Obama Slams Hoop Dreams for High School Diplomas

GAG!

Finally a president who can call it as he see it .
It will be nice if he brings that community type attitude to the presidency. We all can take whatever message and do our part.

Excellent job Obama! This is exactly what this country needs.

I’m not an Obama supporter but give him points for his message of personal responsibility and accountability that he speaks of. That doesn’t sound like someone from the far left though.

Obama dashed their dreams and still gets kudos from his followers. Amazing to see what a hypocrit he is?!!? This is how his exposure to 20 years with Rev Wright’s influence now permeates his entire life outlook. What if someone continued to tell him he was no good, and would probably not ever be good enough. He had the same problem of poor grades all through his public school. He should have encouraged them to continue to pursue their dreams to achieve all that is possible. The message should be that school and getting an education is the path to success whatever your career choice ultimately is. Perhaps his speechwriters were on holiday when he wrote this speech. Is this the kind of treatment, his followers should expect – let’s hope not.

This is a put down to all black Americans, he could have sent the same message without the put down, better watch out, looks like more people being thrown undrer the bus to me. Watch out Obama supporters, he doesn’t need you anymore!

To those who say they can’t support Obama, What are you going to do? Support McCain, who will keep the war going for 100 YEARS?? Even the people of Iraq do not want us there. Senator Obama’s position on the war has not changed. The media is doing a good job of making us believe that it has changed because the media is pro McCain.
The Republicans have given us a trillion dollars debt and gasoline prices that effect our standard of living. How can anyone vote for more of the same!

Real Deal, as a longtime Democrat, I will surely support a Republican like McCain (thatI do not like) over a Democrat that talks the talk but does not walk the walk. We will never have Democratic nominee that stands for something as long as continue to reward them for kissing up to the republican right.
Yes, Obama has changed his position on the withdrawal. Several times. Currently he is back to where he started. He wants to give more money to religious organizations. He voted to give immunity to companies that illegally spied on US citizens.
Obama cannot be trusted.

Catleya, Senator Obama cares about all children. Don’t forget he has just as much white blood as he does black blood running through his veins. His mother,
who instilled his values, was white.
The high school graduation rate among AAs is astonishingly low. Someone needs to address this. This dismal rate of graduation among AA males affects all of us. I commend Senator Obama for addressing it.

I like how Obama stresses the importance of getting a high school degree and seeking higher education so that one can earn an above average salary, while his socialistic policies punish any entrepreneur who so dares to rise above being a “working-class” citizen……
Personally I don’t want someone running this country who thinks its fair to punish those who worked their butt off earn have an above average standard of living…..
It would be great if everyone were on equal financial playing fields, but that’s not the way it is and taking from the rich and giving to the poor will do nothing but destroy any sense of economical growth this country is trying to achieve.

Real Deal, the difference is that as a Democrat I do not expect Republicans to represent many of my positions. I do expect that in a Democrat. Why would a Democratic candidate stand up for Democrats if he/she knows the sheep will still vote for them while the candidate caters to the right?

I came to America in 1984 with almost nothing.
Today, all my 5 children have been graduated from college. I have a House & 4 door apartment.
Do you want to know how I did it?
IT’S HARD WORK & a little bit of common sense.
Do you want to credit Obama for saying this? This all in the open since the beginning of the world.
I should be running for president myself.

Undecided, please tell me what is racist about relating to a group of misguided youth. These kids need real leadership and role models. Think about it -if they are not educated and do not go to work what will they do. How will their uneducated circumstance affect you? And it will affect you. Obama was trying to give these kids hope through tough love.

cattway, sometimes, it is not what is said, but who said it. Hopefully, Obama will have a positive impact and these youth will rely on an education and not a basketball.

And Terry, you agree with everything that is in your church’s bulletin.
What do the bullentins say? I have friends who are members of the United Church of Christ. Quite frankly, they are some of the kindest, God fearing, and compassionate people I know.
Leaving a church is a major decision.

Real Deal,
Obama has changed his position on Iraq because even he knows that it would be just plain stupid to pull defeat out of the jaws of victory now that the US is winning the war in Iraq. As to high gas and food prices, Obama is on the record for being against drilling for more oil, building new refineries and nuclear power plants. In fact Obama has stated that he is just fine with the high price of gas. One of Obama’s main campaign contributers is the biofuel industry and of course the global warming fear mongers that would like us all to go back to the dark ages. So if you want no or negative growth, a lower standard of living, high gas prices and food prices, I guess Obama is your guy.

