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Thursday, January 31
It’s The Environment AND the Economy, Stupid!
by
BPCO
on Thu 31 Jan 2008 02:41 PM EST
Remember the first (Bill) Clinton presidential campaign and its motto: “It’s the Economy, Stupid?” It was meant to remind everyone that people really cared most about the economy . That concern would elect Bill Clinton. Nowadays, people are concerned about being “green.” But, as Kermit the Frog, tells us: It is not easy being green. Many, if not most of us, still care about “the economy.” (Well, really not “the” economy, but “our” economy. Our job, Our family’s prospects for economic security. Which is really different from “the economy” – which I can’t see, small, touch, taste or feel, and which frankly does not exist! . But more about that later When I was a kid, my mother used to remind us to turn off the lights, yelling, “We don’t got stock in Con Ed.” (For non-New Yorkers, Con Ed was the electric company in New York. My mother, not being a stock holder (of anything) reminded her children that turning off the lights was our economic duty. My mom was not trying to be “green.” She was teaching us our class position. Many of us today, want to be “green.” We want to turn off the lights – even if we DO have “stock in Con Ed.” -- because we want to avert global warming, etc. So, now it is both the economy AND the environment, although for most of us, we know which is going to hurt us first. And that is “the economy.” Which is why ... more »
Sunday, January 27
Bill McKibben and Deep Economy
by
BPCO
on Sun 27 Jan 2008 09:09 PM EST
Bill McKibben’s Deep Economy is an important and thoughtful book. He shows us how if China, India and other parts of the developing world continue to mimic America’s energy consuming ways, the world’s entire oil supply will soon be gone and the planet disastrously hot. Our economic addiction to “growth” puts on a collision course to catastrophe. But the poor, (and even many in the middle class) in the developing world and in America, won’t change their habits without a viable alternative. Why should I not want a car when the bus service sucks? Why should the Chinese ride bikes when Americans drive big cars? McKibben disses the consumer economy. He points out, quite correctly, that beyond a certain point, more things don’t bring happiness. in spite of what advertisers and traditional economists tell us. But, some things do bring happiness. At least, I think so. I really like my new red leather couch. It comes from Norway (at the cost of much oil expended I am sure), and it is much more comfortable than my old crappy one where the cushions used to always slide off. My new backyard deck allows me to sit outside in the nice weather. I like that. I also like the new windows on my eastern wall. It makes me happier to be able to look outside, and have some light come in. So, sometimes, some “things’ ... more »
Senator Obama: Please Remember your community organizing days
by
BPCO
on Sun 27 Jan 2008 04:21 PM EST
As Senator Barack Obama enjoys his South Carolina victory, I hope he remembers his days as a community organizer back in Chicago. I am sure he learned that face to face communication is the key to getting people involved. His campaign, I think, will succeed, not from his charisma alone, (although that is substantial), and the money he has raised ( the Republicans can probably raise more!), but from precinct by precinct, block by block, and neighbor to neighbor organizing, and people telling their neighbors that this is the real deal.. Hope needs constant reinforcements. more »
Tuesday, January 22
Local Economy Guide
by
BPCO
on Tue 22 Jan 2008 09:49 PM EST
This just in from the American Booksellers Association News. BUILDING POWERFUL COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS: A Personal Guide to Creating Groups That Can Solve Problems and Change the World, by Michael Jacoby Brown “A down-to-earth, practical guide to building all kinds of grass-roots organizations. Justifiably praised, with case studies and exercises, it is the most useful book on the subject I’ve seen.”—Frank Kramer, Harvard Book Store, Cambridge, MA more »
Sunday, January 20
Community Service Organizations:
by
BPCO
on Sun 20 Jan 2008 09:27 AM EST
When President Clinton, in 1993, began proposing community service projects, I wrote an article for Social Policy magazine that questions what the “servers” would learn from their service. I asked what they would learn about themselves, those they served and the mostly low-income communities whre they worked. Over the years that “community service” and “service learning” have become requirements of school curricula, it still seems pretty unclear to me what all those servers are learning and who really benefits from such service. In my book, I recall when I asked some tutors at a private university what they would want if their children had trouble reading. They told me they would all want a professional reading specialist to help their children. Then I asked them, why, they (undergraduates without any training in teaching children how to read) were tutoring the low-income children near their college. They were silent. They could not answer the question. They looked at each other for the answers that did not come, or maybe their shoes. As my Governor, Deval Patrick, prepares to launch another service corps, the questions are still relevant. more »
Monday, January 14
Grass Roots Governing: What I Learned From the Dog Park
by
BPCO
on Mon 14 Jan 2008 08:26 PM EST
I learned something last night.. I went to a Town hearing on a proposed leash free dog park for some open spaces near my home. Some in town want town land for their dogs to run free, at least at certain times. In some cases they want to fence in areas. This has created controversy. It’s dogs owners versus kid owners.. People with dogs are pretty passionate about having s their dogs to exercise without leashes. Others are adamantly opposed, having seen dogs do their business and leave the droppings. Others have had dogs off leash bother them. I live in a densely populated town and all the town parks are surrounded by homes. Over the course of the evening, I heard that in one big park, the neighbors, dog owners and others, had gotten together informally, without any official help or Town policy, and came up with guidelines that have been working for everyone. They have a working agreement that dogs can run off leash in certain places and at certain times. It seems all are ok with the arrangement. This shows me that the “grassroots organizing theory”(that the people closest to the problem need to be involved in planning and implementing the solution) is true. The Town, or any larger governmental entity, can’t possibly figure out the details to solve a problem like this. But the neighbors did. The details are too numerous and complex for one “public policy” to work. Only by involving those closest to the ... more »
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