Local students react to the text of Obama's address to students

Justin Jones, 16, Chamberlain senior

Obama's speech was just dripping with socialist values, especially when he told kids "I hope you'll all wash your hands a lot, and stay home from school when you don't feel well, so we can keep people from getting the flu this fall and winter."

Oh, and the part about students setting goals for their education and asking for help when they worry they won't succeed? He is stealing the words right out of Karl Marx's mouth.

Parents are accusing President Barack Obama of spreading socialist propaganda to the youth of the nation, terrified by the assumption that Obama might be corrupting their children with his political views.

Honestly, is it that bad to tell kids to try their hardest and to never give up in school, or in life?

This is a speech that should be heard by the youth of America. It has nothing but golden advice for children, giving them anecdotes of people in low places overcoming their obstacles, and making the best for themselves.

The main message — don't give up. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.

In these hard times, there is no better advice that the president could give to children. Unless, of course, he tells them they better share all the profits they get from that lemonade.

Rachel Lubitz, 17, Countryside High senior

We have heard about this speech for a long time, way too long in my opinion, and the consensus is in. Yes conservatives, you can come out of your bunkers in Wyoming and send little Jimmy back to school because there are no socialist agenda fist-pounding moments and no brain-sucking Marxist remarks. There is just one man — the President — giving a speech about staying in school. It is the same mumbo-jumbo we've heard since we started the horrible saga which is schooling in America.

This doomed generation should be proud that they had something to do with electing a President who cares about the quality of schooling and knows how to spell it too. He tries to make it clear that he wants us to succeed the best way we can, any way we can. The speech has nothing to do with politics, nothing to do with health care, nothing to do with immigration, nothing to do with anything but staying in school.

Despite all the overused lingo, Obama does try. He has tried to grab our attention and even get us out of the usual school grind for 15 minutes. For this, many students will be grateful. His relating to Jazmin Perez, a girl who couldn't speak English in the beginning but ended up at Brown University on a scholarship, shows that he is really not just a bobble head politico but a man who is touch with humankind. The over usage of words like succeed and try and try again may leave us all questioning the quality of his speech writers, but he gets his point across.

What I would most like to applaud President Obama on is taking the time to look at this new generation from ages 5 to 18 and letting us know that he cares. The last time a President has gathered up the courage to do a thing like this was in the '80s with the first George Bush. Obama was also able to make the right wing news media whine and moan on for weeks and weeks about a speech about staying in school and succeeding. He made them look like overreacting schoolgirls jealous of the cheerleader with the quarterback boyfriend, and anyone who can do that has a friend in me.

Sam French, 17, Gibbs High

Last year, on the day after Obama was elected, a young man ran screaming through the halls of Building 4 at Gibbs High, proclaiming that now that Obama was elected, he didn't have to go to class. I hope this young man is listening to Obama's speech on Tuesday; Obama said a few things that he should probably pay attention to. Obama's message is clear: take responsibility, grow up, exceed limitations and expectations. Obama wants students to start coming to class. Obama wants students to start listening. Obama wants students to work hard to develop their talents. So do I. So do my teachers. Everything Obama's speech says needs to be said. The problem is, it needs to be heard, as well. The students that Obama is addressing, like the student who ran through the halls, have been told all these things before. They've been told them by their teachers, by their peers, and by countless adults. They don't listen. In the speech, Obama tries to relate to these students, telling them of his trials and tribulations. At the end of the day, however, Obama's living in a giant white house on Pennsylvania Avenue. There are hundreds of miles and hundreds of differences between President Obama and these student's problems. And sadly that's enough to make these kids not hear what he has to say. When the teachers turn on the TVs on Tuesday, I'm going to be listening and paying attention. I just wonder if anyone else will be.

Sarah Loftus, 17, East Lake High senior

I understand where President Obama is coming from. I've seen the students who are given close to nothing, those who have parents who give them opportunities but still face difficulties, and the students who seem to have everything one could ever desire. What Obama says is completely true. Your life is what you make of it.

However, a large amount of kids did not pay attention to his speech, and it had no effect on them. Children and teenagers are very susceptible to simply believing whatever their parents believe politically, so kids with very conservative parents probably thought, "my mom and dad don't listen to what President Obama says, so why should I?" This is where I think the impact of his speech was drastically decreased. I don't agree with that, but it is what happened. Education is a matter that affects every single person in this country regardless of age, skin color, wealth, or political views, so why should this message be heard less clearly by people with opposing political views from Obama? It shouldn't. To say that his speech forced socialist ideas into students' minds is ludicrous. His speech addressed an important matter that all students across the country regardless of upbringing should have listened to and taken seriously.

Alexa Volland, 17, Seminole High senior

Reading President Obama's speech, I couldn't help but see my dads face in my mind — his wrinkled brow, and stern expression when he talks about my education; going off into the "When I was your age I walked seven miles..." lecture. The president's address to the students was very sincere when saying he wanted the best for the younger generations of his country. He did not say it would be easy, or fun, but he was honest. He was honest when saying we as students can only succeed when we try, he was honest when saying that we will have failures, and honest when saying our generation can not quit. My favorite part about the speech was that he put it on us, the students, to make his dream of education a reality, calling it our responsibility.

Obama made my education feel more important, that I mattered. As much as I hate studying for the SAT, I'll do it. As much as I want to pull my hair out and hide in my closet when my mom comes at me with a list of college applications, I'll finish them. Then Obama, like any father, ended with some encouraging words, "I know you can do it," almost like a pat on the back, or that half smile I get from my dad when he's proud of me.

Tori Creighton, 17, St. Petersburg High senior

Schools sent out permission slips to parents, Pinellas County offered excused absences to students and some schools just flat out refused to show President Barack Obama's speech. After all the hype, I am left wondering just what it was all about.

The speech had no socialist agenda and only the best of intentions: getting students to realize that the circumstances of their life are no excuse for not trying in school.

What I found truly important was that it wasn't a typical "stay in school" speech, but one that put responsibility on the students. It is up to us to decide how far we want to go in life and success in anything takes hard work, regardless of whether your goal is to be a TV star or a police officer; education is key. "By the end of the day, we can have the most dedicated teachers, the most supportive parents, and the best schools in the world — and none of it will matter unless all of you fulfill your responsibilities," President Obama said.

The President made his speech relatable, adding several anecdotes from his own hard childhood and expressed feelings of loneliness and insecurity — things that everyone has felt. He kept the language informal, which is crucial to connecting to school-aged kids and tried his best to make his point clearly, without being preachy. I think it came through: "You make your own future".

Liz Nordlinger, 18, Lakewood senior

Does brainwashing include telling students that, "every single one of you has something you're good at?" If it does, then every child in this world has been brainwashed by their parents and will continue to be for the rest of their lives.

His speech talks to the students on a personal basis, and the country should be proud that we have a competent President who can talk to students without making mistakes and sounding like an idiot.

Do people who think that the President is corrupting students' minds think that living in Indonesia is the end of the world? If they do, then I guess they do have a reason to complain. Should our country never grow and evolve and learn to adapt to different colored presidents and new ideas? Our country wouldn't be where it is today if that had never happened in our history. People would still be riding in horse drawn carriages, owning slaves, and dying from every disease that enters the country including smallpox. People need to get over their dumb nonsense and realize yes, we do have a black president, yes, he is going to be in office for three and a half more years, and yes, he is smart, nice, handsome, and will help our country recover.