Manifestation of Cornell's fossil fuel divestment movement
Cornell’s Board of Trustees rejected a proposal to divest the university’s endowment from the top 100 oil companies over the next 20 years.
Instead, the board adopted guidelines to determine when it should divest the university’s endowment for “socially responsible reasons” according to Cornell Chronicle.
Only when a company’s actions are “morally reprehensible” will the board consider divestment, examples of such reprehensibility being exemplified in the Chronicle as “apartheid, genocide, human trafficking, slavery or systemic cruelty to children, including violation of child labor laws.”
Chairman of the Board, Robert Harrison ’76, said many activities that cause social harm do not descend to the level of morally reprehensible, and that divestiture is “merely symbolic”.
“Cornell’s overriding responsibility is to maintain itself as a neutral forum for analysis, debate and the search for truth,” said Donald Opatrny ’74, chair of the board’s Investment Committee, to the Cornell Chronicle. “The university’s endowment must not be regarded primarily as an instrument of political or social power; its principal purpose is to provide income for the advancement of the university’s educational objectives.”
According to the Chronicle, the standards adopted by the board are as follows provide for divestment only when:
A company’s actions or inactions are “morally reprehensible,” and
The divestiture will likely have a meaningful impact toward correcting the specified harm and will not result in disproportionate offsetting societal consequences; or
The company contributes to harm so grave that it would be inconsistent with the goals and principles of the university.
There are additional procedures regarding review of divestment proposals that are presented with or without Faculty Senate resolutions.
Reacting to the announcement, Matt Dempsey of DivestmentFacts.com wrote in a press release: “Even though divestment is demonstrably a horrible strategy and would cost Cornell millions a year for no actual gain, you have to tip your cap to the administrators for standing up on this and doing the adult thing, doing the thing that was best for Cornell’s students, faculty and academic programs, even though doing the opposite thing would have gotten them lots of nice mentions on Twitter.”
The proposal was brought forth by all of Cornell’s shared governance groups (Student Assembly, Faculty Senate, etc.) and presented to the Board by Professor David Shalloway, molecular biology and genetics.
Cornell made the correct adjustments to its investment policies. Cheap reliable energy, fossil fuels, has led to tremendous benefits and prosperity to all people. The boards decision not to cave into the radical environmentalists showed great resolve and common sense.
A message to the DIVEST vandals:
Consumer spray paint contains 33% toluene, a petroleum derivative. These products also contain propane and butane, again hydrocarbons.
Purchasing spray paint supports oil companies. Spraying spray paint liberates these chemicals into the environment, which is something to consider if you believe they are harmful.
If you truly wish to punish oil companies and protect the environment, then next time stand next to the monument and chant your grievance instead of spray painting it.
Administrators demonstrating the presence of actual vertebrae! Will wonders never cease? A most welcome development.
By the way, anyone curious about the regime the hammer and sickle stood for needs to check out _The Black Book of Communism_. Pretty horrifying stuff.