So, it is the end of a busy week here in beautiful Asheville, NC. Earlier a video of school kids here made the national news and my was a hornet's nest stirred. I've watched and listened to the local voices since the vid was revealed and now I have a thing or two to say myself.

The teachers, administration, and local school board have all with one voice said this video was a 50 some second clip of a 30 min or so program presented by the kids last February. Word is there was no fuss at the time and I know the video was on line a little while before someone, somewhere took note. The program is said to have been on important people in American History, and their most famous quotes or phrases (other examples said to have been included were Amelia Earhart and Abraham Lincoln). It is also claimed that the part on Obama was simply a celebration of his great accomplishment and the grand step forward our country has made in race relations and moving beyond "the racist past" of our country.

Many people here have complained about the negative response of conservatives to this video, saying that the children were very proud of their program but now are frightened and confused by the furor. It is also claimed that security at Sand Hill Venable Elementary School had to be beefed up due to threats made against the school and the children. If you try to find the vid on Youtube now you will either find the video has been removed, or the children's faces have been blocked. I am glad this last has happened, not that any of the kids could be identified by anyone but those that know them anyway, not that any of us would even want to identify them.

So now my thoughts on the subject.

1) Even if the program was a far reaching program on famous Americans, their achievements and quotes, it was way out of line to include a sitting president in their program, no matter who that president may be. Including a sitting president, by its very nature, is political in content. If the school wants to do a similar program the February after Obama leaves office, fine - he would then be part of history, not a part of politics as it currently exists. Under no circumstances was it appropriate for the children to be made to perform in this manner at this time. The teacher, or whomever wrote this program including political content should be called on the carpet and disciplined in some suitable manner (don't ask me what that might be because I said suitable and anything I could come up with might be considered anything but suitable)

2) Using children, your own or worse yet those of others, to project your political opinions is disgusting at best - beyond the pale in a teacher and see #1 above for how it should be handled.

3) Anyone threatening these children in anyway should be stripped naked and flogged in public. The children here were total innocents in every way. Any parent who was aware ahead of time what was to be quoted by their child in this program, and who did not do something about it, should be similarly flogged.

4) Of course the children were proud, not necessarily of the Obama part of their program, but because they practiced, prepared, and presented a program to their parents (this was a PTO- PTA type - program). Children love to be on stage, give programs, be applauded - and the only way they would be confused about it all now is if the grown ups who are supposed to be protecting them have somehow drawn the children into the furor. No way they would be at all aware without adults dragging them into the fray.

5) Of course people have reacted negatively to the video. First of all, many if not most of us understand that these children are being indoctrinated, brainwashed, and used. And, many if not most of us find this more than simply distasteful. When we have seen the singing praises to Obama video from the school in NJ, the prayers to Obama video courtesy of the Gamaliel Foundation, and the infamous address by Obama to our school kids complete with website of classroom ideas - you know, I don't need to list - It goes without saying it wouldn't take much to raise our hackles, and the video from SHV was plenty enough to do just that, so take your self righteous condemnation of our reaction and shove it. Those of you who are liberal teachers, administrators, and school boards bring it upon yourselves. Perhaps you should think before you use our children for your puppets.