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I could recite some phrases. ;) And the Dome is so huge I was pretty far away and had to watch the video screens to see his facial expressions. It was so nice to be able to at least add claps and cheers for our Joe.
I got up 5am-ish, got ready, walked the dogs, drove up to my friends who live near Syracuse. We drove the rest of the way, got to park a few dozen feet from the Dome thanks to a campus parking permit and them being friends with some of the campus police. One of them got dressed up in academic garb, and we all made it into the Dome around 8am. Lots of people were already seated. We sat up pretty high in the stands, though I think the view would have been about the same from anywhere in the middle of the stands - too far to see faces on the stage except via TV, but high enough to see everything going on.
Secret Service, Co. Sheriff, City Police, Campus police, lots of event staff. Still, there were some security lapses that upset me a bit - they were too lax - I may write to SS about it.
The processional takes forever! It was very well done, it's just a huge school. My friend was seated only a couple dozen feet from the stage. The last ones to come in and be seated were the chancellor and the honorary degree recipients, a little before 11am maybe? Suddenly I noticed Biden entering stage left with the rest of the folks - no special thing of having everyone stand - which at first made me mad and then I thought, well, how democratic! You can see that grin from far away :) He was nearly to the stage by the time they got to his name. It was fun seeing the students and faculty suddenly notice him walking right in front of them. He hammed it up a little with the faculty and then went on stage.
A music performance student did the best version of the national anthem I've ever heard. Several nice brief speeches before him, esp the one from president of SUNY-ESF about sustainability and the one from the student representative. The student was terrific actually, and a really nice setup for Biden's speech. He had a funny story about pretending his middle initial was W when he was a kid (having nothing to do with the recent president), and talked about his generation's political activism (he turned and said, "Hi there, Mr. Vice President!), and about the need for play and imagination. Biden was delighted with his speech and made a point to congratulate the student before he got off stage. Then he integrated a couple connections from the student's speech into his own (e.g., the go-play at the end.)
His speech was good, though he was a bit too self-effacing at the beginning. Endearing and typical to those who know him, but I think a lot of the crowd didn't know what to think. And by then a lot of people were tired and restless. He really had the audience at a few points though. He's such a natural speaker and they had the microphones turned up too much for him (most speakers don't go from whisper to shout the way he does).
The honorary degree recipients were an impressive bunch. Seymour Hersch (of Mi Lai (sp?) and Abu Ghirab (sp?) would have been a great speaker himself, but just got the degree. One of the leaders of the local native American tribe was also honored. He's in a wheelchair now but pulled himself up on the lectern so they could drape the hood over his head and shoulders.
Biden had to leave before the complete ceremony was over, due to getting out before the crowds, and getting to the Elem. school. He made a point to shake many hands on the stage before he left. They brought him around the back of the stage and I didn't see where he was walking until he was nearly out of the stadium. A few goodbye cheers went out for him and he waved, as the Secret Service swarmed in from all over.
At the end the crowds trying to get out of the Dome were insane. They had most of the exit doors locked, which made sense for security in, but was kind of scary for leaving. Then we collected everyone and went out to a great lunch, they gave me a quick tour of part of campus and Syracuse, and I hurried home to my dogs.
It took up most of the day, but was worth it :)
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