I dropped a word there. “It doesn’t have to cost…”

A major state university with 45,000 students.

Choosing not to sit in a crowded room while people read names for 2 more hours so someone can hand you a fake placeholder diploma (the real one is mailed later) isn’t some grand sacrifice.

I like that it happened because it’s embarrassing for Pichai. Bit there is no price to be paid by the students as far as I can tell.

When Karl Rove spoke at my college when I was a student, I was part of the angry audience that lead to him ending his address 20 minutes early and leaving with his security detail forming a crowd around him. It was a cool moment, but it didn’t cost me anything.

And I think that’s the bigger takeaway. It doesn’t have to cost you anything to stand up to these assholes.

I teach at a college. The ceremony is so Mom can come get a picture. There’s a reason so many grad students don’t go to theirs.

They walked out of an extremely boring ceremony. That’s nothing.