" Thank you, Mr. Gochanour. I was going to write a letter to the editor, but it couldn't say anymore than what you've said here. "

" GREAT opinion. I am sure a few not going to be happy about what you had to say, but you said it so the average person knows what you mean. "

" "For heaven sakes, people, please stop and listen to yourselves. Use your own minds. Think for yourselves,".......Has it ever occured to anyone that the reason people are freaking out the way they are is BECAUSE people are thinking for themselves? Everyone is so used to the "im a zombie, the government and general public says its good so it must be" attitude, that they freak out and scream racism, or insanity/stupidity when someone opposes or speaks against what big brother says is good for us. The reason this country is in the shape its in is because the American public quit using their minds and just followed the rest of the lemmings over the cliff. "

" Well said Mr. Gochanour. Abraham Lincoln said : A house divided against itself cannot stand. Where are we headed? We're spinning our wheels and getting nowhere. "

" Good letter Robert!
The Republicans are pulling out all the stops. See they've added Dave "Republcan" Ramsey to Fox News. Got him spewing Repblican lies in every church in America too.
If the Republicans are so great why must they employ so many liers? "

" Loki you are right about many Americans being Lemmings and following each other over the cliff. What you miss or intentionally overlook (ignore) is the force that is sending the Lemmings over the cliff, this time around. This current "uproar" isn't people waking up out of a stupor and thinking for themselves, this is the mob, the rabble, being manipulated into shooting themselves in the foot, or as you put it jumping off the cliff with the rest of the Lemmings. "

" LOKI wrote on Sep 9, 2009 11:25 PM:

" "For heaven sakes, people, please stop and listen to yourselves. Use your own minds. Think for yourselves.

Unfortunately, Mattoon school leaders decided to not air the speech, thereby denying the very students they are telling to make up their own minds, to actually make up their own minds. I wonder how they will vote when the time comes when they are not smart enough to make up theis own minds. "

" I think it's not so much about a President speaking to the kids but what this particular President will say. His talk was actually quite conservative and positive in nature and an overall good thing for the kids to hear from our President. However this President's record shows that he just as likely would have turned this into a poplitical opportunity. That would have been wrong and he deserves some kudos for not going that way. "

" great letter "

" Public education has managed to teach generation after generation of Americans to read, write and think, whatever their backgrounds, whatever their wealth.
And for that reason, some right wingers have long wanted to see public education dead, It's so much easier for the rich to control the working class when they're kept safely ignorant. Today, that job is the mission of Fox News and its corporate media allies.
And right wingers confuse education, which involves critical thinking and the search for truth, with self-serving propaganda for their anti-government, anti-abortion, pro-war drivel.
With an education, students actually learn to cite evidence, instead of empty Fox News drivel like "some say." "

" Wow...another voice of reason in Charleston! Kudos to you! "

" What TQ said. "

" shumphreys, Than you,(i think?)Now which force do you believe is sending our little lemmings over the cliff or making them shoot themselves in the foot? Please explain further. Oh and medic, you quoted me quoting the article. Do these students that were denied their right to make up their own mind lose that ability when school gets out? People are complaining about it but they dont stop to think that these kids can "decide" to seek out and watch the speech on their own time. Just because they dont do it at school doesnt mean they cant "decide" to further their education at their will. "

" very nice letter indeed. "

" Very good letter, Mr.Gochanour. I am with you on all of it. What a shame our children did not get to listen to our president as a group, as a shared experience. But I guess that would be what the republicans are afraid of... their children might appreciate this very good man, who is doing everything he can to get some things done. But especially sad for those children who do not have good home life, that they had to miss out on his encouraging words of wisdom. After seeing the vile outburst from congressman Wilson last night in the halls of congress, it is obvious this president is not deserving in their eyes of the respect of the office. Congressman Wilson was acting more like some drunk at Wrigly field, than sitting in front of a president addressing the nation. "

" Why Loki it is Space Aliens, the Devil himself, .... pick your demon. Personally I think it is Mammon. "

" I can see your point shumphreys, However dont you think that maybe that has been the reason for many a problem with this country? I do kind of like the idea of space aliens though! "

