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I’m starting to think this Coca-Cola Company is up to no good!

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33

It Was Intended to Wean People Off Morphine Pemberton was a Civil War vet who ended up addicted to morphine as a re- sult of his injuries, as did a whole lot of dudes his age, so his initial experiments with drinkable cocaine, which was con- sidered much less harmful, were mostly focused on finding a less gnarly substi- tute for morphine. Considering Coke's enduring popularity at NA meetings and rehab centers, you can't say he was on the wrong path. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

32

Yes, It Contained Cocaine PEMBERTON'S FRENCH WINE COCA, THE GREAT AND SURE REMEDY This isn't as shady as it sounds: Cocaine was perfectly legal at the time John Pemberton began mar- keting his French Coca Wine in the 1880s. Coca wine - which is exactly what it sounds like -- was a popular drink at the time, Pem- berton's unique twist being the addition of kola nut, hence its eventual name, Coca-Cola. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

31

They Wanted to Stay in Russia While other companies tripped over each other in their haste to pull out of Russia during its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Coke stood firm, refusing to close down their Russian facilities. Only the threat of massive boycotts convinced them to change their tune just two days later. See a pattern? CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

30

They Pay Scientists to Say Coke is Healthy In 2015, it was found that Coca-Cola had provided millions of dollars in funding to scientists with the Global Energy Balance Network. That's nice, right? Well, it wasn't entirely altruistic: The organization's chief contribution to the discourse has been insisting that exercise is the key to health, not diet, which suits Coca-Cola quite nicely. So nicely, in fact, that they ve paid for the only studies they cite to prove that. Coke has even been caught paying nu- tritionists to promote their products as healthy snacks. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

29

Sinaltrainal v. Coca-Cola ORIGINAL TASTE ОРИГІНАЛЬНИЙ CMAK Coca-Cola 250 It's generally a bad look to have a section on your Wikipedia page labeled Colombian death-squad allegations, which refers in Coke's case to a 1996 incident at a Colombian bottling plant where an armed militia killed a union lead- er, destroyed the union hall, and forced employ- ees to quit at gunpoint so they could be replaced with much cheaper workers. The workers sued the company for indirect responsibility, but Co- ca-Cola was never found to be connected to the militia, although it worked out pretty well for them and they — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

28

Their Animal Testing Was Exceptionally Horrific It's a sad fact of modern capitalism that many corporations have a history of - or even continue to perform --animal test- ing, but Coca-Cola's was like something about of a dystopian novel. One study in- volved cutting open the faces of chim- panzees to study nerve impulses used in the perception of sweet tastes. Having apparently realized there are other ways to test that (or it's just not worth it to go Face/Off on some monkeys just to find out people like sweet things), the compa- ny pledged to cease unnecessary animal testing in 2007. — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

27

1990's Disastrous MagiCans B IN will M FEWWARD BACK 2 PUI DI In the summer of 1990, Coke started distribut- ing what they called MagiCans full of prizes instead of sweet, sweet sugar water, spring-loaded to pop out at you when you open the can that also contained foul-smelling chlorinated water to discourage people from drinking from the cans in case a New Kids on the Block ticket in their face didn't do the trick. The cans were completely unmarked so no one would know if it was a regular can of Coke or a cylindrical scratch ticket. Coke somehow — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

26

Tapping Into the Education Market Coca-Cola Coca-Cola Coca-Cola Enjoy! Enjoy Coca-Cola In the '90s, Coca-Cola started tak- ing advantage of underfunded schools by offering lucrative con- tracts for exclusively selling its products in campus vending ma- chines. They even offered sales bonuses or commissions, incentiv- izing schools to pump their kids as full of caffeine as possible if they wanted those textbooks. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

25

They Got Mixed Up in Apartheid THEREOF HAVE BEEN RESERVED FOR THE EXCLUSIVE USE OF WHITE PERSONS. By Order Provincial Secretary VIR GEBRUIK DEUR BLANKES At the height of apartheid in South Africa, Coca-Cola was one of the country's largest employers, leading to boycotts in the '80s. In 1986, they made noises about closing down their South African bottling and can- ning operations, but they never truly left the country, and experts at the time predicted the move would make no financial difference at all to the company. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

24

Its Next Owner Bought It At a Funeral By 1887, Pemberton had brought several inves- tors into the Coca-Cola Company as partners, including Asa Candler, a move he would have certainly regretted if he'd lived long enough to see its consequences. After he died the next year, the rights to the name passed on to his widow and the formula to his son, Charley, who was also something of a wayward drug addict. According to legend, Candler bought the name at Pemberton's funeral by offering his dis- traught widow $300 for it, and Charley Pem- berton soon conveniently died of — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

