I gotta say this whole hoopla about the pres not wanted for the commencement speech and not being awarded an honorary degree is petty and ridiculous.
So tell me Notre Dame, can you guarantee me that all 10,000 of your students are against abortion rights and stem cell research? You give them degrees!!!
Ugh. I just had to get that out somewhere.
Re: Notre Dame you bunch of hypocrites
Yes, my understanding is that anyone who gives a commencement speech gets an honorary degree.
However, they don't want to award him one because of his pro choice beliefs and support of stem cell research.
Well, the issue is that Notre Dame is a Catholic school. Catholicism stands for many of the things that Obama disagrees with. To have him come and speak seems hypocritical of the college belief system.
As far as student getting medical degrees, I am certain that much of what they are taught there is including medical ethics that would follow the Catholic stance. What the students chose to do with the degrees is entirely up to them.
Being a Catholic that disagrees with the majority of Obama's policies, I can understand the issue.
Yeah, that is pretty freaking lame if you ask me
Well, quite frankly, he probably shouldn't have been asked to give the commencement speech. I guess in that sense it is hypocritical.
Then why invite him to speak in the first place though?
It just seems odd to me because I doubt 100% of the school population is conservative Catholic. As a private, Catholic school they can certainly do as they please I just don't understand it.
I agree with that. Obviously whoever chose to ask him to speak was not thinking about the backlash that would come with him. It's apparent that they were only hoping to make history by having a president speak.
They're certainly not the first university to do so. Several other very distinguished schools have also protested speakers based on their beliefs.
Yes, exactly like I, along with many others, protested when *** Cheney came to speak at Auburn's graduation several years ago. He stands for everything I disagree with. I'm just glad he didn't speak at my graduation from Auburn!
edit: Looks like the Bump agrees with me! They censored out part of his name!! LOL
Then you must understand most of the students' concerns over Obama speaking.
This entirely.
I do, was never arguing with that. I think it is lame of whoever initally booked him for the speech to not take that into consideration beforehand.
This is true. They certainly should have realized what the student response was going to be.
It has nothing to do with "dishonoring" the president and everything to do with standing up for their beliefs. A PP said that she and many other students protested *** Cheney speaking at their Auburn graduation, and no one accused them of "dishonoring" him. Good grief. Just because he's a our president, that doesn't mean everyone has to agree with everything about him. Once that starts happening, it's called a 'dictatorship.'
And their president obviously did not think about the way his invitation was going to impact the student community.
Catholic ladies who say you disagree with most of Obama's policies...
I urge you to reconsider this statement. Although a few of Obama's issues are anti Catholic viewpoints (Stem cell research, pro-choice), the majority are far more aligned with the social justice aspect of the Catholic church than the previous administration. Social justice, IMHO, is the thing that differentiates Catholicism from other christian denominatons, not those issues.
Support of the poor, movement toward universal healthcare, more relaxed immigration policies in order to help those in need escape difficult lives.. those are all things church teachings support.
I believe Obama is a very pro-Catholic views president.
Zach Rance 4 President
I understand where you are getting. Historically, Catholics have aligned with the democratic party very well. That is, until, abortion became an issue. However, the moral issues are the ones that are the strongest for me. I am very morally opposed to abortion, use of embryos for stem cells, etc. Those issues alone are enough to turn me off of any liberal president. As far as social issues go, I tend to be much more conservative than the Catholic church.
That being said, I am neither condoning nor condeming the students who are opposing Obama. I am simply saying that everyone has a right to believe what they want and say what they want.
But social issues are moral issues. They were what Jesus spoke about the most. They are the foundation of the church.
Zach Rance 4 President
I see again what you're saying. And like I also said, I tend to be more conservative than the catholic church. I do not believe in issues such as socialized health care, massive bail outs, and lax immigration laws. Does that have anything to do with Notre Dome arguing Obama's speech? No. I'm simply explaining MY political beliefs since you asked about Catholics that disagree with Obama. And as I said, I cannot blame Catholicism as my main stance against Obama.
That being said, all you have to do is google, "students protesting speakers" to see a massive amount of protests that have happened in history after speakers have been asked to come to different colleges. Everyone is entitled to disagree with political and moral beliefs of politicians, and if that leads them to protesting, then fine with me. This right to protest is a huge part of our country's belief system.