Most Commencement Speeches Remain Apolitical

Great, another wacko conservative ranting about liberal bias

Funny how the more educated you are (e.g. college professors) the more "liberal" you tend to be.

The thing is, colleges teach students about the world. About reality. And as Stephen Colbert notes, "Reality has a well-known liberal bias."

Colleges, especially private colleges, are free to choose whomever they want to speak at commencement. Students know the type of environment they'll be getting into when they decide to go to a particular college. I don't hear them complaining about liberal bias.

People like "JD" can send their kids to Bob Jones University or Liberty University if they have a problem with liberal bias at most colleges.

Especially if you believe that "truth" is a "hard core leftist message."

Missing the Point

Of course, others couldn't disagree more:

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/kevin-mooney/2008/06/16/yaf-survey-highlights-unreported-bias-left-wing-commencement-speakers

“We already know that these universities falsely advertise what students are going to learn and instead deliver a hard core leftists message,” reports Young Americans for Freedom. “We wanted to expose how the schools talk a great game about diversity but fail miserably when it comes to the application of that principle."

In those rare instances a speaker with conservative appeal does make an on campus appearance the “leftist faculties throw temper tantrums,” explains YAF's Jason Mattera. For example, when Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was invited to speak at the University of Georgia several professors attempted to have the invitation rescinded, according to the YAF report.

It's the "what", not the "who"

It is not "political" for a university to allow a candidate to speak at commencement.

It's only "political" if the candidate speaking actually promotes his/her own agenda, which most would not.