So now President Obama’s speech to the nation’s schoolchildren is over – and somehow we all managed to survive it.

It’s been ineffably sad to see a speech in which the President of the United States simply tells children to study hard and stay in school so distorted and politicized by those who hate him.

Truly, those who engage in such disgusting rhetoric threaten to drag down the rest of us.

But what’s even more dismaying is the effect this controversy has had on our children. It is one thing to hear adults bickering over Obama’s school speech and his right to give it – it is quite another for them to pass their spiteful political judgments on to children.

When I was a student, I was taught to respect the office of the President of the United States, no matter who held that office. As a parent, I continue to respect that authority and have taught my children to, as well.

The funny thing was, after the actual text of the speech was released, it was clear that the message was entirely appropriate, non-political, inspiring and within the scope of the duties of the President of the United States.

And for parents, that should be the bottom line.

I didn’t vote for George Bush, but when he was president, you never saw me screaming bloody murder because he made the cover of my sons’ Weekly Reader. Hell, I’d let George Bush read “My Pet Goat” to my kids, if I thought it would help them want to stay in school and be successful.

And even if – after seeing the transcript of President Obama’s speech in advance – parents still disagreed with the message it contained, what kind of lesson did they give their children by teaching them to simply ignore or get angry with any point of view with which they don’t agree?

Obama’s school speech is over now, but I’m sure that for the haters, it’ll be something they’ll keep talking about for a long, long time.