Mary, you are right Obama is my guy. But please do not distort the facts, Obama’s POSITION ON THE WAR HAS NOT CHANGED. HIS MISSION IS TO END THE WAR! And the ultimate timetable will be dictated by the commanders on the ground. This is NOT a change.
Off-shore oil drilling will NOT bring any oil for another 7 to 10 years and it will ruin our beaches. Besides the US cannot drill enough oil off the coasts to lower cost. The Chinese hold the “mighty” dollar.
Now, Mary, if you like the present economic conditions, McSame is your guy.
Can you fill up your tank?
Can you pay your mortgage?
Can you send your kids to college?
Can you pay all of your bills?
Can you take a vacation?
How is the ozone?
How is crime in your city?
Do you know anyone who has been killed in this senseless war?

Real deal,
I don’t believe Obama is demonstrating “tough love”.McCain or Hilary Clinton would never in a million years use this type of “tough love” on this same audience. The leader of our country should not change the truth he speaks according to the audience he is speaking to. It is racist to assume that the young men in the audience want to be basketball players and rappers simply because they are African American. It is racist to call them “brothers” unless he use the term “brothers” when is he talking to all young men, regardless of their race. He can encourage them without using racist stereotypes.

Real Deal,
Oil engineers, that is the experts, are saying that they can get oil out of the ground in as little as two years, not ten as Obama is telling you. Once the speculators know the US is serious about drilling for new oil they will start selling short and the prices will start to come down. Again, Obama is against this because he has told us that he is just fine with the high price of gas. So it is not surprising he could care less about doing what he can to lower prices by drilling for more oil and is trying to pull the wool over your eyes by telling you it will take 10 years to get the oil when all the experts are saying it will take as little as two years.
As to all of the issues you have noted, I could better pay for all of the above if my taxes were lower. Obama wants to raise taxes accross the board so Obama will make my life much worse, not better and make it harder for me to pay for all of my expenses, if not impossible. Fact is if Obama gets elected and recinds President Bush’s tax cuts the taxes for and average familiy of four earning $50,000 will go up by $2500. When you add in higher payroll, taxes, corporate taxes, dividend taxes and income taxes,etc as Obama is proposing, that will mean higher tasxes for all and just not those earning $250, 000. For example, if I sell my home, the taxes on any profit I make will go higher. The taxes on my dividends will also go up and when my employers taxes go up, they might just lower my number of hours,thus my pay, or just plain lay me off. Not a pretty picture but that is what Obama has in store for us if he gets elected. If that is what you want, than, wow take a breath and think about it a little more and maybe you will come to your senses, I hope.
As to Iraq, Obama has flipped flopped so many times on Iraq that I know it is hard to tell where he stands at any given moment. But as to here and now, Obama has changed his position and will keep troops in Iraq as he knows that pulling them out now in the face of a victory is just plain stupid and would turn Iraq over to Iran and Al Qaeda and with the oil fields now in production, with the help of the US, it would be doubly stupid to withdraw now and Obama knows it. If you are correct and Obama will go ahead and withdraw from Iraq as he has said he would, than I really question not only his judgement, but his sanity.

great he’s decided to reach out and speak the truth to the african american community which he has largely ignored up until father’s day. i would like to hear more about his proposals though.

Heh. Obama talking about people being over-rated in their minds, when he claims his nomination heals the planet?
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/blogs/index.php/rubin/9621

The nice thing is that Obama can talk like this to African American youth with the voice of experience, as a living example of what hard work can accomplish. He’s been on the side of the tracks where these kids live; so he’s someone that they will listen to and someone they can model their lives after.

Reading some of these comments, I get the feeling that a lot of you want there to be a permanent underclass in this country. Is it because as long as there are African Americans with high incarceration and low literacy rates, your feet will never touch the bottom? You need someone to be worse off than yourself so that you can feel smug in your position?
Why are you objecting to him saying the very things you would say if anyone cared to listen to you?