" Wow! what a load of crap. It is rather amusing to listen to the neo-liberals in here speak of critical thinking. I do not listen to fox news or watch it's programming. I do not listen to Rush Limbaugh or any other conservative talk radio personality. My evaluation of Barrack Obama comes from the fact that he was a community organizer involved with a political action committee in Chicago called 21st Century Vote. This PAC the brain child of one Larry Hoover, who is the unofficial leader of the Gangster Disciples. This PAC was set up and funded with drug money collected from Gangster Disciple turf. What boggles my mind is how you neo-liberal socialists seem to be willing and able to overlook these facts. I was always told that I was known by the company that I keep. Guilty by association. That seems to not matter anymore. As long as you are long on promise and a good speech reader. You can make it in politics. I was taught to think critically by classical liberals. That is to wade through all the BS and get to the facts. Not to cloud the facts with BS like the neo-liberal left does. I can't believe the direction that this country is being taken in either. We have a President who not only uses the tools of his predecessors(which he condemns of course) but presses them even further than they were prior to his election. He teeters on the very edge of treasonous acts and undermines the constitution that he has sworn to protect.

You speak of mighter than thou attitude. I can sum that up in two words from the president himself. "We Won" which in turn follows, so shut the #$%@ up an do what we say. There is your mightier than thou attitude.

As far as letting my children listen or watch the speech. Of course I would let them watch the speech. It is however not the Presidents job to convince my child to stay in school. That job happens to fall into the hands of my spouse and I. Having already raised two children that graduated in the top 20 percent of their class, I do believe we are doing an effective job. If the president wants to use himself as an example of someone who has come from difficult circumstances to become the most powerful man on earth. Then I would say that he is a prime example of that. Does that mean anything to me. Not really. I came from difficult circumstances to become one of the greatest influences in my childrens lives. Do I think a speech from the president would somehow have much influence on my school age child. No, he is more worried about which girls like him and which don't. He would be like most of his peers. If they would have viewed the speech, he would have sat through it and 10 minutes later forgotten most of what the speech is about.

As far as Witch Trials are concerned. The evidence is overwhelming that the neo-liberals use demonization far more often then conservatives. That is because they do not have a stable platform to stand on when it comes to politics. The only side of this arguement speaking of trials is the neo-left and their chest beating to prosecute the former president and vice-president. What a witch hunt that will turn out to be. "

" I have to disagree with public education teaching people to think. Year after year, for a long time, the thinking part has been substituted on an ever grander scale with the ability to simply regurgitate information. 20 some years ago when I was still in the school system I only had 2 teachers/classes in high school who challenged us to really think about something instead of just reciting "facts" out of a book. "

" Democrats are trying and republicans are lying. That pretty much sums it up for me. THEY lie!!! "

" You have your opinions and I have mine. Maybe you are sayiny that we should listen to or watch "Olberman or maybe Maddow? No Thanks!! At least on Fox we get the truth and they inform the public about everything. That's why they have been #1 for the last 9 years. All of the other stations combined can't outdo them. Why don't you just go ahead and hang with your kooks on the left. That's where you belong!!!! "

" Comments from a former Fox producer:

The fact is," Reina wrote, "daily life at FNC is all about management politics." Reina said that Fox's daily news coverage -- and its daily news bias -- is driven by an "editorial note" sent to the newsroom every morning by John Moody, a Fox senior vice president. The editorial note -- a memo posted on Fox's computer system -- tells the staff which correspondents are working on which stories. But frequently, Reina says, it also contains hints, suggestions and directives on how to slant the day's news -- invariably, he says, in a way that's consistent with the politics and desires of the Bush administration.


Yup, sounds like the truth to me. lol!

Seriously seedy, trying to claim Fox news is balanced is even dumber than some of the other comments you've signed your name to. When are you going to start posting about Obama's birth certificate? "

" A little background on the founder of Fox news:

June 17, 2008 | When Richard Nixon ran for the presidency in 1968, eight years after his pasty, glowering visage in four televised debates with John Kennedy had, arguably, cost him the White House, he knew he needed a makeover. He hired a young producer from "The Mike Douglas Show" to repackage him for mass consumption. Roger Ailes sold Nixon to the American public, and became a sought-after Republican political consultant. Between 1968 and 1989, he advised everybody from Ronald Reagan to George H.W. Bush to Rudy Giuliani. Americans know Ailes best, however, as the founding father and guiding hand of the "fair and balanced" Fox News network, the favorite cable news source of conservatives and the bte noir of liberals.
Salon.com


Oh yeah, that sounds like a man who would create a news outfit for fair and balanced reporting. lol!

Ailes is also credited for coming up with Nixon's infamous line about twisting the knife once you stick it in. "

" Oh my Cedric - you would believe Faux News because they are (allegedly) number one? Oh wow...so easily led. The reason they are up there is because they FEED ON FEAR. They don't give you facts! I would hope some day you wake up and smell the big pit of Republican money burning....but perhaps not.

