18 CommentsAfter what was, after all, a rather tame event, the hordes receded from campus. Garbage drifted across South Lawn, a few verbal skirmishes broke out, reporters dragooned passersby for reactions, and it became pretty clear that a post-speech timeslot with the Columbia Coalition’s mike wasn’t worth much. Via Spec (which seems to be linking to the blog now?), PrezBo’s numbers are on the upswing again as people burned up the phone lines in Low to congratulate him.
Also, overheard on Barnard Quad: “I mean it was like sooo boring, how was I
supposed to sit through all of that?”
Thanks to Lindsay Griffith and Sam Reisman, and as usual, more photos after the jump.
This lady was peacefully warlike.
This lady was yelling all day long.
Pre-speech speakouts.
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18 Comments
@amn Overheard on South Lawn:
SIPA Chick 1: “The applause during the speech was strange.”
SIPA Chick 2: “Yeah, there were too many undergraduates–they’re kinda slow.”
@god i hate sipa…
most hated:
1- sipa
2- gs/barnard
@So.... So…what do we do now? Form a coalition to send students to Iran?
What are the next steps!!
@Irony I did think it was ironic that kids from outside campus were getting so agitated about him being allowed to come here. Who the fuck invited THEM anyway??
@yeah a lot of the most agitated people i saw inside campus today weren’t even students. ironic.
@aftermath prezbo just went from liberal zero to neocon hero
@Erasmus Today was the first day at Columbia in which security did a good job keeping out Asian tourists and special-interest Jewish groups unaffiliated with our fine university. Imagine how much better off we would all be if these groups were permanently banished.
@... i really wish either spec or bwog or someone would investigate why there was no “columbia” branding at the event. i found it so strange that they even blacked out “columbia university” from the podium.
@the Man ('07) I agree. The stark black-ness of the whole stage was one of the first things I noticed. The only thing I can think of is that the school doesn’t want its name associated with the speech when this is used in documentaries by Ken Burns or something say, 50 years from now
@Anonymous i strongly suspect that it probably has to do with the “by letting him speak here, it gives him a photo-op and an opportunity to try and lend himself credibility back home with the help of the columbia name and the magic of the state run tv cutting room” argument…
if that really is the case, i doubt it would ever be admitted by anyone. nor should it be.
or it might just be a case of CYA…
the think i keep thing about is what a journey for prezbo the past 3 weeks must have been as he finalized his opening remarks. seriously, pressure from pretty much everywhere, current students, faculty, general public, alumni/donors, his family, friends, his own desire to host an honest debate, not wanting to cave to the demands of the press…
i bet those opening remarks went through tens, if not hundreds of revisions, waffling back and forth between very harsh and more forgiving.
@the podium doesn’t have Columbia branding. that’s a built in speaker (i’m fairly sure). It’s the wooden podium that has the branding. nevertheless, the lack of any overt branding was odd.
@20/20 hindsight I can’t decide whom I hate more, the pro-engagement idiots who thought he might say something free of obfuscatory bullshit, or the anti-engagement morons who thought his speech might end up somehow subversive and dangerous. Anyone who has ever attended a single World Leaders Forum event could have forecasted such an outcome beyond any reasonable doubt.
@Please explain to me how Ahmadinejad is better than Bush. Please.
@and this too Props to the “Ahmadinejad = BAD, Bush = WORSE–> NO WAR ON IRAN” poster people. I particularly liked that one.
@rjt I totally agree. Did you know that 60% of college students in Iran are women? In the U.S., it’s only like 50%. That means Ahmedinejad is 10% better than Bush. Math, people.
@yea one of two times a year they let us on
@ugh this means the lawns will be red-flagged until April. oh well.
@wait a sec it’s always red-flagged for too long anyways.