Condi and Jack

Well, I made the trip to Tuscaloosa to see Condi and Jack. I can sum up the event in one word -- but I don't like to curse in my blog. The event was a disaster! When I told others I was going, I kept telling them that I couldn't believe this was just an open to the public, first come first served. Though I understand why they would not charge for the event, I thought they should have had some sort of rationing system for admission. As I suspected, there was a huge demand for the event and, of course, lots of people canceled classes so their students could go. It was doomed from the outset.

According to the announcement, the doors would open at 10:00 and the event would start at 11:00. I left home before 8:00 and got there a little before 10:00. As I approached the Bryant Conference Center, I started to get worried. There were cars parked everywhere, though I truthfully didn't know if they were there for the lecture or the football game on Sat. As I drove by the building, though, my question was answered. More than an hour ahead of time, there was a queue around 3 sides of the building! I found a parking space and gamely waited with everyone else. I know my trip down there was a sunk cost, but I figured I'd wait it out and give it a shot. Heck, I'd even shaved and put on a jacket and tie. Yeah, I knew I didn't have to do that, but it just seemed like the thing to do when going to see exalted personages. Fortunately, I'd also brought along a book -- okay, it was a book on the history of the Federal Reserve System, but it was better than nothing.

So, anyway, around 10:00 the line did start to move -- slowly. I assume security was the holdup. At least my little part of the line did get to see the cavalcade of black vehicles being escorted into the back of the conference center. I've never seen such dark tint on windows! The coolest thing, though, was that some of the big SUVs had their windows rolled down with security agents turned sideways, kneeling on the seats, scanning the crowd. It looked just like the movies. They were all young, muscled, and dressed in dark suits. I don't know why, but it was kind of cool.

As 11:00 approached, though, we were still a good way from the door. Mumbles and rumors starting going through the line. Finally we got the official word -- the auditorium was full, but we could get tickets that would allow us to watch the lecture as it was simulcast on some big screen monitors in another part of the conference center. I felt ripped off, but not everyone even had that option. Many couldn't even get into that.

The whole thing just smacked of poor planning. If they were going to have such a high profile event and make it open to the public, then I think they should have had it in a larger venue (e.g., Coleman Coliseum). I guess security might have been a problem, but I think they should have chosen one or the other -- either move it to a larger hall or somehow limit admission. It was ludicrous that folks who waited that long in line did not get into the lecture itself or even the TV room! Heck, I could have stayed home and just watched the lecture on the the internet after the fact. The whole thing was poorly done.

As for the lecture itself, ... Condi seemed very poised, though she was hamstrung by having to parrot the company line. I would much rather have seen her make her own speech on issues of interest. She did manage to throw in some humor and local color, but it just seemed that most anyone from the administration could have delivered her speech. She did, however, loosen up a bit in the Q&A session afterwards. Her best moment was when a young lady asked what advice she'd have for young people today thinking of going into politics and running for office. She let Jack take the question because, "He's actually run for office, I never have." I realize out of context that's not much of a line, but given the move to draft Condi as the GOP's next candidate I thought it was quite clever. Jack Straw, on the other hand, came off quite well in his prepared remarks and the Q&A. I thought his speech was much better than Condi's, though again, I feel she was limited in what she could say.

Oh, I forgot the protesters! Of course there was a protest, but given that this was in Tuscaloosa, AL, the protest was pretty pathetic. A group of young folks in hippie attire were stationed across the street. I applaud their willingness to stand up and speak their minds, but I got the feeling they were parrots too. Of course they had signs -- NO BLOOD FOR OIL, BUSH LIED, STOP IMPERIALISM, etc -- but I didn't see or hear anything original from them either. Unfortunately, they chose to push things too far, in my opinion. To drum up support for the protest, the leader printed up some flyers. According to an article (reg. req.) in the Tuscaloosa News, some of them had a caricature of Dr. Rice with the tag line, "I'm fighting for Whitey." Now why do folks have to go there? Can't you protest the Bush administration's foreign policy without resorting to that stuff? I found that flyer hard to square with the woman's comment that she wanted "for people to know there are progressive people on campus."

By the way, I hate "progressive" as a political label. Back when I was at UAH, Pres. Franz liked to talk about the "progressive" members (meaning they wanted to give higher ed more money) of the AL legislature. I don't think he and the protest woman have the same definition of progressive. It reminds me of the famous Inigo Montoya line in The Princess Bride, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

Oh, on the way home I listened to a talk radio program. I promise, I don't usually do that, but I wanted to hear what folks were saying about Condi's visit. The consensus seemed to be that it was a trial balloon for her candidacy in 2008. One guy, though, just took the cake. He called up to talk about how there was no way white folks in AL would vote for her. I suspect that he is right about some white folk in AL and maybe a larger percentage than I'd like to think. I do not, though, agree with his estimate of 70%. Of course he insisted that he was NOT one of that 70%. When the host asked him, though, if he'd vote for her, this guy said no, but not because she's black. No, the biggest problem he has with her is that she's not married! Can you believe that? He claimed that if Condi were a white woman, everyone would be saying she's a lesbian. Why the white/black thing matters for whether she's a lesbian I don't know, but what really amazed me was that this clod thought saying he wouldn't vote for her because she's never been married was a more palatable statement than saying he wouldn't vote for her because she's black! What the ...?

Okay, that's about it. I enjoyed the lecture, though I wish the remarks had been less scripted. I came away impressed with Condi as a public presence, but I really felt Jack Straw did a better job on the whole. I know nothing of his domestic (UK) politics, but he played okay in AL.