The city council of Clark, Texas decided last night to accept an offer from the DISH Network to change its name to “DISH City” in exchange for 10 years of basic satellite service for all of the town’s residents for 10 years.

The North Texas town has 125 residents and has only been in existence for five years.

Echostar, the company that owns the DISH company, is attempting to rebrand its product with the promotion.This isn’t the first time a corporation has convinced a town to change its name either. Halfway, Oregon changed its name to Half.com for 22 computers and $5,000. Hot Springs, New Mexico renamed itself Truth or Consequences, and residents have voted four times to keep the new name.

Who do these towns think they are? NASCAR? What’s next, Starbucks, Washington? McDonald’s, Mississippi?

The companies that are doing this are clever, we’ll give them that. It must be very enticing as the mayor of a small town to gain national exposure to your city by renaming the community after a company.

But, where does it stop, and what does it say about a community that will shed its identity to make a quick buck?

Ed Board feels this practice is not only ridiculous, but detrimental to the fabric of the classic American town.

These corporations need to back off. Stop infesting small town America with your ludicrous marketing ploys.

People move to small communities to escape the corporate atmosphere of large urban areas.

Just as much as these corporations have a responsibility to not try to bribe these towns out of their cultural identity, members of these communities need to be proactive and make it clear that their community truly is theirs and not up for the highest bidder.

They should not let corporations take over their towns.

These citizens should say to the corporations that they’re going to have to do a lot better than some free TV to get a town to eradicate the unique identity of a community.

Ed Board says NO to corporate towns!