Barack and Michele Obama seem to be exemplary parents, writes Checker Finn in the latest Gadfly. But (and you knew there was a but coming) he wonders how the Obamas see the value of patriotism. ”How are their daughters being taught to view the United States?” he asks. ”More important, what examples are the Obamas setting for fifty million other American kids and their teachers and parents?”
Is America, in their eyes, ‘the last best hope’? A place that doesn’t always live up to its ideals but comes closer than anyplace else? A place worth defending from all enemies, foreign and domestic? And is that something they believe is important for grownups to impart to children? Or do they think it’s the proper role of parents and teachers to emphasize the country’s shortcomings?
Finn is not questioning Obama’s patriotism, but wondering aloud about where the post-Vietnam generation of leaders places patriotism in the pantheon of civic virtues. It’s a provocative question with lingering resonance.
“When the country chose Barack Obama over John McCain, it opted for a member of that crowd and for the youth and change and energy that come with it,” Finn concludes. “Well and good. The President certainly has his hands full on many fronts and one can only wish him well. Nobody expects him to be the national K-12 curriculum director, too. But he and his wife are inevitable role models. How he views America matters in a thousand ways, including–though surely not limited to–how our children and teachers will view it.”
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