The graduation ceremony isn’t your reward for your work. At least, it shouldn’t be. Your reward for graduating is the opportunities that you’ve opened for yourself for the next chapter of your life. I didn’t go to mine and I haven’t regretted it for a second. The knowledge didn’t leave my brain, at least not as a result of missing graduation.
My memory of my high school graduation ceremony was staring into the hot sun sweating up a dress shirt under a cheap and useless polyester smock that cost me a lot more than it cost to make while people I didn’t care about and who didn’t care about me made speeches with completely fake gravitas. It was the last time I saw a couple dozen people whose names I used to know and a couple hundred people whose names I never learned.
Why the fuck do we still bother with this crap? Who is it for?
Well, at the end of mine I handed the principal a frog instead of shaking his hand. I considered that worth the cost of admission, even taking into account having to leg it afterwards. (They did try, but failed, to withhold my diploma over it. That part was almost as hilarious as frog itself.)
I was already on the administration’s shit-list for calling out the selfsame principal earlier that week for taking credit for our star overachiever student when, in point of fact, the principal had just transferred to that school the same year as this kid’s senior year and was therefore not present for 75% of it. Pointing this out publicly, during the principal’s speech crowing over this, was apparently “not appropriate.”
Definitely shitty of them, but my point is that I doubt anyone at USC protesting this genocide is all that concerned with not getting a graduation ceremony right now.
The university said it will still host dozens of commencement events, including all the traditional individual school commencement ceremonies.
So it looks like they still have a regular ceremony from from the individual school, as usual. Just the main commencement is canceled. Everyone will still get their moment.
Man… I support the Gaza protests. But this is a stupid take. I hope instead of going to work or celebrating your birthday, or getting married, or doing anything remotely joyful, you protest Gaza. If you’re not giving up life’s but moments in solidarity with Gaza, you’re not honoring their ruined lives.
You know you can just take the diploma and not show up? My college wanted like $200 for the official cap and gown. I said fuck that and moved out graduation weekend.
They mail out the real diploma anyway.
“Oh well you didn’t get that memory!” Of what? Being fleeced by the corporation that just fleeced me for four years, so I can be hot for 3 hours sitting nowhere near anyone I’ve met before? No thanks, I went to dinner with my GF (now wife) and had more fun than anyone who went.
The moment they canceled the Valedictorian speech, I would have simply failed to show up to the commencement. And I would have done my best to surprise USC of it. And I’d have organized or at least hoped other people would do the same thing.
“Oh yeah? You don’t like genocide? Well you don’t get your cap and gown ceremony. So there.”
That’ll show 'em.
Yeah, way to let world politics ruin someone’s moment after 4 years of work
The graduation ceremony isn’t your reward for your work. At least, it shouldn’t be. Your reward for graduating is the opportunities that you’ve opened for yourself for the next chapter of your life. I didn’t go to mine and I haven’t regretted it for a second. The knowledge didn’t leave my brain, at least not as a result of missing graduation.
My memory of my high school graduation ceremony was staring into the hot sun sweating up a dress shirt under a cheap and useless polyester smock that cost me a lot more than it cost to make while people I didn’t care about and who didn’t care about me made speeches with completely fake gravitas. It was the last time I saw a couple dozen people whose names I used to know and a couple hundred people whose names I never learned.
Why the fuck do we still bother with this crap? Who is it for?
Well, at the end of mine I handed the principal a frog instead of shaking his hand. I considered that worth the cost of admission, even taking into account having to leg it afterwards. (They did try, but failed, to withhold my diploma over it. That part was almost as hilarious as frog itself.)
I was already on the administration’s shit-list for calling out the selfsame principal earlier that week for taking credit for our star overachiever student when, in point of fact, the principal had just transferred to that school the same year as this kid’s senior year and was therefore not present for 75% of it. Pointing this out publicly, during the principal’s speech crowing over this, was apparently “not appropriate.”
Parents/grandparents. What are kids for but as a vessel to live vicariously through?
Definitely shitty of them, but my point is that I doubt anyone at USC protesting this genocide is all that concerned with not getting a graduation ceremony right now.
Most people there have rich daddies. They are there because daddy wants them to have a respectable degree if you catch my drift.
From the article:
So it looks like they still have a regular ceremony from from the individual school, as usual. Just the main commencement is canceled. Everyone will still get their moment.
And how many lives were ruined in last 80 years because of USA’s foreign policies?
Everyone needs to chill the fuck out. I’m pissed that the administration is letting the protests get in the way of graduation, not at the protestors.
Man… I support the Gaza protests. But this is a stupid take. I hope instead of going to work or celebrating your birthday, or getting married, or doing anything remotely joyful, you protest Gaza. If you’re not giving up life’s but moments in solidarity with Gaza, you’re not honoring their ruined lives.
Yeah dont blame the people actually cancelling the ceremony and supporting genocide, blame the people protesting for having morals.
big “look what you made me do” energy.
“World politics”
I wish mine had been cancelled lol, what a pain in the ass
You know you can just take the diploma and not show up? My college wanted like $200 for the official cap and gown. I said fuck that and moved out graduation weekend.
They mail out the real diploma anyway.
“Oh well you didn’t get that memory!” Of what? Being fleeced by the corporation that just fleeced me for four years, so I can be hot for 3 hours sitting nowhere near anyone I’ve met before? No thanks, I went to dinner with my GF (now wife) and had more fun than anyone who went.
Yeah I know but my family guilted me into it lol
The moment they canceled the Valedictorian speech, I would have simply failed to show up to the commencement. And I would have done my best to surprise USC of it. And I’d have organized or at least hoped other people would do the same thing.
Meh graduation ceremonies are cringe anyway.
I work for a university and am glad that it’s public because this nonsense doesn’t happen. We’re beholden to the public rather than to donors.