Dear Mr President:This entry is coming from one of your ardent supporters (me). But though I think you're one of the most brilliant men (trust me, that's a lot for me to give as an accolade) I know, I'm having a couple of concerns about your moves during this critical time in history.
My first concern is the area of education. This week you talked about revamping teacher's pay to correlate with merit. Part of me says "yeah!" and another part says "hold up! wait a minute!" I understand some tenured teachers have rested on their laurels instead of striving for more innovative ways to make educating this generation exciting and compete with their counterparts around the world.
But how do you judge "merit?" Is it just having "A" schools or students scoring high marks on their PSATs or college SATs? Hel-lo, not all great students are great test-takers. And being a great test-taker doesn't guarantee one's success in college or life. And what about those teachers who teach "artistic" kids? Or teachers of adults dealing with illiteracy (a well-known secret of our society) who are getting back into the school system. Please EXPLAIN!!!
My second concern and the most critical is the ECONOMY. Yes, while I applaud you for doing more in over 50 days than some Presidents did in a term (hint: Dubya), I'm quite apprehensive that you're taking on a lot when we have greatest economic debacle since the Great Depression.
I personally want you to have the Power of One - finding the most critical thing and focusing on that ONE THING. Like Tiger Woods with Golf, Wayne Gretzky with hockey, and Michael Jordan with Basketball. Is it too hard to say that you should focus on this thing we call the ECONOMY? I don't want to sound like the slogan that clinched Bill Clinton's win for Presidency (and yours after September 15th) but IT'S THE ECONOMY, STUPID!
And I know you've responded to your critics a few days ago about taken on a lot - that you could really multi-task. Again, I commend you for being fly like that (I'm also a multi-tasker) but how do you want a concerned citizen like me to feel when you're yet to fill positions in your TREASURY and COMMERCE departments. I'm just saying.
Also, checked out what your (and my) economic guru said earlier this week? I know you heard the Oracle (Warren Buffet) who said this economy has "fallen off the cliff "(strong words huh!). And in the Oracle's words to you: FOCUS NUMBER ONE SHOULD BE THE ECONOMY, FOCUS NUMBER TWO SHOULD BE THE ECONOMY, AND FOCUS NUMBER THREE SHOULD BE THE ECONOMY.
Thanks for hearing me out and remember I've got nothing but love for you . . . that's why I'm speaking my truth IN LOVE.