23

They Only Took The Cocaine Out Because of Racism As for the cocaine, it had already been removed in 1903, but not for any DEA-у reasons. Rumors started to spread that Georgia was beset by black men as- saulting white women in Coke-intoxi- cated frenzies, and Candler wasn't about that bad press, so he removed the cocaine and also cut all ties to black consumers for good measure. Note that Coca-Cola still contains coca leaf ex- tract, it's just had the good stuff re- moved first. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

22

Its First Controversy Was About Caffeine N N 27% N O N In 1911, the U.S. government sued Co- ca-Cola to remove a dangerous stimu- lant from its product--not cocaine but caffeine. The trial was a real roller coaster, featuring expert witnesses whose testimony backfired when they said that caffeine was actually fine, a successful argument by Coke that it wasn't a naturally occurring ingredient rather than an additive, and then the swift reversal of that decision. In the end, Coke had to cut its caffeine con- tent in half. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

21

The Real Reason Pepsi Became a Competitor In fact, Coca-Cola's troubled history with the black community is the whole reason Pepsi managed to enter the market so successfully in the '40s. They aggressive- ly courted the black dollar, hiring all-black sales teams and placing adver- tisements featuring black entertainers in black publications. It worked so well that by 1968, Coca-Cola was personally flying Martin Luther King, Jr.'s widow to his fu- neral (while still reportedly discriminat- ing against black employees, however). CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

20

Then It Was Sold As Medicine This INTELLECTUAL BEVERAGE and TEMPERANCE DRINK contains the valuable TONIC and NERVE STIM ULANT properties of the Coca plant and Cola (or Kola) nuts, and makes not only n delicious, exhilarating refreshing and invigorating Beverage, .(dispensed from the soda water fountain or in other carbonated bever لعمهم hord Brain Tania and AUFO for al Pre-Google society was shockingly dumb and easily wowed by things like bubbles, so they assumed carbonated water was better for you than stupid tap water. Pemberton was quick to seize on this opportunity by marketing Coca-Cola as a medicine, treating — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

19

Then It Was Sold As An Alternative to Alcohol Coca-Colle Pemberton was ever adaptable: Soon after he started selling his coca wine, the Georgia county where he lived out- lawed alcohol consumption, so he sim- ply replaced the wine with a sugar syr- up, changed the name, and created the slogan Coca-Cola: The temperance drink. Keep in mind that it was still to- tally cocaineful, and even now, Co- ca-Cola contains tiny traces of alcohol as a natural byproduct of its manufac- turing processes. CRACKED NOW YOU KNOW — 15 Events in the Shady History of Coca-Cola

18

BARRICK GOLD CORP HELPED COPS. B ARRIO ... ARSON COPS. They sheltered police in Papua New Guinea who burned down hundeds of homes near a gold mine. Later, the police burned hundreds more, and added violence and sexual assault to the mix. CRACKED.COM — Source

17

NESTLE SENT NURSES TO HELP POOR MOTHERS. Nestle ITA NOT DELIVERY IT'S DIGIORNO. SOUNDS NICE? NOPE. Nurses stayed just long enough for the mother's milk to dry up. Afterward, she needed to buy Nestle formula for the baby. But she likely couldn't afford enough, or had to mix it with unclean water. Child mortality measurably rose. CRACKED.COM — Source

16

UNION CARBIDE LEAKED POISON GAS IN 1984. UNION Divi CARE CARBIDE THOUSANDS DIED. Hundreds of thousands more got injured. Many victims developed long-term illnesses due to contaminated water. The company did agree to pay $470 million ... to be split among 500,000 victims. That works out to roughly $940 per person. CRACKED.COM — Source

15

TEXACO DRILLED IN THE AMAZON RAIN FOREST. THEY DUMPED BILLIONS OF GALLONS OF WASTE. They covered this up. By the time the Supreme Court ruled for the victims in 2013, they were unable to collect the millions owed to them because Chevron had absorbed Texaco and sold off their Ecuadorian assets. CRACKED.COM — Source

14

MONSANTO SELLS ROUNDUP WEED KILLER. USE WITH IT ALSO SELLS CROPS RESISTANT TO ROUNDUP. Soon we got Roundup-resistant weeds. Which sounds out of their control, but they knew of natural Roundup resistance and used it for their crops. Also, it seems Roundup causes cancer. Monsanto must now pay $10 billion to victims. CRACKED.COM — Source

13

PESTICIDES THAT CAUSE CANCER? CAN'T SELL 'EM. NOT IN AMERICA ANYWAY. But you can manufacture them in America. So American Cyanamid made the stuff then shipped that poison to developing countries ... which grew fruits and vegetables they then shipped back to the US. CRACKED.COM — Source

