Chipotle U

Embattled California’s equally beleaguered Governor Jerry Brown thinks he knows how to save the public universities in the Golden State. “What I like about Chipotle is the limited menu,” he told the California Chamber of Commerce over breakfast. “You stand in the line, get either brown rice or white rice, black beans or pinto beans.”

“You put a little cheese, a little this, a little that, and you’re out of there. I think that’s a model some of our universities need to follow.”

Brown, who was frequently referred to by political opponents in his first term as “Governor Moonbeam,” nevertheless did go on to make an interesting point, which was also a characteristic of his early career: “They have so damn many courses because all these professors want to teach one of their pet little projects, but then you get thousands and thousands of courses, and then the basic courses aren’t available. It takes kids six years instead of four years.”

“I know that’s not politically correct, or intellectually correct, because there’s so much to learn. But you don’t learn it all in college. You learn most of it after you leave. So, get a good basic education in whatever field you try to do it in and get out of there.”

The outgoing governor’s remarks were recorded for posterity by The Sacramento Bee and disseminated by Martin Kich of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), who put them back-to-back with his favorite Chipotle jokes.

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