I'll tell 'ya what; I'll get a number one news show (I mean REAL news, not fake news. I know that it's hard for you to discern) and then you can believe me! There, we all agree! Hooray!

Unknown Joe; wow, what a load of B.S. It's nice that you at least seem to think some of this through, but to believe that Obama has any connections to gangsters is ludicrous. 21st Century Vote is an organization created by former members of Chicagos largest street gang, Gangster Disciples. Wallace Gator Bradley, a former gang member turned community leader, praises the group for offering a more productive way for disenfranchised youth to channel their energy and take part in the political process.

Oh gee...so scary for people to turn their lives around. Again, scared of the black man?

Funny, I didn't get a vibe of "so shut the #$%@ up an do what we say" at any time during his speech. I felt that more with the way the Republicans glared, rudely rumbled & grumbled and waved their papers during his speech. How 'bout trying to make real change instead of keeping the status quo? "

" Sadly, Seedy, the "everything" that Fox News tells you includes many things that aren't true, and many things that are vicious.
Bill O'Reilly falsely claimed that WWII U.S. troops had committed atrocities at Malmedy as an attempt to justify contemporary atrocities by U.S. troops, then had Malmedy changed to "Normandy" in the transcript in a clumsy attempt to cover up his tracks.
Rewriting history on Aug. 6, 2008, Brian Kilmeade denied that Bush ever tried to tie Al Qaeda to Iraq to justify his invasion, flatly stating that Bush "never even said there was a link between Al Qaeda and Iraq." On June 17, 2004, Bush told the press, "The reason I keep insisting that there was a relationship between Iraq and Saddam and al Qaeda, because there was a relationship between Iraq and al Qaeda."
On Aug, 6, 2009, Fox News star Glenn Beck "joked" that he'd like to murder Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi by poisoning her tea, then had the transcript scrubbed to hide his statement.
Fox News pundit Liz Trotta, while discussing the idea of assassinating Osama Bin Laden and Barack Obama, said, "Well ... both, if we could!," then laughed happily. "

" Unknown Joe you are right about one thing it is the parents job to convince their children to stay in school. It is the parents job to teach their children how to behave in public places. It is the parents job to teach their children to respect all people, even those that are different from themselves. BUT far too many parents don't do these things. So it certainly is a good thing to have a president that is willing to speak up and offer his encouragement and set an example. "

" Indeed it has LOKI. I like the song from Cabaret, Money makes the world go around, the world go around.... "

" sister wrote on Sep 10, 2009 11:47 PM:

" Very good letter, Mr.Gochanour. I am with you on all of it. What a shame our children did not get to listen to our president as a group, as a shared experience. But I guess that would be what the republicans are afraid of... their children might appreciate this very good man, who is doing everything he can to get some things done. But especially sad for those children who do not have good home life, that they had to miss out on his encouraging words of wisdom. After seeing the vile outburst from congressman Wilson last night in the halls of congress, it is obvious this president is not deserving in their eyes of the respect of the office. Congressman Wilson was acting more like some drunk at Wrigly field, than sitting in front of a president addressing the nation. """""


great post! "

" You and your spouse are to be commended for being involved with your children's education, unknownjoe. Lack of parental involvement is one of the biggest problems in education. The old saying about involved parents making good students has never been more true.

Unfortunately we have too many parents who don't want to bother. Look no further than Mattoon High school's drop out rate to see that point illustrated.

Having said that, I like the idea of the President giving our students a pep talk, and it doesn't matter which party they come from. Just as those from the left side were wrong to complain about Reagan and Bush making similar speeches, those who bemoaned Obama doing the same thing were equally wrong.

In closing let me say that I can't imagine any President, regardless of their party affiliation, foolish enough to try to turn a pep talk to the nations children into a political speech. "

" In closing let me say that I can't imagine any President, regardless of their party affiliation, foolish enough to try to turn a pep talk to the nations children into a political speech.
--
I can imagine one who would have been just that foolish, Harry, if his organ grinder Mr. Cheney had instructed him to do so. But even then, I would never have urged the schools to cover the children's ears and shut the president's speech out, as some school districts here so disgracefully did. We learn a great deal more by listening than by cowering in fear. "

" TQ, who's your organ grinder? "

" I wholeheartedly agree with what unknown joe wrote dated 9/12/09.
FINALLY a person who speaks with wisdom AND truth. "

" Yes, Joe's "independent analysis" of Obama is so wise and insightful, he cannot even bother to spell the president's name correctly. "

" LMAO!!....protesters railing against the president and pushing McCarthyism. how comical is that?


ok......not very comical at all. it just shows ignorant these inbred cultists truly are. "

" Mr G. was a stand out teacher at Jefferson elementary, one of many, but defiantely also one of a kind as well.