real deal – i’d love to answer the questions you ask. i am not a person with a high income, i am just an honest hard working american who does not think obama is the messiah. so here’s your answers:
Can you fill up your tank? – absolutely, for years i have owned a car that gets 30mpg because it has been within my budget.
Can you pay your mortgage? – don’t have a mortgage – i rent. however, when anyone and everyone was out buying homes on adjustable rate mortgages, i was smart enough to know that there is a proper time in life to buy a house, and a responsible way to handle finances.
Can you send your kids to college? – mine are 13 and 10 – and i don’t know right now if i will be able to finance their entire tuition, should they choose to pursue higher education. honestly, i hope they understand the value of hard work all through their high school years and are able to get scolarships, and with some grants and / or student loans, they should be able to get a 2year at a community college, then evaluate further.
Can you pay all of your bills? every month, without fail. i have lived my life in a fiscally responsible way, budgeting at 80% of my income, so that i am able to save for the future and have an emergency fund.
Can you take a vacation? yes – 1 week a year, something reasonable – no trips to paris.
How is the ozone? – the ozone is great – we here in phoenix do emission testing, and sure we have some smog, but it’s nothing like india or china produce.
How is crime in your city? – that’s a good one – i live in a sanctuary city, the kind liberals love (see san fran) and the crime here is ridiculous. the liberal police chief will not work with ice and mandated by federal law, and sherrif arapio is doing anything he can to help the situation, but unfortunately he doesn’t have the manpower. if we had a conservative mayor and governor who would push the police chief to do his job we might not have the crime issues here as we do.
Do you know anyone who has been killed in this senseless war? – no i don’t, but i do not believe this is a sensless war, thanks for asking! you have a right to your opinion, of course, but let me ask you this – why have we not been attacked on our homeland since 9/11? in fact, we have not even had any of our embassies attacked!
oh yes – the price of oil dropped $8 / barrel today on speculation that supply would increase. imagine if supply were to increase for sure due to americans providing 50% more of the oil we consume??
i used to be a liberal, then i learned to think for myself…

real deal – i have a friend who’s in her 30′s, she met mccain when she was in her early teens. she said he was the nicest man, given that he was such a busy person being a politician and all. he took the time to ask her and her friends about their lives (remember, these are 12-13 year old girls, not voting age). she typically has liberal points of view, but she remembers her experience with mccain and sees the ‘empty suit’ that obama is and will not vote for obama.
also – obama will indeed tax everyone more – as soon as he repeals the bush tax cuts, we all receive a $2000 tax increase! furthermore, he will double the capital gains tax and raise raise the fica tax on the wealthiest americans – those like my boss, who uses the income he has to re-invest in his business, creating more jobs and more possibilities for growth within his company. as his taxes go up, he will have to stop re-investing, and possibly cut jobs in order to keep the business finances in check. that means my co-workers or myself are out of a job. also, as he raises minimum wage, a burger at mcdonalds will go up in price, because some 16 year old needs to make $12/hr.??
so if you think he’s not raising your taxes and cost of living – guess again. do some research on what the late ’70′s were like financially for america as we had jimmy carter as president, because obama’s on exactly the same agenda…

Obama has all these tax cuts he is going to give the middle class & poor. And wants to send more checks. I Like money & tax cuts, but is it really going to help bring jobs? Tax cuts do no good if you don’t have a job & can’t pay taxes. And where will the money come from for another stimulis check ? We’ll have to claim it all next year on our income taxes & pay higher taxes. Way to go Obama America is in debt enough, America needs good paying jobs, not welfare, that we will pay for anyway.

Just a thinker, I do not have to research the Carter years. I lived the through those years. I also have lived through the last 8 years. And I am worse off than I was 8 years ago. Everything is in disarray! You need to educate yourself on Obama’s tax plan. Remember the Clinton years when we had economic prosperity. Those years are coming again.

Just a thinker, I would hope any elected Senator in this country would be civil to another human being, especially children.

yo obama, u r wright to fight for the bright, aha.
this is a chance to change AMERICA and eventually change the world. so go on and make good decissions.
good luck
ur well wisher

Don Pablo: “brotha” (i.e., speaking so as to connect with your audience) is less presidential that “Bomb-Bomb-Bomb Bomb-Bomb Iran” or c**t ??? Well, we obviously have different standards.

up123…I didn’t make up my mind about Obama over a fifteen minute tape….I made up my mind over a twenty year membership.

Obama has gone Hollywood, he’s got movie star status!

I like Obama and will probably vote for him. I’m not sure yet. However, I think he is somewhat out of touch with reality in understanding why so many minorities, especially black male minorities, are more likely to drop out of school. That miseducation of the negro child still goes on into today’s society. It begins in elementary school. If the kids aren’t being taught in elementary school, they’re lost in middle and high school. Also, black males are more likely to be harshly punished, suspended and/or expelled from school for minor infractions than their white fellow brothers are. So, Obama needs to look at the whole picture. There are also teachers who should never be allowed to teach in the school system. They don’t help to shape and mold developing minds, they destroy them!

It’s been about 10 years since I’ve taken an class on American politics, but correct me if I’m wrong, the President does not make all the decisions or all the changes. He has to work with both the Congress and the Senate before any changes are made. I think we all need to remember that and take a step back from bashing our candidates. Yes they both have some very strong ideas about taxes, but nothing will be changed unless the majority of both the Congress and the Senate agree. I think we all tend to lose sight of that when listen to the candidates speak. We take what they say and assume that they are going to be the ones to make the sole decisions. Yes they will help guide changes, but they are not final word on what happens with our country. I am personally undecided at this point on whom I am going to vote for.

