contextcontent
Again, Eve is a latent genius!
She sez -
While I agree that handouts are not the answer, but a problem (which I
knew prior ot this year), I do belive that certain people, because of
circumstance, history, etc do not have the skills, know-how, or
motivation to go out there and get somethign for themselves. they do
have a personal responsibility fault there, but their struggle goes
much deeper than perhaps you or I...but its all very complicated. I do
see where youre coming from...maybe having nothing would be motivation
to go get SOMETHING, but maybe it would just deepen a cycle of despair
or disillusionment...no idea over here...
anyway, im not at the center today, im reading up on soccer coaching and drills.
Talk toyou soon
Eve

On 7/22/06, russ wrote:
> EVE -
> Your insight is startling for one so young. The intercine warfare between
> various special interests (yes social sector groups have special interests
> too!) over budgets is nothing short of criminal. There is indeed a distinct
> lack of co-ordination/collaboration between activities with common focus
> that dilutes the overall effort. Business concern have this problem too, and
> it comes down to eliminating “turf” battles. The ONLY way I have seen work
> in this area is the intervention of a clearly charismatic leader in a
> particular area, that can rally the differing, divergent activities into one
> force, concentrated on a single goal. Unfortunately, this leads to a
> “cult-of-personality” situation. The problem, alas, is an all to human one.
>
> Because of your experience at e7center, you have seen first hand the effects
> of a demographic existing “so far into the problem they don’t know they have
> a problem” -itis. Again, an all to human condition, but I heard some thing
> (believe it or nor, on NPR) about an engineer whose company makes a manually
> operated irrigation pump, that can be repaired with no tools. The
> interviewer made the comment “why don’t you get Bill and Melinda Gates to
> buy a million of them and give them away?”. I laughed when I heard the guys
> answer, because it would have been my answer...”If you give something away,
> people just hang around waiting for the next handout. If you make them BUY
> it, they understand that they OWN it, and will USE IT.” Capitalism to the
> rescue again.
>
> How do you motivate the un-motivatable? If they KNOW the next handout is
> just around the corner, how do you get people to ACT? You see EVE, this is
> why life (real LIFE) involves Struggle. When you have to get out there and
> scratch, you appreciate what you have. Now. I’m not totally Darwinian here,
> but being compassionate does NOT mean giving away everything to those who
> have nothing. You destroy both parties when you do that. You cannot make
> everybody equal by making them equally miserable.
>
> Anyway, take your time with the lessons learned survey; I have a meeting
> with the small business center Tuesday abut getting some funding for a
> center of excellence for non-profits. I sent you and K my rough draft
> proposal, so look at that and get your feedback to me your soonest.