How Pres. Obama pissed me off

OK dear readers... work with me here... if you are a left wing nut, then, substitute Bush or Reagan or Nixon or some other Republican President instead of President Obama in the following sequence of events. If you are a right wing nut, then... ah... Hmmm...

Anyway, most of you are not going to believe this, because you've allowed the media to paint a picture of a politician, who is after.... ah... a politician - and politicians have speech writers, and people who advice them about what to say... but... 

In President Obama’s speech about jobs that he delivered last Thursday at a General Electric manufacturing plant in Wisconsin, he said:

“A lot of young people no longer see the trades and skilled manufacturing as a viable career, but I promise you folks can make a lot more potentially with skilled manufacturing or the trades than they might with an art history degree. Now, there’s nothing wrong with an art history degree; I love art history, so I don’t want to get a bunch of e-mails from everybody."
         - President Barack Obama, 1/30/14

Guess what sir, you will get an email from me and also a letter... in fact it is already sent and it says:

Dear President Obama,

You recently delivered a speech about jobs at the General Electric manufacturing plant in Waukesha, Wisconsin on January 30, 2014, in which you said:

“A lot of young people no longer see the trades and skilled manufacturing as a viable career, but I promise you folks can make a lot more potentially with skilled manufacturing or the trades than they might with an art history degree. Now, there’s nothing wrong with an art history degree; I love art history, so I don’t want to get a bunch of e-mails from everybody.”

Personally, I think that you appreciate the arts and the humanities, although your art acquisition program for the White House is a little lacking. But, in fact, you are the first president in history to begin issuing official White House proclamations observing the month of October as National Arts & Humanities Month. You have also urged the nation to celebrate the arts and humanities in our cities, schools, and homes because you claim to understand the role that they serve in our nation’s history, cultural identity, educational development, and individual creativity.

However, some of what I thought we knew about you and the arts, specifically the role that it plays in the economy, now seems in doubt (based on that speech) and I would like to take this opportunity to inform you about the important role the arts and humanities serve in our nation’s economy as well.

Did you know that according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the National Endowment for the Arts, the nonprofit and commercial arts combined produce a remarkable $504 billion in goods and services annually in the United States, representing 3.2 percent of the nation’s economy?

Did any of your advisors tell you that before that disturbing statement in Wisconsin?

Did you know that according to Americans for the Arts, nonprofit arts and culture organizations alone generate $135.2 billion of economic activity every year and support 4.13 million full-time equivalent jobs—including art historians?

4.13 million Mr. President... that's a lot of jobs in this anemic economy.

Did you know that creativity is one of the most important factors in producing innovation, and that according to the Conference Board, 72 percent of employers say creativity is of primary concern when they’re hiring, yet 85 percent of these employers can’t find the creative applicants they seek?

President Obama, the arts equal jobs, too. I urge you to meet with arts policy experts to incorporate the arts and culture into your economic strategies and policies to move America forward.

Call me.

Very Respectfully,

Lenny Campello

The Arts Action Fund has prepared an open letter to the President that brings to his attention the fact that the arts equal jobs too. We all need your help to send a clear and powerful message to the President. I used their open letter to re-craft it into mine.... but it takes a few seconds to send President Obama a rudder check on his attitude on this subject.

Please add your name to this letter, as well as encourage your friends to do the same.