12

CITGO MESSED WITH TEXAS. CITGO FOLEY ELECTRIC THEY BROKE POLLUTION LAWS FOR 10 YEARS. Their trial took another seven years and ended with CITGO ordered to pay $2 million in restitution to local residents. The illegal operations had earned CITGO over $1 billion. CRACKED.COM — Source

11

GERMAN COMPANIES HAD TO HELP THE NAZIS. LET'S CHOOSE ONE TO PICK ON: VOLKSWAGEN. They made the Schwimmwagen, a four-wheel drive amphibious Nazimobile, and the Kubelwagen, a light hopper car. They also made bombs for the Nazis, with concentration camp inmates doing the heavy lifting. CRACKED.COM — Source

10

ENRON GOING BUST EUROUSO- 1993 00 00 00 14 glu EEST SCREWED EVERYONE. ENRON ® CEO KENNETH LAY WAS CONVICTED OF FRAUD. Lay died while on vacation in 2006, but his estate still managed to dodge paying off the victims of his misdeeds. Just a few short months after his death, a federal judge 1221 vacated his conviction. World Markets DE DI BASDAO down U 0.29 Name CRACKED.COM IS 5.72 prints Dow La — Source

9

COMVERSE'S CEO STOLE $138m FROM INVESTORS. COMVERSE THEN LIVED LIKE A KING IN NAMIBIA. Не bought a mansion, and set up a scholarship fund. It worked for a decade. When he returned to America in 2017, he was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison. Не was transferred to Israel and released only a year later. CRACKED.COM — Source

8

LISTERINE INVENTED HALITOSIS. Air Travel Approvid Sur TSA Compliant TSA Compliant Y Approved Size ArTe LISTERINE LISTERINE ULTRACLEAN COOL MINT WITH EVERFRES ANTISEPTIC TECHNOLOGY ANTISEPTIC Kills Germs that Caese Controls Tartar Build-up Bad Breath, Plaque 8 the Kills Plaque & Gingivsis Gum Disease Gingivitis Germs, Keeps Breath Fresh for Hours ADA ARCTICHINT® Accepted American THEY MADE BAD BREATH A MEDICAL PROBLEM. Before their halitosis campaign, Listerine had previously been used for everything from surgery antiseptic to scrubbing floors. Halitosis Appeal now means using fear to sell a product to the masses. CRACKED.COM — Source

7

HSBC WAS CAUGHT MONEY LAUNDERING. SBC M local Dank BUT SOME BANKS ARE TOO BIG TO JAIL. The UK government and financial advisors warned that shutting down one of their biggest banks would cause an economic crisis. So American prosecutors backed off, and HSBC agreed to just pay a fine. CRACKED.COM — Source

6

BIG PHARMA WAS THE ORIGINAL HEISENBERG. PHARMA FIRM TEMMLER WERKE INVENTED METH. The original goal? To make a product to keep Nazis alert. Every soldier was issued the drug Pervitin, known as Tank Chocolate. Many suffered heart failure or killed themselves, so Temmler tweaked the formula a bit. CRACKED.COM — Source

5

HOW DO COMPANIES PAY SUCH LITTLE TAX? UN Google Polska a Q W E R T Y U 1 o A S D F G H J K Z x с V B N M THE DOUBLE IRISH. They shift millions to shell companies- businesses in other countries with no actual employees-to reduce their tax liability. Ireland changed the law in 2015 to put a stop to this practice, but companies already using the loophole could keep doing so. CRACKED.COM — Source

4

IBM CREATED THE DEATH CALCULATOR. war Blue Gene IT TRACKED INMATES IN CONCENTRATION CAMPS. Nazis tracked people's religions, location, and mode of execution using punch cards. Hitler's troops were able to overtake census bureaus with these cards to hunt down the Jewish population. CRACKED.COM — Source

3

WOW, WHERE TO START WITH GOOGLE? Google LET'S JUST PICK ONE THING YOU MISSED. A CNET reporter ran a search on Google CEO Eric Schmidt and published the results. Google called this a security threat and blacklisted CNET's reporters for a year. CRACKED.COM — Source

2

ROCKEFELLER'S STEEL CREW WENT ON STRIKE. THEY WERE PROTESTING DANGER AND LOW PAY. The Colorado Fuel And Iron Company sent armed militia soldiers to mow them down. The troops killed 19 people, including women and children. The company was never held responsible for the horrific loss of life. CRACKED.COM — Source

1

BAYER'S CLOTTING MEDS GAVE PEOPLE HIV. THIS KILLED 6,000 DOSE AMERICANS. Coated Bayer switched to a more expensive but safer alternative. But they continued to sell the tainted medicine overseas, especially in Asia and Latin America. An estimated 20,000 more died as a result. CRACKED.COM — Source

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