On 9/8/06, Robert Scott Horning <robert_horning(a)netzero.net> wrote:
For myself, I strongly suspect anything that starts
with "students in
the developing world" and doesn't acknowledge disadvantaged individuals
even in supposedly "first world" countries to be more or less a scam and
something to stay away from. If their overall goal is to bring benefits
to people in specific countries but also benefit other people in the
process, I'm much more likly to support such a general project.
Of course, that is why I also consider the OLPC project to be something
of a scam as well, on the same grounds.
I think that's an unhelpful position. When you start by calling a
project "more or less a scam", you will be less likely to change
hearts and minds than by simply stating your position clearly (if
forcefully). The OLPC folks I know are good people who are likely to
listen to constructive suggestions. Also, we're not above making
similar mistakes. IMHO, the language in Jimmy's personal appeal for
donations, for example, (literally: "I'm doing this for the child in
Africa") could have used considerable polish.
--
Peace & Love,
Erik