The same people complaining about Obama’s comments are the same people who cross the street to avoid these very same kids.  The reality is that many black kids think that their path to success is professional sports or rap music and only a small percentage will be successful.  The road to success is through education, if you happen to make it to the NBA, good for you.  If you make it as a successful rapper, good for you.  However, if you want to learn how to take of yourselves and your money, a college education may give you the tools to learn. Michelle and Barack Obama are excellent proof that staying in school is the path to success.  Go Obama!

Wow, Mary! Quite a ball of nonsense you’ve woven. Sorry if that seems condescending. But you’re barking up a whole forest of wrong trees.
In simple refutation of your culture-hating, anti-identity love letter to corporate wage slavery: the Internet.
It lets us articulate our ideas and be given the gift of learning — including having people show us how wrong we are when we are, in fact, quite wrong — because it is a public space. The Internet is a public space that gives no corporation an advantage over an individual citizen and lets us all teach each other what we know instead of having a one-track media push us all around. It’s the perfect free market, one that harnesses the power of humans, one where you’re free to be wrong and I’m free to clue you in. Or, you know, the other way around.
And in response to your description of the government as a bureaucratic collection of evil-intending leeches, good for nothing and no one: the Internet. (And, Republicans.) The Internet is also a product of government research. It wouldn’t have been created without the government’s involvement and its ability to bring the underlying technology to market — through research, development, and an interest in the collective benefit (and security — wiki DARPANET) of all Americans.
Thanks, government, for giving us the chance to choose good leadership. When good people get near your levers you are a wonderful mechanism. I’m looking forward to 8 years of healing the distrust folks like Mary have for you, so we can get down to saving our asses.

Yes, you are more likely to be hit by lightning than become a player in the NBA and there are fewer high-paid rappers than NBA players.

hpg – the only negativity I see is coming from you. Why is it that when a guy like Bill Cosby delivers the same message – stay in school, don’t be seduced by false dreams of fame – conservatives stand up and applaud. But when Obama says the exact same thing you angry headcases go insane with rage and hatred? You Obama-haters are completely derranged. You losers need to get lives.

Good advice from our next president!

Hi I’m a old crusty troll and I wear depends. I plan on continuning the mystery for americans that bush and cheney is doing now. I have no clue how to help you economically. But I’d love to get back at those that held me as a POW by bombing and killing everything in Iraq and Iran. I need your vote and support to make this happen.
I’m John McCain and I approve this message.

The is a difference between talking to people, and talking at people. From the way Bush gives speeches, lol, I am speechless. Obama hits on the real issues, the one’s of which the foundation of this country rests upon. Sure we got all that smoke-screen oil and whatever jargon being blasted from all media orfices, it’s intended purpose to cause confusion and disarray, when all along they know which cards they will play next unbeknowest to the poor misinformed american public. God have mercy on those who eat that stuff up without examining the ingredients first; just because it tastes good doesn’t mean it’s good for you. It takes common sense to know that our foundations have been succumbing from groundwork being done secretly beneath our feet for a few years now.
McCain = sinkhole opens
Obama = we’ll see
All you conservatives, lol, just keep spewing that media fizz, like a bunch of shook up sodas. It’s not your fault you can’t contain yourselves, but it’s your lap it will fall upon.

Obama is a breath of fresh air in politics. He has the moral fortitude to stand up for what is right for the kids. Jesse Jackson and his generation have mostly tried to make victims out of them. I hope Obama wins by a landslide, and if the enough voters can see through the lies of the Rovesque Republican spin machine, he will.

I agree with Obama’s message to black youth and as a white woman in the suburbs I would have to extend it to many white children, too. Parents push their kids into sports chasing a scholarship while failing to recognize many of them aren’t focusing on academics. And some of the coaches are brutal, insisting the kids play when they are sick or injured. For instance, multiple concussions can affect your I.Q. permanently but many coaches ignore this. My sons in high school were dismayed by classmates playing football and obviously getting dumber after repeated concussions. This national obsession with sports fuels this problem. Our schools should be stressing academics and fitness, but not sports.

I applaud the senator’s efforts to get kids to face reality, but doubt seriously it will mean anything. This culture discarded moral compasses long ago and invested in the get-rich-quick mindset. If people can’t make it as a celebrity or sports pro to make it to the top, they’ll turn to pimping, dealing drugs, stealing IDs, scamming the ignorant, or anything else that doesn’t require an education. It’s so much easier than staying in school and studying for a possible job in a dying economy.