Donald Trump at one of the few intelligence briefings he’s had since the election.
If the president-elect of the United States can skip his intelligence briefings, why can’t I skip school?
It’s an odd question, but I’ve been turning it over in my mind a lot lately.
As many people already know, President-elect Trump has been skipping his daily intelligence briefings. Now, the president makes decisions that effect the lives of millions, and intelligence briefings are crucial for staying up-to-date with the ever-changing world, to ensure the making of informed decisions. But Trump has decided he doesn’t need briefings because he’s “a smart person.”
So I’ve been wondering. If the president-elect of the United States can skip his equivalent of school, why can’t I skip mine? I mean, I’d consider myself to be a pretty “smart person.” For example, unlike our president-elect, I know what a blind trust is, and that just because someone is black doesn’t mean they were born in Kenya.
But most importantly, I’m not the one who is about to run the country. The United States isn’t depending on me to solve its problems or make major decisions. And yet, I’m put in big trouble and called a “delinquent” if I cut classes, while Trump can miss out on crucial information he needs to run the country and not pay any price for it.
I’ll admit, being the goody two shoes and slight coward I am, I would never ditch or skip school (the only time in my entire life I’ve done that was for a student walkout protesting Trump).
But that’s not the point. This is: Why is a 15-year-old being held to higher standards than the president-elect of the United States?
And it’s not just the intelligence briefings. The entire campaign season, I’ve been noticing that I— a high school freshman— have been held to way higher standards than our president-elect. Take this, for example:
If I wrote an essay compiled of nothing but actual things Trump has said (you know, real intelligent stuff like “I know words, I have the best words,” and “Grab ‘em by the pu**y”) and then turned it into a teacher at school, you’d better believe I’d get an F. I’d also probably be called to the principal’s office to discuss my alarming rhetoric and profanity.
And if on top of that, I walked around school acting like Trump for even a single day— calling people rapists, fat pigs, dogs and slobs— forget it. I’d be expelled within a week.
And yet that same stuff done by a presidential candidate for 18 months is not just okay, but wins the presidency of the United States of America!
And that makes me wonder: If morals and rules don’t apply to the people running the country, then why are kids expected to follow them? Why should they apply to me? Why am I not aloud to call people names, cut classes, cheat people, and insult others — but the president-elect is?