Whether you think he’s a war-mongering dumbface or one of the greatest politicians who ever lived, you can’t deny Colin Powell’s importance.
Powell has served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Reagan’s National Security Advisor, but there’s no doubt that his most influential role was as President George W. Bush’s secretary of state from 2001 to 2005.
It was in this capacity that he was asked to build a case for the invasion of Iraq.
Ed Board expects that he will be discussing this during tonight’s Tate Lecture Series.
David Gergen, adviser to four of the last six presidents and editor-at-large for the “U.S. News & World Report,” will be moderating the lecture.
For those of you that don’t know, a Tate Lecture is an event put on by SMU to get rich people to come listen to famous people. According to the university’s website, “The series annually returns more than $800,000 to the University.”
What’s great about the lecture series, though, is that students get in free. That’s right, any leftover tickets are given to students on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Now you might be thinking that there are only a handful of tickets, and the seats are up in the nosebleed section, but this usually isn’t the case.
So that means you have the opportunity to attend an event that people often pay at least $40 to $60 to witness for free.
That’s pretty cool, right? That’s part of the reason we pay roughly $40,000 a year to go here, right?
Right.
Free tickets aren’t the only reason to attend. We believe that it is part of our responsibility as students to enrich our minds at every opportunity. Now that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have fun, after all, making out enriches your mind as well.
However, it does mean that if somebody really famous is around, you should make an attempt to hear what he or she has to say. Generally, there is some reason for his or her fame.
So get to McFarlin Auditorium early tomorrow night, Ed Board suggests 7:15 or 7:30, as the lecture starts at 8 p.m. Student tickets are distributed on the ground floor and all you should need is your new student ID.
