IvyGate is at Columbia University, liveblogging the ServiceNation presidential candidates forum.  Check in while we let you know our every semi-relevant (grammatical accuracy not-guaranteed) thought:

6:15: IvyGate is on Low Steps, currently an epic camping ground:

More coverage, after the jump:

6:30: The boring Teach for America people have finally stopped blathering on, and it looks like there’s going to be a 30 minute break before the speeches begin.  Cue long lines at every campus restroom…

6:55: Something that looks suspiciously like a motorcade just drove past Miller Theater:

…uh, nevermind.

7:01:  Nothing’s started yet…everyone on Low Plaza looks restless (and it’s starting to get cold out).

7:10:  We’re still waiting.  But “Obama” made an appearance:

7:25: PrezBo’s on the Jumbotron, and there is absolutely no sound! Awesome!  IvyGate is shacked up on a windowsill of Low Library, sitting between two girls who are passing a cigarette back and forth across our laptop.  It’s very kumbaya.

7:28: Still no sound.  Governor Patterson;s on!

7:29: The jumbotron has died! Repeat! The jumbotron has died!

7:30: Aaaand it’s back.  But still no sound.  The crowd is actually cheering “we want sound! We want sound!” And this journalist (currently locked out of the press room for reasons unknown) has to agree.

7:31:  LADIES AND GENTS, WE HAVE SOUND! and black and white  (no, not the candidates, I mean the TV reception)

7:33:  Patterson has just elevator erm, someone’s office to a cabinet position to help fight unemployment.  Damn you, jumbotron, stop having such patchy sound!

7:34: Technicolor!

7:36:  Apparently we should “help our neighbors because they are ourselves.  And with that gem, Patterson is out.

7:37: OHEMGEE IT’S TOBEY MAGUIRE! /fangirl

7:39:  Oh, Tobey, I know you are talking about Sept 11th and all, but damn, your haircut is unsexy.

7:40: “While I may play a superhero on the big screen, we all know who our real heroes are…”  Obama?  Oh, apparently blue collar workers.

7:42:  That’s it?  Wait, Tobey, don’t go.  I forgive you for that army crewcut you’re sporting.  I promise!

7:52: Two 9/11 family members just spoke and now the jumbotron is once again down.

7:55: A disembodied voice has just informed the thousands of booing people in Low Plaza that they’re switching feeds to go to the candidates…

8:01:  Yeah, Bwog’s coverage is a bit more awesome than ours: I just spent the past 5 minutes reading it here.

8:04 : McCain’s up! and he’s blathering about serving our country.

8:07 Q: “What should people do as Americans after 9/11?”  McCain: “First of all, I would have called them to serve.”

8:09: Those people playing the drinking game Bwog wrote about (drink every time someone says “service” should be passed out in the mothering arms of Alma Mater about now?

8:08: “87% of people think our country is heading in the wrong direction,” per McCain…is this supposed to entice us to vote Republican?

8:09: Oh, snap!  Judy just asked if McCain would reinstate the draft.  The answer (tonight at least) is no.

8:10: McCain just said “if you’re diggin’ for the pony,” and I CAN’T FIGURE OUT WHY!!!

8:12: “Service” is SO 7:55…if you want to drink every time you hear a certain word, and if McCain’s first question block is any indication, go for “reform”.
8:16: Oh no he di;int!  McCain is talking about faith in government.  His voice is actually trembling as he mentions the Resurrection Baptist Church…my Jewish relatives are shuddering.

8:24: IvyGate has been rescued from our cold, miserable huddle on the steps and taken into the welcoming busom of the J-school:

Thank you, obamamccainatcolumbia.blogspot.com for swiping us in, you are our saviors!

8:35: McCain really, really admires mayors.  He thinks they have the toughest job in America…did he mention that he really, really admires Palin–I mean, mayors?

8:45: “Are Americans special?”  McCain: “Yes. …I love these other countries and I’m not trying to denigrate them.”  But, McCain, what we’re asking is, “does this make America better?” McCain: “It makes America exceptional.”

8:46: Basically, what McCain is really saying is HELL YES AMERICA IS SPESHUL!!! OUR COUNTRY IZ BETTAH THAN YRS! USA PWNS ALL!

8:49: Everyone in the J-School looks bored with McCain’s “America is exceptional” shtick.  You can feel how much everyone wants him to shut up so we can all cheer for Obama.

8:50: Aaaand McCain just winked into the camera like a creepy old john.

8:51: What we said: they just introduced Obama and everyone perked up to clap and hoot in here.

8:52: Judy, why must you tease us so?  You little minx!  Introducing Obama like that and then going to a commercial break?  Fine, you take a break, so will we: Enjoy this photo IvyGate snapped earlier of a Columbia student and his wood:

8:56:  Hello, Obama. :)

8:57: OMG Obama FINALLY ACKNOWLEDGED that he went to Columbia!  CU Alums everywhere simultaneously wet their pants.

8:58: New drinking game #3: Drink every time Obama says “spirit.”

8:59: Obama just announced that he wants to reduce dependency on foreign oil, and some girl just screamed like a 12-year-old fan at a Jonas Brothers concert.

9:02: Oh snap!  Judy just called out Obama for being all rhetoric and asked for specifics of how he would give citizens more responsibility for the nation…

9:03: …but he was cut off by the break.

9:11: Obama’s specifics are vague, but, specifically, they involve young people.

9:14: Also, Obama thinks he is inspiring…to young people.

9:19: “As commander in chief, my job is to keep America safe.”  Everyone in the J-School collectively frowned and scoffed.

9:20: What happened to Bwog’s liveblog?  I just checked in and they haven’t updated in almost 90 minutes!

9:24: Obama is still talking about young people…and service…and the military.

9:25:  How possible would it be to give military-service-style benefits to people who don’t serve in the military but still provide service?  Per Obama, we have a special obligation to take care of those who are willing to put their lives at risk.  So basically, the answer is:  Not possible, sorry.

9:29: An aside: Damn, CNN’s commercials during this break have bomb music.  There is currently headbopping in the J-School.

9:34: “Ordinary people can do extraordinary things when they are brought together and given a chance, and that is something I want young people to recognize,” Obama says.  He also urges us to “hitch our wagons” to, erm, things.  Come on, everyone, say it with me: Carpe diem!  Seize the day!  Make your lives into something extraordinary, boys…

9:36: Now Obama is justifying the existence of government. Because…we’re all secretly anarchists? What?

9:37:  Obama: “I think part of my job as president is to make government cool again.”  Cue cheers.

9:37: I think Obama just answered a rhetorical question.  (Q: “Is service part of what makes America special?”)

9:38: …Why the hell would they ask a rhetorical question?

9:41: What?  It’s over?  Over?  But…Obama, come back!  Noooooo.