Commence the Clown Show
By Sean McVeigh
There has been a lot of talk lately about a commencement speech delivered by Kansas City Chiefs placekicker Harrison Butker at Benedictine College. Who could’ve imagined that a traditionalist Catholic, a strong proponent of the Latin Mass which hasn’t been widely used for about 60 years, giving a speech at a traditionally Catholic college, would espouse some, let’s call them “traditional,” beliefs? Gee, that one really came out of left field, huh? I bet that was exactly what the higher-ups at Benedictine College had in mind when they invited him to give the speech. Of everything I have read regarding the speech, both condemnation and praise, none of it seems to have come from anyone who was actually there — you know, the intended audience. I am not going to take this time to tell you what my thoughts are on each of his assertions. (All I will say on the content of his speech is that my Latin is a little rusty so I will stick to the English Mass.) What I would really like to talk about is why the heck does anyone care about what Harrison Butker’s thoughts are on this stuff anyway?
Among other topics, Butker spoke a lot about marriage. I took the plunge last year. Thankfully, things are off to a pretty solid start. But if that was not the case, and we happened to be wading through a bit of a rough patch, do you know who I would call to get some advice? Certainly not Butker! Now, if I ever get the call to participate in one of those contests where I can win a million dollars by making a 50-yard field goal, then I will absolutely give Harry a call. And he will … well, I don’t think he will answer.
In this great country of ours, we are all entitled to our own opinions — for better and for worse. Some version of that last sentence gets thrown around all the time these days. That is, of course, right up until the point that someone says something that we don’t like. There are a lot of people in the United States — about 330 million, in fact — and chances are, there are going to be a lot of people who have different opinions than you do. If you want to spend your time trying to change everyone’s opinion to something that makes you feel a little better inside, then that is your prerogative because, well … see above!
Commencement addresses are a funny thing. Do you remember yours? Mine was given by a fellow graduate of the illustrious Le Moyne College — aka Harvard of the Heights, aka The Oxford of Central New York — who went on to become an astronaut. In fact, just a few months ago, she left this little blue marble and is currently aboard the International Space Station. Pretty cool, right? I would love to tell you how her speech has stuck with me for all these years. That, because of her, one day I hope to be an astronaut, too! Well, I could not tell you one single thing she said. And I don’t like leaving Rockaway these days, let alone Earth. Maybe that is just because I was being a snotnosed college brat and not paying attention. Or maybe it’s because these speeches are silly little traditions that schools use for publicity and should not be covered as national news. Especially one given by an NFL placekicker. We’re not even talking about a quarterback here.
Butker’s remarks don’t seem to have caused anyone harm. I’m talking real harm, not some fragile feelings. I think that should be the bar — simple as that. As long as nobody gets hurt, to each his own. Or as Harrison Butker might prefer, suum cuique — see, just a little rusty.
