It's Not the Speech, It's the Message!
Responsibility, Persistence, Goals: Obama's School Speech
In the weeks preceding President Obama's address to the school children of America, a number of inflammatory assumptions and judgments were presented regarding a political agenda on the part of the president which included indoctrination of our nation's children, a "feel-good" attempt to wash away embattled health care reform issues, and that the president's intended speech "overstepped the boundaries of federal involvement in schools." Critics of the school speech were entirely focused on the political aspects of the speech itself and were oblivious to the important themes, messages and goals contained therein.
Aristotle's Philosophy of Moral Responsibility
"We are what we repeatedly do." --Aristotle
Aristotle examined the question of moral philosophy in the Eqikh Nikomacoi, or Nicohachean Ethics, in 350 B.C. In this work he discussed the conditions under which moral responsibility should be ascribed to individuals, the nature of virtues and vices involved in moral evaluation, and the methods of achieving happiness in human life. The central issue for Aristotle was, essentially, what does it take for an individual human being to be a good person?
Responsibility, Persistence, and Goals
The concept of moral responsibility is fundamental to any system of ethics, and what better places to begin our children's journey on the road to responsibility than in the classroom and in the home? These two institutions must work together to give our children the foundation they need for a solid education. Character isn't what we think, it's what we do, and one of the main goals of President Obama's school address was to urge students to seek and apply the values we associate with good character. In addition, the president integrated the values of persistence and goal setting, both of which are integral to the development of moral responsibility.
Ask Yourself These Questions
It might be beneficial for the adults of our great nation to review what it means to be responsible and what it means to have responsibilities. We might honestly ask ourselves the following questions to ascertain whether we are the kinds of role models we want for our children:
- Do you consider yourself to be a responsible person? Why? In what ways?
- Do you consider it important for your friends and family members to be responsible? Why?
- It's been said that "There are no rights without responsibility, and there is no responsibility without rights." What does that mean? Do you agree? What is the relationship between rights and responsibilities?
- What does being responsible have to do with the quality of your character and your child's character?
- What are the benefits of being a responsible person? How do you benefit from the responsibility of others?
We might also reflect upon the quality of persistence and the importance of setting and achieving goals in order to be successful in school and in life. These are the messages contained in the president's speech to our school children. The focus was never meant to be on the politics of the speech; the president's focus was clearly on the welfare of our children.
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