You're Not As Stupid As You Look. . .

As you may have gathered I am a frequent reader of CNN.com and of their political ticker. Not so much because I think they are the end-all-be-all of political reporting, but because it is an easy place to stop and gather the news on a daily basis. My morning newspaper if you will. I recently came across a commentary written by Ruben Navarrette, one of their regular contributers. I have read many of his articles. He seems to be an intelligent man and his commentaries have pushed me towards deeper thinking and research on several topics and even had me nodding my head in agreement on a few, but this one. . . . Well, I think he really missed his mark on this one. (Read the entire article HERE)

"Obama (in his acceptance speech) settled on a hybrid of left-right economic theory that sounded like a bundle of contradictions. Obama talked about "America's promise," the belief that "through hard work and sacrifice, each of us can pursue our individual dreams but still come together as one American family, to ensure that the next generation can pursue their dreams as well."

He explained it as "the idea that we are responsible for ourselves, but that we also rise and fall as one nation" and described it as blending "individual responsibility and mutual responsibility." Simply put: You have to do what you can for yourself, but that you also have to do for others.

There is the rub: If everyone were to adhere to the first part, there will be no need for the second. Besides, even if we buy the idea that, as Obama said, "I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper," there is still the question of whether government should do the keeping."

Mr. Navarrette, nothing irritates me more than when a person feigns stupidity to defend an argument. And that is exactly what you're doing. I find it impossible to believe - being that you attended graduate school - that you cannot understand the concept put forth by Senator Obama that there is, and that we need, a balance between personal, government and community responsibility. Yes, parents need to be responsible for making sure their children attend school and complete their homework. And yes, the government needs to supply adequate funding and a framework for a 21st century education. And yes, as citizens of a community we need to step up fill in the gaps between parental and government support by volunteering in the classrooms, on the soccer fields and as leaders of extracurricular activities. It needs to be a joint venture. A joint venture that goes beyond education and extends to areas of the environment and the economy and energy and disaster preparedness for threats from both mother nature and our enemies. Perhaps your time in David Gergen's classroom did not provide you the competency to understand the simple premise of teamwork. That's okay, Mr. Navarrette, because Senator Obama is a professor in his own right. And after Nov. 4th class will be in session.