Yale for Sale

[Nathan Newman]

Well, the protests against Bush were quite effective today - essentially all
the "colleges" (undergrad housing units) and graduate divisions organized to
produce issue-based signs that were distributed before marching in.  When
Bush was introduced, a sea of colored signs went up on issues ranging from
reproductive rights to the death penalty to workers rights.  I think the
other honorary speakers were cheered far more than normal just so the
contrast of people sitting on their hands (with scattered booing) would be
that much more dramatic with Bush.  A number of larger banners were also
smuggled in.

Bush took the only route he could - he played his patented self-deprecating
act to the hilt, joking about his Cs in college and so on.  Acknowledging
the widespread opposition to him, he noted that it appeared that the
requirement for a person to speak at commencement (almost never done at
Yale) is not only to have graduated from Yale and be President, but to lose
the Yale college vote to Ralph Nader.  It's a slick routine since even
opponents laugh at his attacks on himself.

But TV crews and reporters were interviewing all sorts of anti-Bush
students - we'll see if I make it on myself, since they were doing a lot
with law students, since he was given an honorary doctorate of law, and
there was interest because a number of the law faculty circulated letters of
protest.

But it was encouraging to see what a large proportion of the undergrads and
grads participated in the protest.

Definately a surprising number of people really pissed off enough to
actually take some action.

-- Nathan Newman

ps. And it sure as hell is great to be friggin done with this place :)