to maintain it is civility, and that means we let our kids hear our President, no matter who he is.
- John
Comment by bowman — September 10th, 2009 @ 10:22 pm
Amen! According to reporting by the Washington Post and Hartford Courant, school districts in just six states actually refused to broadcast President Obama’s speech live. In Connecticut, just three school districts refused to permit students to watch the broadcast live, and Greenwich was one of them.
Dr. Freund’s waffling, then caving in to right-wing crazies stands in stark contrast to the courage shown by Congressman Jim Himes, who just days before stood up before howling ugly mobs opposing health care and didn’t step back one step. Yet Dr. Freund, having received just ten emails protesting the broadcast and five supporting its showing decided that he would join that tiny minority of school superintendents in this country who apparently believe that President Obama really was attempting to indoctrinate our youth with his “socialistic agenda”.
It was a very poor introduction, indeed, and a serious embarrassment to the town of Greenwich.
Comment by Sean — September 10th, 2009 @ 10:34 pm
Is there proof of these letters and the ‘about face?’ you cite? If there is, I would take a very dim view of this conduct, and would pursue it futher. However Dr. Freund seems to deny it (if you look that the Greenwich Schools website) saying the only motivation for delay was to due to logistical and scheduling considerations.
So, if there’s proof of this kind of inappropraite political intereference in the schools, let’s confront them and get it fixed. I’m all for it. But it’s hard to do that unless there is evidence we can actually show.
Comment by ed jones — September 11th, 2009 @ 7:31 am
I agree Frank. I was greatly disappointed by the new superintendents decision. In retrospect, I should have brought my daughter home to watch the speech live and then returned her to school.
Comment by Elise Hingson — September 15th, 2009 @ 11:02 am