The ubiquity of Coca Cola

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June 30, 2009, 2:54AM

I was perusing the Post-Courier Online - a newspaper in Papua New Guinea. The cover story with picture is as follows:

Neighbouring tribes in South Wahgi district of Western Highlands Province exchanged food at the weekend as they started negotiation to restore peace among themselves and end hostilities in their area. The Ngenika and Kisu tribes have realised that there was an increase in illegal activities in their communities and after much discussion, starting in 2007, the Kisu tribe gave 21 cows, red pandanus fruits (marita), 200 coke cartons, scone packets, sugarcane and bananas to the Ngenika tribe. They also slaughtered 100 pigs for their neighbours. Last year the Ngenika tribe gave 10 cows with the same amount of food to the Kisu.

200 Coke Cartons is part of the tribal peace offering between tribes in the Western Highlands of PNG. And you read about it on the internet.

This modern world is very strange.

Read more at John Hempton's Weblog

17 Comments

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I'm all choked up with patriotism...

Posted by BevD
June 30, 2009 10:24 AM | Reply | Permalink

You shouldn't be. They went one-world-global-government branding long time ago:

I'd like to buy the world a home And furnish it with love Grow apple trees and honey bees And snow white turtle doves.
Chorus:
I'd like to teach the world to sing
In perfect harmony
I'd like to buy the world a Coke
And keep it company
That's the real thing.

(Repeat chorus)
I'd like to teach the world to sing
In perfect harmony
I'd like to buy the world a Coke
And keep it company
That's the real thing

Chorus 2:
What the world wants today
Coca-Cola (background)
Is the real thing

(Repeat chorus 2)
What the world wants today
Coca-Cola (background)
Is the real thing

I'd like to teach the world to sing
Sing with me (background)
In perfect harmony
I'd like to buy the world a Coke
And keep it company
That's the real thing

(Repeat chorus)
I'd like to teach the world to sing
In perfect harmony
I'd like to buy the world a Coke
And keep it company
That's the real thing.

(Chorus 2)
What the world wants today
Coca-Cola (background)
Is the real thing

(Repeat chorus 2)
What the world wants today
Coca-Cola (background)
Is the real thing

The history of the famous "Hilltop" ad of 1971: Advertising surveys consistently identify it as one of the best commercials of all time.

Posted by artappraiser in reply to a comment from BevD
June 30, 2009 10:53 AM | Reply | Permalink

I can't help myself. Who needs a flag when we have coke?

Posted by BevD in reply to a comment from artappraiser
June 30, 2009 11:11 AM | Reply | Permalink

Who Indeed?

Posted by miguelitoh2o in reply to a comment from BevD
June 30, 2009 11:17 AM | Reply | Permalink

Now I'm all teary eyed...is this a great country or what?

Posted by BevD in reply to a comment from miguelitoh2o
June 30, 2009 1:20 PM | Reply | Permalink

Like The Blob, high-fructose corn syrup is oozing across the entire globe. Coke is the vector. Soon the once svelte Papuans will be too fat to fight.

Posted by neoboho
June 30, 2009 1:22 PM | Reply | Permalink

Well, you want us to go back to sugar cane? Cause we ain't giving the "ose" thing up, we'll die for it if you try to take it away. As wikipedia sez understatedly,: Most humans appreciate sweet tastes. It makes me recall the story of Heidi from my youth. Heidi, from the healthy countryside where she eventually takes her lame friend from the city to get well, does steal white bread from the table in city, fine white bread, sweet like cake, to bring her grandmother back in the country, because grandma has no teeth and can't no longer eat the rough rye bread. Coke is near like just putting it into our veins..."ose" is like the first drip they give to someone brought into the ER...

Posted by artappraiser in reply to a comment from neoboho
June 30, 2009 3:28 PM | Reply | Permalink

Yes, back to sugar cane. Good cause for starting trade with Cuber. Wow, I never thought I'd be defending sugar. But since I saw "King Corn" and read some stuff on HFCS I went on alert. Christ, its in everything. Don't read the food labels - it'll drive you mad.

Maiz seems to be "Squanto's Revenge." The potato was "Atahualpa's Revenge." I've read the Industrial Revolution would have been impossible without the patoto, and now we're melting our planet.

Now, if they would just put the coca back in CocaCola the energy burst might just offset the HFCS damage. I'm writing the FDA...

Posted by neoboho in reply to a comment from artappraiser
June 30, 2009 6:36 PM | Reply | Permalink

Fwiw, Coke bottled in Mexico is still made with cane sugar. And it comes the way Coke ought to--in bottles.

Posted by Dave Bowman in reply to a comment from neoboho
July 1, 2009 1:27 AM | Reply | Permalink

Interesting...I live about 30 minutes from Mexicali. But I haven't got the border pass card yet - too expensive.

Posted by neoboho in reply to a comment from Dave Bowman
July 2, 2009 4:30 PM | Reply | Permalink

I am with you on this one Neo. Ha!!!

Posted by dickday in reply to a comment from neoboho
June 30, 2009 5:53 PM | Reply | Permalink

in 1977 I went to Israel and came home with a bottle that said, on one side, the familiar to you and me, Enjoy Coca Cola [trademark] label. On the other side, in Hebrew, CocaCola [kosher] because its ingredients don't include yeast.

so those who follow the dietary laws can drink it with their Passover Seder. who knew?

Posted by icetree
June 30, 2009 3:26 PM | Reply | Permalink

That reminds me of visiting Greece in the 1990s, where Camel cigarettes are sold with the trade words, "fine blend of American and domestic tobaccos", as opposed to the American version: "fine blend of Turkish and American tobaccos".

Posted by miguelitoh2o in reply to a comment from icetree
July 1, 2009 2:03 AM | Reply | Permalink

Oy, I can't believe it took me this long to remember that I know a quote that trumps all the comments on this post and the original post itself:

What's great about this country is that America started the tradition where the richest consumers buy essentially the same things as the poorest. You can be watching TV and see Coca-Cola, and you know that the President drinks Coke, Liz Taylor drinks Coke, and just think, you can drink Coke, too. A Coke is a Coke and no amount of money can get you a better Coke than the one the bum on the corner is drinking. All the Cokes are the same and all the Cokes are good. Liz Taylor knows it, the President knows it, the bum knows it, and you know it.
--Andy Warhol, 1975

Posted by artappraiser
June 30, 2009 3:51 PM | Reply | Permalink

Andy was spot on, but in the end, when the natives have taken their 200 cases back to the longhouse, some amongst us will have a better quality of rhum to mix their coke with.

Posted by miguelitoh2o in reply to a comment from artappraiser
June 30, 2009 5:38 PM | Reply | Permalink

Miguel,I am surprised. Rum is vodka with the Colonel's secret ingredients plus red pepper.

geeeeeeeeeeeeez

Posted by dickday in reply to a comment from miguelitoh2o
June 30, 2009 5:51 PM | Reply | Permalink

So if they made rum with HFCS instead of sugar, would it be corn whiskey?

Posted by neoboho in reply to a comment from dickday
July 2, 2009 4:33 PM | Reply | Permalink