Laurie Taylor

We have decided to change our name and visual identity to one that is more representative of our organisation as it is today and in the future. Our new name and visual identity will be launched on December 1 2000.
- Letter from the Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Principals to stakeholders and friends of the CVCP.

It's a bit of a mystery then.

What's that?

What the CVCP is going to be doing.

What the CVCP does has always been a bit of a mystery.

No, you miss my point. I'm talking about the letter they've sent to their stakeholders announcing their name change.

What are they going to call themselves?

That's the mystery.

Perhaps they should pick a name that captures their pusillanimity in the face of every reactionary government initiative towards the universities over the past 20 years.

What did you have in mind?

How about the Munich Group.

I get your drift.

Or perhaps they could find a name that will acknowledge their almost compulsive readiness to back the demands of elite institutions.

Such as?

The Athenaeum Set.

I suppose so. But apparently it's not just a question of name. It's a change of direction. They say: "In a fast moving world, we want to be flexible and forward-looking in order to provide the best services to our members and stakeholders."
 
You can't be much more specific than that.

They're going to change their "visual identity", too.

Only one way to do that.

What's that?

Quite straightforward really. They'd have to black-up, grow a pair of breasts and stop using words such as "stakeholders".