Good Afternoon. Fellow teachers, administrators, our wonderful support staff, parents and most importantly, the graduates. Class 169. For those of you that don't know I am Tony Danza, aka, Mr. Danza. Mr. Danza. Boy I like that. I have been here this year teaching and also filming a Television show called Teach, for the A&E Network. This effort has coincided with your senior year. I know it has been a great year for me and looking out at all of you I know it's been a great one for the class of 2010. Amazing how fast the year went by, but much more on that later. I taught tenth grade English this year. I know, talk about ironic. Unfortunately I didn't get to teach any of your class. Unfortunate for me but probably fortunate for you. I did get to know many of the seniors though, through the activities I took part in, the shows we did and by just being here and connecting with some of you during the many times I was lost in the hallways. It's a big school. Actually I was only lost for the first month or two. I have it down now, well maybe not the basement. The kids I did get to know are some of the most positive and exciting young people that I have ever met. Not only interesting but interested in their school, their city, their country and their world. Right from the beginning the seniors welcomed me. My first week before the kids came to school a couple of football playing seniors helped me set up and decorate my room. They were so tall I didn't need a ladder. They helped me put up my fadeless paper. Fadeless paper, that's teacher-talk. Graphic organizer, model it, collaborative learning. Watch out; don't make me say Venn diagram.

When was the last time you had a snow day? I had one last week and four this week. In my romantic notion of days gone by I envision snow days as maybe the best deal you could get. You go to sleep knowing there is some possibility of it happening, a snowstorm big enough to close the schools. You have trouble sleeping and instead of counting sheep you count possible inches of frozen precipitation. You know you need a significant accumulation. Six inches just won't do it. You finally fall asleep and then it's morning. You run to look out the nearest window out onto the street and you are either elated or disappointed. If there is enough snow you run to the TV to see if the "no school" great news was being broadcast.

It's February, or as it is known in the school business, the halfway point. I sit at home beholding another, over two feet of snow, watching Lawrence Welk on PBS. For those of you old enough to know who Lawrence Welk was, it was a good episode, one of the black and white, old ones. The popular music of the time was on display and it made me think about how different we seemed. Our tastes were so much simpler and yet so much more musical. The orchestra was playing and the beat was there but only in the background. The music and melody were out front. In the music of today the beat is more than prominent, it is another "p" word, preeminent! Oh well, lots of snow, cabin fever. Welk is rocking. Back to the halfway point.

Some thoughts on the end of the decade. I am not, usually, one who thinks in terms of a time period being bad or good. I usually look at things specifically. This project went well or that one did not, but this decade has been special for it's lack of good news.

My name is Tony Danza and I am a radical individual. Before I go on, let me first describe what a radical individual is. The term was first coined by Judge Robert Bork in his book "Slouching Towards Gomorrah". Judge Bork's definition is; a radical individual is one that is individualistic to the detriment of society. In the book he made the argument that the 1960's, with all its upheaval and idealism, was really just a bunch of radical individuals doing whatever the heck they wanted. Remember "do your own thing"? The argument has been; was the 60's and early 70's a time of profound change in thinking and a new way of relating to each other and to our government or was it just a big irresponsible party?

I have been thinking, do you think that the United States will be the dominant power in the world during this century? This is the last month of the first decade of that century. If you do, have you considered that we are now entering a phase where another will challenge our system of government? The Chinese system of Authoritarian Capitalism vs. American Democratic Capitalism. The first such ideological face off since the end of the Cold War. The outcome may be different this time.

I am sitting on a plane in the Philadelphia airport. The name of the airline will go unsaid not because I want to spare them my intense aggravation but because as anyone knows flying is not fun anymore, no matter which airline you choose.

On the eve of teaching, I find myself sitting here wondering, "what was I thinking?" Well, not actually the eve, I still have 2 days until my students walk into my classroom. Believe me I have done many things in my life, but nothing like this. I am scared, but so are most of the other teachers I have met. By the way, I decorated my room with all kinds of encouraging slogans and educational displays. There's also a sign that says," no moaning, no groaning." You got to set a tone. I think you can tell how very excited I am about the chance to fulfill a dream of mine. I actually wanted to be a teacher, but for me, that noble profession became," the road not taken." So it is a challenge of the highest order and a great gift. I mean I got the chance to re-read, "To Kill A Mockingbird." It was much better this time.

Just some random thoughts. I've been thinking. I wonder how many people in America support the men who showed up at President Obama's town hall meeting carrying guns. All the guns were worn in the open, as the state law stipulates. One guy even had an AK 47 or something similar. Now, even if you were worried solely about gun rights, would you think it was right, and that you have the right, to openly wear guns at a presidential appearance? Sorry, I don't, not with our history. I think this is a symptom of something scary that is happening in America. We are always divided about issues. Blue states and red, and so on. But, there's something happening here, to quote a famous song.

I was just wondering, do you think that this country, of ours, is too far-gone to be saved? I find myself thinking that sometimes. I know it doesn't sound like me. I'm a big patriot, always have been. Not only because of what my mother and father's families had to do to get us to America, but also because of what this great country has given to me and my family.