Return
to the "POINTER VIEW"June 7, 2002
Return
to the "POINTER VIEW"
June
7, 2002
Former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani visited West Point May 31 as the Graduation Banquet speaker.
He began the evening with a lighthearted tone that put everyone at ease in the stifling Cadet Mess Hall, but soon delved into some of the serious issues on the minds of the graduating class.
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| Cadet 1st Class Matthew Caldwell presents former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani a mounted cadet sabre in appreciation for his graduation banquet address. |
His words to the Bicentennial Class were described as heartfelt by Cadet 1st Class Robert J. Smith.
"He touched on all the things we are thinking about now," Smith said. "He didn’t have a prepared speech, but it was well presented and he had obviously thought about those things for a really long time."
Classmate Melissa Sentelle said she was touched that someone so involved with everything that happened 60 minutes south of West Point on September 11 took the time to share his experiences with her class.
"It meant a lot to have him here," she said.
An emotional Giuliani said he was honored to be included in the Bicentennial Class’s commencement activities.
"It meant a great deal to me," the former 107th mayor of New York said about speaking to the leaders of tomorrow. "This is a very special time. These men and women are graduating at a time of war. The war that we are fighting started in my city and the attack on Washington and the attack that was stopped in Pennsylvania. These men and women have to go out and finish it.
"The spirit of people who live in freedom can’t be overcome," he said
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| Rudy Giuliani greets three firsties at the superintendent’s house May 31. They are (l-r) Joe De Silva, Kevin Johnson and Brian Clymer. |
The life-long Yankess fan likened the resolve he saw in the eyes of the cadets with the dedication and determination of New York City firefighters and police officers during and after the attacks of September 11.
"[NYC] was bravely defended by the firefighters and rescue workers and now these young men and women have to go in harm’s way to make sure we are all safe," he said. "When you look in their eyes you come away with absolute confidence that they will prevail."
Giuliani said that the reason West Point grads are so well prepared is the education they have received here at West Point.
"If they assume command they have to be the one who knows more about it than anyone else," Giuliani said. "So [their troops] can come to them and seek their advice and seek their assistance. There is nothing that substitutes for preparation"
When asked if he had any advice on leadership for the future Army officers, Time Magazine’s Man of the Year for 2001 said simply "never stop preparing.
"Education continues throughout your life," he said. "They have to continue to study and prepare.
Giuliani explained that in the book he is writing there is a chapter called relentless preparation.
"That is what West Point prepares these young men and women for," he said.
