Oh, you just knew this wouldn’t take long, right?
Texas State Board of Education member Cynthia Dunbar, R-Richmond, is wading into the “controversy” over President Obama giving a speech to students next week about the importance of staying in school and getting a good education. Of course, Ms. Dunbar has already charged that the president sympathizes with our nation’s enemies and wants another terrorist attack so he can throw out the Constitution and declare martial law. So what do you think she has to say about his speech to students? Do you need to ask? In a statement posted on the Houston Chronicle’s blog, Ms. Dunbar says:
“His Address is undeniably unprecedented and arguably goes well beyond the scope of federal jurisdiction. It conceivably can be disconcerting for a member of the Federal Government to request the use of classroom time to make a connection with students on a national basis.
Understandable concerns may arise that such an address has the potential to open the door to students accepting an unconstitutional level of direct accountability to National Governing Authorities. The fact this presentation is being made at a time when the parents of these students will not be present to monitor the interaction makes it even more problematic.
Due to all the foregoing, the utilization of classroom instructional time for, what could potentially be, political posturing and influencing our children can be both controversial and arguably inappropriate.
Consequently, I encourage school districts to feel the liberty to refrain from participating in this national address during class time.”
You can read all of Ms. Dunbar’s statement here.
One more time: this isn’t unprecedented, despite Ms. Dunbar’s claim. President Reagan and the first President Bush gave national addresses to schoolchildren in their classrooms. And the second President Bush was reading to schoolchildren when the 9/11 attacks occurred. The act of a president addressing fellow citizens, including students, is a valuable civic exercise in a democratic nation. And it should be particularly welcome when the president is talking about something that unites all parents — a desire that their children work hard, stay in school and get the education they need to succeed in life.
And what is Ms. Dunbar’s nonsense about opening “the door to students accepting an unconstitutional level of direct accountability to National Governing Authorities”? That’s just wacky. Does she really think President Obama is some sort of authoritarian dictator? We wonder if Ms. Dunbar’s personal journal is filled with references to “Amerika” and black helicopters, too.
Ms. Dunbar is fostering distrust in and hostility toward the current duly elected president of the United States simply because she doesn’t like his politics. She certainly has the right to do so — it’s a free country, after all. But shouldn’t we expect members of our State Board of Education to be a bit more responsible than that?
You should need a license to be that crazy.
Cynthia Dunbar said:
“His Address is undeniably unprecedented and arguably goes well beyond the scope of federal jurisdiction. It conceivably can be disconcerting for a member of the Federal Government to request the use of classroom time to make a connection with students on a national basis.
Understandable concerns may arise that such an address has the potential to open the door to students accepting an unconstitutional level of direct accountability to National Governing Authorities. The fact this presentation is being made at a time when the parents of these students will not be present to monitor the interaction makes it even more problematic.
Due to all the foregoing, the utilization of classroom instructional time for, what could potentially be, political posturing and influencing our children can be both controversial and arguably inappropriate.
Consequently, I encourage school districts to feel the liberty to refrain from participating in this national address during class time.”
Charles says:
I fear that I may be getting Alzheimer’s disease. I just read that and have no idea what she said. Am I going nuts?
“You can read all of Ms. Dunbar’s statement here.”
I thought that was why I donated to you guys, so I wouldn’t haveta read Dunbar’s profound poetry.
I keed, but I still ain’t clickin’ that link. The excerpt is more than sufficient, I bet.
OK, that made me laugh. Thanks!
I believe that far right religious conservatives cannot accept that the people of this nation chose a Democratic leader rather than a
far right religious conservative. Nothing President Obama does will ever be acceptable to them. They need to realize that he is our elected
president and that even if they don’t agree with him on some issues they should not constantly denigrate him.
That word “denigrate” has always bothered me.
To quote Paul Krugman, “Something is going very wrong in the heads of a substantial number of Americans.” To that I have to add, especially in Texas. How could we be even more embarrassing? (Don’t answer that. It was rhetorical.)
The hysterical, irrational screeching of right-wingers regarding Obama’s planned inspirational speech to students needs to be called out for the hysterical, irrational screeching it is. The adults in this discussion need to remind the screechers that education is considered a good thing — for conservatives and liberals alike — in terms of opportunity and freedom of options.
I take great delight in Dumb Dunbar posting her nonsensical rants on public blogs for all to read and see how vile, nutty and uncredible she is.
Dunbar herself is the best weapon we have to fight Dunbar.
I hope she keeps it up. She will be the source of her own demise once enough people read her silly, childish opinions.
Well, I wish they’d hurry it up; Shes been yapping like this for a few years now, hasn’t she? hehe.
Dunbar quotes will look very good on campaign posters – on any of her opponents posters, that is.
I think she has long been divorced from the norms of veracity and rationality based on her own writings.
I’m not gonna pretend like I know anything about the political scenery in Dunbar’s district, but I get the feeling that Cynthia will put those comments on her own posters, and in big-assed letters, too.
Dumbar strikes again!!