And something strong and dignified from prolife graduates. Total silence, total solemnity (if it could be achieved), no applause --- wouldn't that be impressive?
I share some of the anxieties about Terry. I used to work for him (in the Manhattan and Atlanta campaigns of '88, thrill of victory, agony of defeat) and was glad when I left Atlanta, which ended up rather a mess.
Yet, while the rest of us potter about in our excess of meekness, yonder comes Terry flashing his excess of zeal. I could see, by some miraculous skin-of-our-teeth turn of events, a good outcome if the Graduation itself were solemn and sober, while simultaneously Terry (there's no stopping him, is there?) leads the disreputable fetus-loving rabble to Lepanto-outside-the-gates:
Risen from a doubtful seat and half-attainted stall,
The last knight of Europe takes weapons from the wall,
The last and lingering troubadour to whom the bird has sung,
That once went singing southward when all the world was young,
In that enormous silence, tiny and unafraid,
Comes up along a winding road the noise of the Crusade.