Tuesday, May 27, 2008

What Happens if They Boo?

Barack Obama filled in for Ted Kennedy at the Wesleyan University commencement. Normally they have 8000 people but attendance more than tripled after it was announced that Obama would speak.

President Bush has been chosen to speak at Furman University for graduation. There doesn't seem to be a shortage of tickets and not only that, several people are asking that they not be forced to listen to him speak.

From a letter signed by a couple of hundred students and professors:


...public officials and their administrations are vested with a public trust. They are obligated to follow and execute the law. They must act in the public's best interest. They are bound by moral standards.

And when they act contrary to these standards they are answerable to the people, for when the actions of a public official and his administration become as odious as this president's, silence implies consent. It is to acquiesce to the awful, to condone the criminal.

Our objection, then, is on moral and legal grounds.



So what happens?

Another letter signed by several hundred students from the CONSERVATIVE STUDENTS FOR A BETTER TOMORROW is sent to the Administration. It contains fairly transparent propaganda straight from the Republican pr machine...Bush isn't a global warming denier (he just refuses to let anybody do anything about it), and he hasn't created the largest deficits in history because the professors are stupidly measuring the deficit in US Dollars.

Then there's this:


1. We ask Furman University to hold professors to their contractual agreement toattend commencement exercises in recognition of Furman’s graduating class and its accomplishments by refusing to grant any “conscientious objector” releases. We also request the names of all faculty members who have submitted such a request, as well as an update of any additional faculty members who do so between now and graduation.


I would paraphrase that to say, "These people must be forced to listen to the wisdom of George W. Bush. We want their names and where they live...We will show them a 'Better Tomorrow!' "

Peace,

Steve

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