Dear hubby and I had an interesting conversation this morning. It was about the verbal backlash we've heard regarding President Obama's desire to address school children during school hours. Now, let me just say straight away that this is NOT a political post and I will NOT be addressing anything political on here. In fact, if you know me at all I tend to shy away from any conversation politically energized in the least. Makes me uncomfortable. Like talking about your annual exam or prostate check. (Well, okay, so I talk about my annual exams rather freely, but you get the picture.)
What we found so interesting was how emotion-filled the responses were when asked how people felt about the president speaking to their kids. My mouth stayed in the open position as I heard/read the feedback on the news last night. I really believe we are so blessed in this country to have freedom of speech; to be able to share your opinion - whatever it may be - in pretty much any format without fear of governmental harm for it. I LOVE that we can express our thoughts and views with such freedom.
What bothers me is the amount of disrespect that goes along with those expressions. I was almost embarrassed for those who posted their opinions on the news because of HOW they shared their thoughts, with hate, venom and anger. It made their opinion seem a little less valid to me when they could not control the name calling. Really? Name calling? The president?
I don't know of any president who has come in to such a position of authority and said to himself, "Now I'm really gonna screw things up!" I believe that each president goes in with high hopes and dreams and puts forth his best effort. I really do. And I think somewhere after the first 24 hours in office the magnitude of what's before them overwhelms them and like a giant rollercoaster ride, they are just doing their best to hang on as they get flung back and forth and up and down at eighty miles an hour.
No matter what your political view, the position itself still requires respect. No matter the man in the position, the fact that he has the title demands respect. And can I just say, what does it say to our children when they hear us call the president and his administration, "stupid", "brain dead" "ridiculous" "the devil" and the like. Really? Is that what you want your children to do to other positions of authority? You may not like their position, opinion, or what they say, but is there not a better way to express your disapproval?
For us, we decided to let our daughter hear the president speak today. I'm not sure what a Kindergartner can get out of it anyway, but I want her to go and hear what he has to say. You can be certain I will be watching and listening too, so that when she comes home from school we can talk about what he said and why or why not we agree with him. But one thing she will not hear from us is name-calling, bad-mouthing, or negatively-charged comments about him or his administration. Because I don't ever want her to think that God honors the verbal bashing of anyone in a position of authority over us. Personally, I don't think He does. Just my opinion. And now I'm done.
What do you think?
I totally agree. It says so much more about the person doing the immature, hate-filled name-calling than it does about the person in authority they are disrespecting. Those kind of opinions are too hard to listen to. The actual opinion itself is lost in the hate rhetoric. And our children DO listen and watch and absorb how we, as adults, speak of others. It is most certainly why, to this day, I can't stand to have a political conversation with anyone that has an extreme view, one way or the other. I have not found one who can speak on it intelligently, with loving and gentle speech. It leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. My husband and I want to create an environment where our children observe us discussing difficult, emotionally charged topics in a loving and respectful way. We want them to know they are free and safe to bring their thoughts and opinions (even if they are opposite to ours) to the table and they will be heard with love and respect. We believe teaching our children to be loving and respectful of others' beliefs, choices, opinions, political/religious affiliation, etc is an important gift to bestow. I have learned from experience that handling sensitive topics in a loud, crass, obnoxious, profane and disrespectful manner will only get your voice shut out and your point unheard. You may also, unknowingly hurt someone by conducting yourself that way. We have a president in office, for better or worse. We are called to honor his position of authority and pray for him. That is what I intend to do and model this for my children.
ReplyDeleteA child walked into school the day the speech was being shown. He sat in his teacher's classroom and told her he "wasn't going to watch that crap and that he hoped the president died a slow painful death alone". He then proceeded to close his ears throughout the entire speech, although he had not been given a not to leave the class during the speech. It just so happens that his parents have very conservative views and most of his opinions came from them...
ReplyDeleteJust an example of how we influence our children. . .it is so scary to hear a 13 year old spouting that kind of hatred when we are commanded to show love, kindness, patience, peace, and the like. . .
So true! What I find sad and interesting is that you can completely disagree with a person's view point; you can even find it scary! and still show the person respect, yet most people think if you show respect you show you agree.
ReplyDeleteNot to get all spiritual, but I think about Michael, the archangel in the Bible. In the book of Jude it says, "But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, 'The Lord rebuke you!'" If ever there was a being who had the right to say some junk, it would be Michael. He's an angel for crying out loud! And if ever there was anyone more deserving of some smack, I think we can all agree it would be the devil. But...BUT! Michael wouldn't "dare" do such a thing! The verse goes on to say about humans: "Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not understand; and what things they do not understand by instinct, like unreasoning animals - these are the very things that destory them." Now, this was in reference to men who slander the word of God while pretending to be godly, so its not an exact fit. My point is that we have the right, and the authority to disagree with what we find opposite to the Word of God. Absolutely. But we best be careful HOW we do that disagreeing.