Fight Over Obama's School Talk Teaches Sorry Lesson

Well, at noon ET today, President Obama is set to speak to them via television and webcam urging that they study hard, stay in school and take responsibility for getting an education.

Don't see anything sinister in the president of the United States inspiring children? Frankly, neither do we.

(First day of school: Divanni Mejia, 3, of Washington, D.C./By Jacquelyn Martin, AP)

But in today's political and media culture, where the loudest, least responsible or most partisan commentators get far more attention than they deserve, no one should be surprised that a few irresponsible zealots managed to turn this into a fight.

The uproar started when Florida Republican Party Chairman Jim Greer warned that Obama was using the speech to spread his "socialist ideology" and "liberal lies."

The charge turned out to be baseless. The speech, which you can read below, has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with inspiring kids to learn. Coming from a man who is the embodiment in chief of how education can help a poor kid growing up with a single mother, it might actually change some young lives.

But Greer's fear-mongering was echoed by conservative bloggers, radio commentators and Fox News. Overwrought parents in several places soon complained to school officials, some threatening to keep kids home. Reason was gone; the fight was on.

It's true that the administration made one foolish misstep. In suggestions for lesson plans that teachers might link to the speech, the Department of Education included a recommendation that students write letters to themselves about how they could "help the president." Dumb, but easily excised, which the department did. Problem solved, except that it wasn't, because on the Internet and cable TV, conflict is king, and it's too often waged by people whose livelihood or political well-being is dependent on demonization. The health care debate is another example. Despite a raft of issues, the debate focused briefly this summer on fictitious death panels, thanks to the rants of former Alaska governor Sarah Palin and others.

There is an antidote for this. It's called leadership, and a few prominent conservatives exercised it this weekend, arguing for reason on the school speech. Former House speaker Newt Gingrich and Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., told Fox News Sunday the speech was a fine idea. "If I were a teacher, I'd take advantage of it," Alexander, a former education secretary, said.

That should happen more often on both sides of the aisle, lest kids be taught that the way to resolve differences is to call people names and shout them down, with lies if necessary.