Thaks for this insightful take on things. and thanks for the time I got to spend in your classroom. I had many outstanding teachers who made an impact, and Mr Gochanour was in the top tier of all I encountered in 5 moves or even the time I spent at EIU. "

" I actually agree in part with most of you. I don't see anything wrong with the President addressing America's schoolchildren. My only complaint was the suggested lesson plans. I don't think it is necessary for the White House to give teachers lesson plans to go along with the speech. The idea of sending that stuff out seemed a little over the top to me. I was given the choice of whether or not to show the speech and decided against it since it started just 20 minutes before lunch, so it wouldn't have worked very well with my existing lesson plans. I know many of my colleagues in the social science department did show the web version in their classes, which I thought was great. I encouraged my students to check it out on their computers at home.

As far as the way some on here characterize Republican views on the education system, all I see is simplistic misinformation. Everyone on the right that I hear talk about education wants to open things up to competition. Let students and parents choose their school. I teach in a community where everyone has one choice for education, like most communities. I think having schools compete with other schools for enrollment would be a good thing. It would motivate educators to constantly improve and innovate to make sure they are not losing students to a school that is working harder to provide a quality education. I don't see how that could possibly be viewed as a bad thing. "

" Just a Soldier "lesson plans" are standard procedures for outreach programs to school age kids whether the topic is environmental, historical or staying in school. Any group that wants to get their message across prepares "lesson plans". AND I might add some of these plans/programs are quite one sided/partisan. Soil Conservation Districts prepare programs for school children and so does the Sierra Club and World Wildlife Fund and the American Mining groups promoting coal mining or Uranium mining. Everybody, every interest group does it. "

" Typo! "

" I have no problem with giving kids a school choice...if in fact, that's what it is - and not a voucher program. The only right-wing based "choice" program I have ever been acquainted with is the voucher program. With these programs (now, I'm just making some round numbers up here for demo) the state/fed or whomever you want running this thing says, "Ok, you get a $5,000 voucher to take to any school of your choice". Some parents would choose an elite private school, which costs (let's say) $15,000. Other parents, who do not even make ends meet week to week do not have the same choice. In fact, it's not even enough money to go take your kid to the neighboring districts public schools! Even parochial schools cost more than that (they usually cost more than the voucher programs I have seen in the past). So that child will stay in the same school. No choice there.

So, what you're left with is a public school bereft of it's brightest students; with much, MUCH less funding to deal with all the needs of the neediest. Way to go - you've now created a further divide between the "haves" and the "have-nots". A kind of educational ghetto.

If ALL children/parents could choose which school to send their children to in a perfect world, that would be wonderful. You're right - it would create a competitive atmosphere that would foster better education overall. But since money is involved, that can't happen unless ALL students have the same choice. Allowing just some students the choice isn't a choice at all. "

" Let me look in closet for the witches hat, cape, wart and nose. Since close to Halloween maybe nobody notice a witch hey? hehehe. Dad use to say NOTHING NEW IN POLITICS and shake his head. A lot in his generation would discuss politics and then it turn ugly.
Lets pray young batch going into Politics can and will change things and guidance as they strive to help all.
I figured Obama wouldn't be the wonderman all thought would be and sooner or later all the snakes crawl out of the woodwork to condemn him.
He didn't cause all this mess, he inherited it being ELECTED. "

" I figured Obama wouldn't be the wonderman all thought would be and sooner or later all the snakes crawl out of the woodwork to condemn him.
He didn't cause all this mess, he inherited it being ELECTED. "

Excellent observation, Mama!

And we all know who he inherited it from. Funny that after their dismal performance they're clamoring for us to turn it back over to them. "

" Mama wonders if some in city government are related to ones putting us in such a mess? Maybe all are cloned. We need findout where the cloning is done.
I overhear in restaurants a lot Harry P.
Ones doing all the commenting running their brains on bean gas such as northern or baked ones.

I always watch for Harry P, crowwoman, and some others comments who make sense.
Can tell who the BEER bunch are as never agree on anything but promoting drinking, driving, and being such great citizens. I like Penny Weavers column and some of the editorial opinions which all makes one think not just see black/white. A lot of gray in Mattoon. "