I'm Defending Killer Coke: Pomona College Discussion on Coca-Cola

First they came for the alma mater, then our trays, and now they've come for our soft drinks!

Pomona College is having a "discussion" (read: a thought reform session) about whether or not it should write letters to Coca-Cola telling them to change their behavior. Generally, these types of letter writing campaigns become Trojan horses to ban the product outright.

They've held that discussion at the oh-so-convenient time of 12:15 - 12:45 PM on a Monday when most of us have class. It'll be in Frary's "private room." But, I, nevertheless, plan to be there defending Coca-Cola and liberty. The crux of my argument is that Coca-Cola ends up creating meaningful employment opportunities wherever they go. Not, you know, entirely different from this situation. Just think of all the people they are employing! I sure hope they are paying all of them a living wage!

There's even some evidence that Coca-Cola can appeal to the better angels of our nature.

They are also pro-ginger and so they have my identity-based vote.

Given that I'm pro-liberty, I'm generally pro-Coca-Cola, but you'll have to come if you want to hear all the arguments. (Okay, I lied, I'll be linking up my whole speech and those arguments tomorrow after the "discussion".)

I sure hope it doesn't get this ugly. I don't speak Chinese or play War Craft.

In any event, I'll be sure to practice my Spanish so that I can recite this advertisement fully.

Outside Community Sounds Off on Banning "Hail, Pomona, Hail"

Update (06/10/08): If you are a Pomona alum that is upset by the decision to ban "Hail, Pomona, Hail," please contact me, Charles Johnson, at chuckwalla1022@gmail.com. Thanks!

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H/t: Claremont Insider.

Throughout the land, people have been sounding off about the most recent decision to ban "Hail, Pomona, Hail" at Pomona's graduation ceremony.

The letter appeared in both the Claremont Courier and the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin.

I've reprinted it here. I couldn't agree with its last line more.

Enough is enough

Dear Editor:

I continue to be amazed by the political correctness that has overcome the educational system as they rewrite the history of our country and their institutions. Most recently, this is being demonstrated by the highly educated administration at Pomona College, which has decided to can (suspend) their beautiful and historical alma mater, “Hail, Pomona, Hail” for next months graduation. Their decision is based on the always known fact that the songs first appearance was at the conclusion of a college black face minstrel show almost 100 years ago. Heaven forbid the college remembers that at that time it was an acceptable form of entertainment throughout the world, not just in the United States.

As long as Pomona College is revising history I have a few other suggestions for them. I guess they should ban the Star Spangled Banner, our national anthem. You see, the tune to that music was the drinking song of the Anacreontic Society, a British gentleman’s only private club. Heaven forbid the college allows the playing of a national anthem sung to the tune of a song for a club that excluded women.

“Gary Owen” the song of the 7th Calvary Regiment, currently serving in the war on terror, is an Irish drinking song that talks about tearing up the town and assaulting the sheriff. They probably need to ban this one and all the movies that use it in their soundtrack from the campus too. Of course they can also forget the graduates of their school who have served in that unit of the army during war and peace since the song was adopted by the regiment in the 1870s.

Finally, let’s not forget to ban “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.” After all, the lyrics to that song are sung to the British national anthem. I am sure the college wouldn’t want that. Someone might actually change lyrics midway through the song and ask God to save a monarch. How could we possibly justify that in a politically correct world?

The list can go on, and on, and on. It is time for the folks at Pomona College to get back to preparing students to meet the challenges of the 21st Century and to leave their alma mater alone.

James M. Weigand
Carlsbad, CA

CMC Grad, Soldier, and Blogger

Serving his country, doing us proud

I've been following a fellow stag's blog post-graduation. His name is Mordechai Sorkin CMC '05 and he's stationed in Afghanistan. His blog is a sober assessment of our involvement there. Unlike some on this campus that talk about real leadership, he lives it. In one of his posts, he talks about how some people at Claremont McKenna took umbrage at his decision to join up.

Anyway, before I joined I was excited that I had finally steered my life with a purpose that made me proud. Yet not everyone shared that view. I remember one day in particular, sitting in the Athenaeum at Claremont McKenna College, finishing my dinner and waiting for the evening's speaker to mount the podium. The woman who sat to my left must have been in her 60s, and we had only exchanged pleasantries throughout the majority of the meal. As I started my dessert, she asked—almost as an aside—about my post-graduation plans. I told her I was going to serve in the Army, and she looked up at me, aghast. Her surprise, however, was not due to the fact that our country was at war with violent and radical people. No, she just couldn't understand why I'd choose the Army, when she was certain I could have done so much more in the civilian world.

I, for one, am proud of you. Stay safe.