re: #27 teleskiguy

That blows donkey balls. At my father’s graduation when he got his PhD at Denver University, Gail Collins - Secretary of the Interior under G.W. Bush - spoke. She talked about “healthy forests initiatives” to prevent wildfires. Basically she was like “we need to ramp up logging big time, no trees, no fire!” It was pretty stupid, I could see my pops’ eyes roll to the back of his head a few times while she spoke.

The thing is, there’s actually been a big uproar about this. Years ago, former Indiana Senator Evan Bayh was invited. There was a big kerfluffle, and he wound up not speaking (it’s unclear to me whether he declined the invite or it was revoked). Despite the huge backlash from alumni across the country, the university administration has steadfastly backed the Vice President, and I can honestly say I’m kind of ashamed to be a graduate right now.