Sunday, October 23, 2016

"At least, this one is legal", said the CEO as he reached for the Coke can

Chalk this one up to any of the following: the weather, the peace talks of Colombian guerilla group FARC with the government, the friend who talks way too much about German aristocrats and the Illuminati, a day (six hours, really) on Youtube watching videos of American and world history over the past half century, the cat who woke me up too early.

Anyway, here we go.

It is not unheard of to hear an American CEO make a joke about youthful drug use, but this quip from a middle-aged leader left the audience speechless: "at least, this one is legal", made by a CEO as he reached for a Coke can.

Some of the audience of less than 200 people, none of whom had ever met the CEO before, periodically brought up the incident at the water cooler or near the coffee machine in the weeks after the address. Then it fizzled out.

Of course, it is not an earth shaking statement to make in a country where the president has freely admitted to related youthful indiscretions.

Gawker would have loved it.

Especially the video.

Yes, the scene was captured on video by the company's PR staff.

The CEO's address was considered so important that it was up on the main website for months.

But the staff caught the opening remark, and the published video betrays nothing. You do see a man having a sip of Coca Cola, but there is no hint of, let's call it product placement.

Consider this short post as a recording a factoid from an otherwise uneventful day. Maybe as a small reminder that humans are more complex than they strive to appear to the world.

There is virtually no chance of this particular business man ever running for office, so, unless the editor of the video kept a clip and decides to send it to a future biographer of said gentleman, you will never come across the episode again.

Also: always have your smartphone on you.

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