As I explained yesterday, I did not hear the President's speech. I was at a political debate among the Republican candidates for the Massachusetts Third Congressional District (see article below). I have, however, heard the sound bites and the commentary and have a few observations.
Back in the age of dinosaurs (when I finished high school and went on to two years of Katharine Gibbs), one on my rude awakenings was the change from being graded on what you knew (or had memorized) versus what you were able to do. For example, history grades depended on a knowledge of history--not necessarily applying the lessons of history to events today. At Katharine Gibbs, shorthand grades depended on how fast you could take dictation (remember those days?)--not what you knew. I think that is somewhat where we are with President Obama. He may have a lot of facts at his fingertips and a lot of education, but that doesn't necessarily translate into an ability to do anything. I think that in the office of President, the ability to do something is more valuable than all the theories and knowledge in the world.
Heritage.org has a short evaluation of the President's speech last night.
The article quotes Jay Leno:
"At the beginning of The Tonight Show last night he quipped: "President Obama said today he is going to use the gulf disaster to immediately push a new energy bill through Congress. I got an idea ... How about first using the Gulf disaster to fix the Gulf disaster.""
The Washington Post reports:
"The Oval Office address was Obama's most pointed attempt since the spill began to explain how the crisis should be leveraged on behalf of long-term reform."
The Los Angeles TImes and the New York Times both reported on the President's using the oil spill for push his agenda forward. I guess the question I have is, "Why was international help from countries with experience in deep water oil spills turned away?" Was this situation allowed to get out of control in order to push 'green energy'?
I might mention at this point that the Motor City Times pointed out in an article on June 6 that the Spanish government has admitted that their green energy initiative is responsible for Spain's economic distress. Are we willing to learn from the mistakes of other countries, or are we doomed to repeat their mistakes?
Leave a comment