Democrat Congressman heckled/booed at UW commencement for "self-serving speech" "pompous puffery"

The Seattle Times ^ | 6/14/07

[XR7]

Self-serving speech

I was in attendance last Saturday at the commencement activities at the University of Washington.

I was both embarrassed and angered by the pontification and obvious self-importance of Rep. Dicks.

Never could I have imagined a commencement speaker at a major university being booed and heckled while speaking to the graduates. Then again, I could never have imagined anyone giving such a self-serving, self-glorification speech as he did.

A speaker at such an event is supposed to inspire the graduates who are now going out into the world to seek their own destiny. They did not come to listen to someone expound on their past or name-drop.

— Brian K. Garrett, Marysville

Pompous puffery

Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Bremerton, did more to help the Republican Party at the UW Commencement than the Republican National Committee could have ever hoped for.

Undoubtedly, he assumed that speaking to a crowd at a liberal college campus would be the perfect forum to conduct his own Democratic campaign rally.

I imagine he was surprised to find that the ethnically, socially and politically diverse crowd was not receptive to his pompous, political puff piece and instead opted to jeer, stomp their feet and walk out rather than hear 15 minutes of a nonrelevant, self-centered speech.

The UW prides itself on being a top university and needs to ensure that commencement speakers inspire the graduates, not disillusion them and their families with extreme, one-sided political speeches.

— Diane Bonifaci Shaw, Redmond

[RoseofTexas]

More like POMPOUS BUFFOONERY!!

[oblomov]

These idiots in DC are going to drive blithely their speedboat right over the waterfall, aren’t they?

[Lancey Howard]

BUMP!

[MNJohnnie]

Interesting to note the Democrats in Congress have run their approval ratings even father into the dumps then the President’s.

Good idea for anyone running in 2008. Run as the candidate who will go to DC and clean out the corrupt, incompetent machine politicians. The country is angry right now. The time is ripe for a Conservative revolution ala Reagan in 1980.

[Young Werther]

Are they suggesting that his speech was not from the heart but was from

Congressman Dicks'Head?

[Mark Felton]

UW will probably invite him back.

He obviously didn’t get his point across to the unruly children who must have been listening to too much talk radio.

UW will join the call for limiting talk radio now.

[AlphaOneAlpha]

“More like POMPOUS BUFFOONERY!!”

This is a lefty/Democrat politican disease. It’s imprinted in their DNA. The only one I knew who didn’t have the full fledged disease was Lieberman and Conneticut threw him out of the Democratic party

[Mark Felton]

LOL. I may be right. Read this comment;

Disrespect unwarranted

The demonstration of disrespect given to Rep. Norm Dicks as he generously accepted the invitation at the last minute to be the keynote speaker at the University of Washington commencement has to be one of the most egregious ever reported ["At graduation, the best and brightest (and wettest) jeer congressman," Local News, June 10].

In this current environment of higher education, where the current "entitlement" students whine about almost everything, and show similar disrespect for faculty, this seems an extension of that selfish behavior.

To penalize the congressman because the weather wasn't perfect for the ceremony was childish. This wasn't a baseball game, but a solemn ceremony mixed with celebration. Too bad that a few missed that distinction.

— Pamela Pasquale, Seattle

[hunter112]

This asshat used to be my congresscritter when I lived in Shelton, WA. He constantly made a buffoon out of himself at the shovel ceremonies for the pork he brought back for the district.

He played football at the UW some years ago, apparently before helmets were greatly improved in quality.

[RexBeach]

Well, OK, but what did Mr. Dicks say that was so objectionable? I can imagine, but letters to the editor really don’t flesh out what he said to the graduates.

[cake_crumb]

There’s nothing wrong with disillusionment. It helpd counter the National Socialist brainwashing college kids receive.

[XR7]

This asshat used to be my congresscritter when I lived in Shelton, WA. He constantly made a buffoon out of himself at the shovel ceremonies for the pork he brought back for the district...

Well, OK, but what did Mr. Dicks say that was so objectionable?

Here's an excerpt:

The second environmental challenge you and all of your generation will face is the “Inconvenient Truth.” My friend Al Gore has done an incredible job with his slide show and the movie to explain to the world that the planet is at risk and how carbon dioxide emissions not only cause global warming but also result in dangerous changes in the oceans, particularly acidification. Over the last century, the oceans rose between four and eight inches, ten times the average rate of the last 3,000 years. This alarming trend threatens all of the nation's coastal communities, where more than half the U.S. population lives, and obviously it threatens coastal populations and communities all across the globe. In my Committee this Spring we have studied the issue; we have consulted with experts such as the Climate Impacts Group run by Professors Ed Miles and Ed Sarachik here at the University. And we conducted hearings to assess the impact of climate change on public lands and wildlife in the United States … and the evidence was sobering: we see increased wildfires, changing precipitation and water availability patterns, increasing evidence of invasive species, severe bug infestation in our forests, changing migratory patterns for many animals and birds, and significant loss of habitat. It’s just not possible, anymore, to deny that climate change is real … it’s happening … and our challenge now is to find ways to deal with the impacts that these changes have on our lives and on our environment. We also have to move forward to begin solving the problem … as a nation and as individuals we must work to dramatically reduce greenhouse gases. The hybrid car I drive today emits far less carbon dioxide than the one I drove ten years ago and in your lifetimes it’s entirely possible to imagine “zero emissions” automobiles, along with other new and creative ways to reduce the so-called carbon footprint and thus reduce one of the root causes of global warming...blah, blah, blah.

[rod1]

Have never heard of Rep. Dick (D). Obviously he is a well represented orator—NOT.

It sounds like its a case where some virtual nobody is granted center stage and then proves precisely why he is...well a nobody.

I love it when RATS are so arrogant as to assume they can send their brain on a prolonged vacation before appearing in public.

[dfwgator]

As if we don’t already have enough Dicks in Congress.

[hunter112]

Yeah, students want to sit there and hear lectures on ‘global warming’ while sitting in the freezing Washington spring rain!

[Dimez Apart]

This guy came to Baghdad a few months ago. Lucky me, I got to eat lunch with him. He was totally ignorent of what was happening here. And his idea on winning the war was to tax the rich more to spread the sacrifice. On the Bible, he said we could win in Iraq if we Taxed the Rich more. I couldn’t make this up. Very disappointed, but for some reason not suprised.

[Christian4Bush]

“Oh, no we’re not! We’re (Rep.) Dicks! We’re reckless, arrogant, stupid (Rep.) Dicks!”

[cake_crumb]

Invasive species? SEVERE BUG INFESTATIONS in our forests?? The "invasive species" were brought here by HUMANS who wanted pretty plants that the neighbors would envy, humans who whought the moltiflora roses were good for the ecology (intellectuals, in other words), humans who thought killer bees would make better honey, gypsie moths would make better silk, mute swans, anacondas and pythons would make good pets and now those invasive species are well....invading. Because of HUMAN STUPIDITY, not because of global warming.

Dick isn't just a Richard, he's a MORON.

[Noumenon]

This guy’s last name also represents what he’s been doing to taxpayers.