I know that for many of you, today is your child’s first day of school. While your kids are probably more concerned about how cool they look in their new “kicks” or if they’re sitting next to a cute girl in homeroom, it’s understandable if you’re a little nervous that your children will be indoctrinated. I imagine there are some Republican parents out there who are feeling pretty good right now, with just three more years to go until Obama will have to run for re-election. And no matter what political party you’re in, some of you are probably wishing it was still the ’80s, and you could’ve stayed in school listening to the rhetoric of Ronald Reagan.

I know that feeling. When I was younger, I had a loving obsession with every sitting president. I fiercely supported President George H.W. Bush against former President Bill Clinton, and I pushed even harder for Clinton against Republican candidate and Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kan. Now, I wasn’t too happy when I realized I had to start thinking about things for myself and that I actually harmonized with most of my parents’ politics. A lot of times, we’d all just end up agreeing on everything at the kitchen table. But whenever I’d complain about the government, my mother would just give me one of those looks and say, “You’re old enough to make your own decisions, and that’s important.”

I’m here because I want to talk with you about the education of your children and what’s expected of all of you in this new school year.

You need to let go and let your kids decide things for themselves.

Maybe you want your kid to be a good writer — maybe even one of those fantastic and good-looking newspaper writers — but probably not, because newspapers are dead and reporters make terrible money. You should let them do it anyway.

Now I know it’s not always easy to do well in this country. I know a lot of you have challenges in your lives right now that can make it hard to focus on being a good parent.

Look, I get it. I know what it’s like to be concerned about Obama’s seeming apotheosis. And don’t get me wrong, I haven’t “drank the Kool-Aid.” There were times when I missed not being able to support as cool of a candidate as Obama on certain issues. There were times when I was lonely and felt like I didn’t fit in.

But at the end of the day, the circumstances of your life — your personal disagreements with Obama, the Democrats, how much money you have, what you’ve got going on at home — those are no excuses for making your kids miss school because of a silly speech, making a mountain out of a molehill. They’re no excuse for not trying to be reasonable.

That’s why today, I’m calling on each of you to do everything you can to help your children succeed the way they want to.

I know sometimes you get the sense from TV that Obama is evil and a socialist and a foreigner, when chances are he’s not any of those things.

And the truth is, being a responsible American parent is hard. You won’t love every policy the president proposes. You won’t click with every leader. And your kids won’t necessarily agree with you every time.

That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones whose parents have let them think for themselves. What if J.K. Rowling’s parents were Puritans? Or if Michael Jordan’s parents pushed him to be a ballerina?

No one’s born with their own opinions; You become knowledgeable through investigation and self-discovery.

The story of America isn’t about people who just thought whatever their parents believed or who quit when things got tough. It’s about parents who supported their kids and kids who persevered in spite of their parents. People who kept going, who tried harder, who loved their country too much to do anything less than their best.

So don’t let us down — don’t let your children, your country or yourself down. Make us all proud. I know you can do it.

And please, gently remind your kids to wash their hands, because I do NOT want H1N1.

Thank you, God bless you and God bless America.

Dan Faas is the State News opinion writer. Reach him at faasdani@msu.edu.