Give State of Union due attention

Millions of people watched the president's State of the Union speech on Tuesday, but we wonder how many of them could pass a comprehension test on what it covered.

It's too bad that we give only half our attention to an address which covers so much ground. We might actually have more respect for our government if we considered more deeply its challenges and listened more acutely to its solutions.

In this particular speech, the president talked about isolationism, terrorism, the war in Iraq, defeatism, global democratic reform, AIDS, homeland security, jobs, protectionism, tax relief, deficit reduction, untenable entitlements, immigration reform, health care, alternative energy development, economic competitiveness, math and science education, personal responsibility, science and ethics, compassion, and moral commitment. Among others.

Of course we know that just talking about a problem in the State of the Union speech does not mean a solution is on the horizon. In last year's speech, for instance, the president explained the risk we all face as the Social Security system acquires more obligations at the same time it has a declining base of taxpayers. For at least some of us, there was hope that Congress would follow up by moving to protect future retirees, but instead the issue turned into a political football and both sides punted.

This year, our expectations are no higher. Indeed, as we enter the mid-term election cycle, politics will just become more vicious and the likelihood of Americans joining together for the common good recedes.

It was perhaps no accident that the president began his speech by reminding Congress that "even tough debates can be conducted in a civil tone, and our differences cannot be allowed to harden into anger." Surely, this president has been the target of that anger more than almost any in a hundred years, but we do not expect any ceasefire in the rat-a-tat of personal attack and public vilification. Instead, the president will try to take advantage of his narrow majorities in the House and Senate to accomplish what he hopes will be good for the country, at the same time his opponents blast every achievement as too little, too late or too dangerous.

Still, we hope that there are few - if any - with the audacity to disagree with the president when he made these statements:

-"Our enemies and our friends can be certain: The United States will not retreat from the world, and we will never surrender to evil."

-"There is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success, and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure."

-"Keeping America competitive begins with keeping our economy growing. And our economy grows when Americans have more of their own money to spend, save and invest."

-"Liberty is the future of every nation in the Middle East, because liberty is the right and hope of all humanity."

-"If there are people inside our country who are talking with al-Qaida, we want to know about it -because we will not sit back and wait to be hit again."

-"The rising cost of entitlements is a problem that is not going to go away - and with every year we fail to act, the situation gets worse."

-"By applying the talent and technology of America, this country can dramatically improve our environment… move beyond a petroleum based economy… and make our dependence on Middle Eastern oil a thing of the past."

-"Our greatness is not measured in power or luxuries, but by who we are and how we treat one another."

It behooves us to remember that when the president goes before Congress on these occasions, he is carrying out a constitutional task - to "give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient."

This should not be seen as a time of political opportunism, but a time of solemn engagement, a time indeed to reflect on "the state of the Union." And to do our part, we must seize upon those things that bind us together, instead of those which push us apart. Otherwise, in the not too distant future, we may hear a president say these terrible words: "Ladies and gentlemen, the state of the Union is not good."

Heaven help us then.