Subsidize Bass Cafe prices by setting aside endowment
Subsidize Bass Cafe prices by setting aside endowment
Friday, November 30, 2007
To the Editor:
I appreciate Frederick Mocatta’s attention to the prices at the new Bass Library cafe. (“Why Are All the Rich Kids Sitting Together in the Cafe?” 11/29) While I agree with Mocatta that the $7 sandwiches and salads and $2.75 hot chocolate are steep enough to skew the cafe’s customers according to class, I see a different solution to the problem.
Mocatta’s comparison of the cafe to other existing establishments around campus misses the point: The food served at Bass is not cynically designed to “cater to the trendy ‘sustainable’ crowd,” but is part of a positive movement on campus towards healthier eating and sustainable agriculture. The solution, therefore, is not to reduce the quality of Bass’ food to match the greasier options available at A One and Yorkside. It is to call on the Yale administration to set aside part of its substantial endowment to subsidize the Bass prices so that every student can feel comfortable enjoying a wonderful new facility.
Alexandra Schwartz
Nov. 29
Schwartz is a junior in Saybrook College. She is a staff columnist for the News.
Comments
None 4 years, 5 months ago
That the author considers the offerings at Bass Cafe worthy of subsidy (you know, as if petit fours and double-mocha-lattes are, like, staples--you know, um, like, broadband?) is more indicative of her bubblistic worldview than anything worthy of discussion.
None 4 years, 5 months ago
"If they are making money, then there's no problem."
Efficiency is not an inherent good. It would be efficient for me to have all the money. Other desires (equity of experience among students from various economic backgrounds!) sometimes take precedence. Do you think we should do away with public utilities, public schools, etc? Would the free market provide clean water to everyone without regulation? No.
None 4 years, 5 months ago
I'm a parent. This is a great idea. This letter is well written and I applaud the time and humanity it took to write it. Yale should spend some of its endowment to equalize and make-more-affordable opportunities such as this.
None 4 years, 5 months ago
People at Yale who have no clue about how the endowment is run need to stop suggesting that it subsidize every one of their pet issues. Let's worry about something that affects most everyone: scholarships and infrastructure. If people want to eat at Bass, they personally need to pay the prices (which are not outrageous for the quality).
None 4 years, 5 months ago
"Schwartz is a junior in Saybrook College. She is a staff columnist for the News" and clearly has NEVER partaken of Yale's numerous econ courses...
Your tuition is already subsidized: allocate your own resources according to your own priorities.
None 4 years, 5 months ago
It's a free market. If there aren't enough people willing to pay the prices at the Thain Family Cafe, then they'll have to lower them lose money.
If they are making money, then there's no problem.
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