My newspaper column for this week: President? No way!

[flowomo]

Also available online at:

http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2006/04/07/editorial/rich_lewis/lewis01.txt


Kids don’t want to lead free world
By Rich Lewis, April 6, 2006

So, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A doctor, a lawyer, an astronaut? A butcher, a baker, a candlestick maker?
How about... president of the United States?
Well, if the results of a recent online poll by Scholastic Magazine are any indication, the vast majority of today’s kids wouldn’t move into the Oval Office if you offered to ride them in on a pony.
Just a few weeks ago, the magazine asked youngsters in grades 1-8, “Would you want to be president of the United States?”
Nearly 30,000 kids from across the country responded, and 81 percent of them said “no way.”
That’s pretty shocking. The president of the United States is famous and powerful, “the leader of the free world.” You’d think kids would go for a job



Rich Lewis' e-mail address is [e-mail]


EDIT: COPYRIGHT: PLEASE POST ONLY FOUR PARAGRAPHS
FROM THE COPYRIGHTED NEWS SOURCE PER DU RULES.

[displacedtexan]

1. Great column!

How did you get to be a columnist, Mr. Lewis?
That's probably not a career choice today's tots would choose either.

[flowomo]

2. thanks! I was a reporter then an editor....

and I just kept bugging my boss to let me write a column... and they finally gave in. I've been doing it weekly since August, 2001. I don't work at the paper full time any more (college teaching now), but I keep my hand in with the weekly bit.

[bigtree]

3. nice

[flowomo]

4. to the mods: this is MY column...

I have reprint permission as long as I cite my paper, which I have in the link.