Opinion > April 24, 2008

By Alex Osteen | Opinion editor

One of my favorite things about Wake Forest is the nostalgia I feel marching into Wait Chapel alongside fellow students and professors – many of whom I know and recognize – for an amazing and interesting event like the Hillary Clinton-Maya Angelou conversation of April 18.

I can sort of hear Pomp and Circumstance playing in my head even now. I am proud to be part of a university that is prestigious enough to draw such a big-time speaker and think that we students should recognize how lucky we are to benefit from such an honor, despite where we stand politically. The following is a little bit of opinion on the event itself and about the persons involved.

Even though I’m far from being a political science major, this election still pumps me up; it is the first time I’ll be able to vote for president. I hope that other students see it that way — as a chance to watch the news, follow the candidates, form opinions and make an important decision. It’s an exciting time to be in college. That’s why I jumped on the chance to see and listen to what an obviously smart and well-known politician has to say in person.

Speaking of well-known people, Angelou is wonderful and I deeply enjoyed getting to listen to her voice and hear some of her recent work. She’s another reason that we should be proud to be at Wake right now, by the way. I found it amusing that Angelou’s poetic way of speaking sort of influenced Clinton — it was undoubtedly the most eloquent I’ve heard her speak in the entire race so far. This said, however, I wish that Angelou had asked Clinton some tougher and more detailed questions about a few of her platforms, even if I didn’t expect her to. On the topic of questions, I’ve got to mention how disgusted I was by the first question asked by an audience member. I suppose it was more a comment, actually, on Bill Clinton’s affair. Not only did it waste a precious question (I had about twenty ready in my head … just in case), but I think that it crossed a line of decency and was very unnecessary and rude. They should have planned to get a question from at least one student anyway, in my opinion.

Also, why did the students who reserved a seat have to sit in the balcony instead of down in the main part of the chapel? We certainly didn’t have the chance to be rowdy in any way at all on account of the Secret Service and wide variety of police officers in attendance, if that’s what they were worried about.

I guess I’m torn, come to think of it. It’s a good thing that the students were respectful and showed up, but I almost wish that there had been some sort of a demonstration or rally or something. I’m guessing that many students on campus aren’t Clinton fans, and I would have liked to have seen some public expression of that. In my own case I suppose that that’s precisely why I wanted to write this.

Since I am a college student and apparently, according to some CNN pundit I heard recently, “embrace the idea of political change in America,” I’m a Barack Obama guy: despite a big chunk of recent controversy thrown his way (predominantly spun by Clinton), I still think that Obama has the power to unite America and help the little guy. It’s cool that he’s the first black American man to really have a shot, too. I see Clinton, on the other hand, as the tried and true typical politician who, if elected, would be inaugurated with half the country hating her. When and how will all this end? I am truly afraid that Clinton will hurt Obama so much that he is left too weak to successfully battle McCain. End it now Clinton.

In conclusion, I’m glad that I got the chance to see Clinton, but I wish that it had been on the terms of her endorsing Obama instead.

Alex Osteen is a junior economics and Spanish major from Highlands, N.C.