FEAGLER FLOGS BAD GRADS; REPUBLIC SAFE FOR DEMOCRACY

T hese are hard times for God, country and the flag. The red-white-and-blue fever that erupted after September 11 is giving way to another great American impulse: political dissent. The Bush administration's continued efforts to rally the populace behind its never-ending "war on terror" can't overcome the rising tide of cynicism brought on by the FBI and CIA's bungling of 9/11 warnings, global warming, the Middle East mess, and Bush's hollow condemnation of WorldCom, whose stunningly creative accounting -- along with the chicanery of Enron, Adelphia, Global Crossing (and even our tarnished Martha Stewart) -- this administration's laxity helped to flourish.

Even during wartime -- when protest, we all know, is a terrible, terrible threat to national security -- some whippersnappers have commenced to troublemaking. Take the students at Ohio State University, who weren't at all pleased by the selection of President George W. Bush as their commencement speaker. (The students' first choice -- not Ralph Nader or Noam Chomsky, but Tom Hanks -- was unavailable.) A group of students created a website called "Turn Your Back on Bush," which encouraged graduating seniors to stand up and turn their backs in silent protest during the president's speech. The students were urged to "stay silent" and "maintain an air of dignity and an environment of respect for everyone."

Accounts vary as to what happened that day, but it seems that of 6,000 graduates and 55,000 spectators, only four grads and 10 others actually stood and did the about-face while the the commander-in-chief (and Yale's most famous "C" student) gave a speech that touched on baseball, the heroes of Sept. 11, and volunteerism. Other potential back-turners were likely dissuaded by Vice President of Student Affairs Richard Hollingsworth, who warned that those who turned their backs would be arrested and denied diplomas. Reportedly, 10 students were escorted out of the stadium by police and Secret Service; one man, carrying a 3-year-old child, was charged with disturbing the peace (the charges were later dropped).

Hollingsworth was barraged by critical e-mails, and the organizers are considering filing a lawsuit against the university for violating its First Amendment rights.