False Honor

Manifesto

Here's a interesting story.

So Vanderbilt University started a fuss in the South when it decided that it was going to change the name of a dorm from "Confederate Memorial Hall" to simply "Memorial Hall". You see the Daughters of the Confederacy donated the money to build the dorm, and they weren't happy. So lawsuits ensued. Well, Vanderbilt lost. It can refer to the dorm as "Memorial" but cannot change the name carved in stone on the side of the building, unless it pays the Daughters of the Confederacy $50,000. Vanderbilt has decided not to appeal, but instead will use the furor as an "educational opportunity."

What is there to take away from this story? I think it is this simple. Vandy wants credit for being progressive and breaking from the past but is too cheap to pay $50,000 to do so. How sad is that.