Brent Nyitray
Fairlington Blade
Let the mutherfuker burn!
jnc4p
Kevin S. Willis
Michigoose
lmsinca
markinaustin
Arcanaut
novahockey
quarterback
ScottC
yellojktMy daughter has a friend who graduated from the United States Military Academy today, and he invited her to the ceremony. I was lucky enough to be allowed to accompany her, so I spent the day today at West Point, which is a truly beautiful and impressive place. I thought some of you may be interested in a few pictures from the ceremony.
This was taken as the cadets marched into the stadium and to their seats.
This one shows the cadets as they received their diplomas.
And my favorite, this one shows the traditional throwing of the caps as the cadets get dismissed. I hadn’t realized that part of that tradition included allowing young children, between 6 and 10, onto the field to collect, and keep, the hats right after they are thrown. The cadets apparently put various tokens inside their hats, ranging from money to gift cards to notes of advice for the lucky young collectors.
Another tradition I was not aware of until today: All of the graduating cadets sat in dignified silence as their fellow graduates proceeded up to the podium to collect their diplomas once their name was called. That is, they did until one particular name was called, at which point the entire class rose in unison and screamed and cheered as if the winning touchdown had been scored as time expired. I found out later that the person they went berserk for was the “goat”, the cadet who had finished last in their class.
Anyway, it was really a spectacular day, despite some pretty bad weather (45 degrees and a steady drizzle all day), and the West Point Campus is truly a beautiful place. I’d encourage you all to go and see it if you have the opportunity.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: united states military academy |
All Things in Moderation 
Pretty cool about the Goat. I wonder what kind or careers Goats have had? I bet that’d be kind of an interesting book.
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McWing:
That would be kind of interesting. I wonder what kind of a predictor class rank is for future success.
BTW, another cool thing about the whole day is that after the graduation ceremony, the cadets get commissioned as 2nd lieutenants at private, individual ceremonies all around campus. The cadets pick any spot on campus that they want, and can get any already commissioned officer of their choosing to administer the oath. So it is a nice, personalized ceremony for the cadet’s family and guests.
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Thanks for the pics Scott. A good friend of one of our daughters went to West Point on a full ride. We’ve lost touch but I’ve heard he’s still flying Black Hawks. As far as I know he’s career.
Don’t you guys think there are a lot of characteristics that predict success? It seems to me there are and class rank is only one of many.
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lms:
Don’t you guys think there are a lot of characteristics that predict success? It seems to me there are and class rank is only one of many.
Yes, I think there are many, and class rank may not, in fact, be a particularly good one.
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Thanx for the pics and the lore, Scott. I ran a x-country race at WP as a HS sophomore against the plebes. Beautiful even in snow. I and almost the whole team came down with Asian flu.
LMS, just getting into WP is a predictor of success. The salutatorian of my oldest daughter’s HS class, Ryan Shih, is the last graduate of USMA I knew personally:
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Mr. Shih was an attorney at Skadden Arps. Prior to his legal and financial career, Mr. Shih was a captain in the United States Army. Mr. Shih holds a B.S. in Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York and a J.D. from Stanford Law School.
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In 1991 he told me he would be the first Chinese-American four star and the first Chinese-American POTUS. I guess Ryan failed miserably!
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Thanks for posting Scott. Great story.
Mark – looks like your avatar icon is messed up. Perhaps from posting from a different computer.
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Happy Memorial Day to our vets here, McWing, Brent and Michi. We’re having a big BBQ and potluck for about 8 or 10 of my husband’s Vietnam buddies and their families today. Lots of food, games and sharing of stories. Many of their children also served or are serving and several of them will be here as well with their young families.
Have a nice day everyone and thanks for serving.
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Thanks for the pics and the background, Scott. I also never knew that they let the youngsters out onto the field to pick up the caps (for some reason I’d had an idea that it was the plebe class that got them, although I have no idea where that came from).
I would be willing to bet that simply admission to USMA is a strong predictor of future success–although not, necessarily as an Army officer. It’s hard to get in and even harder to stay and graduate; anyone who makes it through four years at an academy is going to be a very driven individual.
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Mich:
I would be willing to bet that simply admission to USMA is a strong predictor of future success
Maybe not necessarily admission, but probably graduating, even as last in your class, is.
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