I agree with this article. The current thinking on poverty is from the rich man's POV. And consequently, the solutions provided from that POV will do nothing to eradicate poverty.
One such solution is the "One Laptop Per Child" program. And this article explains why the OLPC will never work in the impoverished countries. The child is not hungry for education. The child is hungry for parental care from her indifferent parents who have given up on getting their bee stings looked at...
We inherit a great deal of wealth opportunity (or lack thereof) from our local economy. Credit is a social phenomenon, so wealth and poverty can become infectious. If you're able to easily work and pay for necessities (because of opportunities largely provided by market climate), then you have the money to get every bee sting looked at. It becomes a matter of generating sustainable wealth production, which boosts the pool of potential solutions avilable.
I think the communication potential of OLPC-style laptops is a much bigger draw than the educational one. Could be the infrastructure needed to leapfrog over major industrialization in regions seemingly rich in natural resources and workforce potential, which are squandered by maligned markets. What happens if children in poor markets have laptops? It could provide a means of overcoming parental (and perhaps governmental) problems bottom-up.
"""The child is hungry for parental care from her indifferent parents who have given up on getting their bee stings looked at..."""
Have you spent an time in poor rural areas, or are you just talking out your ass? (Most of the peasant farmers, etc., I know are wonderful parents, nowhere close to indifferent. Their problems are about infrastructure and economic inequality, not attitude.)
Comments
I agree with this article. The current thinking on poverty is from the rich man's POV. And consequently, the solutions provided from that POV will do nothing to eradicate poverty.
One such solution is the "One Laptop Per Child" program. And this article explains why the OLPC will never work in the impoverished countries. The child is not hungry for education. The child is hungry for parental care from her indifferent parents who have given up on getting their bee stings looked at...
We inherit a great deal of wealth opportunity (or lack thereof) from our local economy. Credit is a social phenomenon, so wealth and poverty can become infectious. If you're able to easily work and pay for necessities (because of opportunities largely provided by market climate), then you have the money to get every bee sting looked at. It becomes a matter of generating sustainable wealth production, which boosts the pool of potential solutions avilable.
I think the communication potential of OLPC-style laptops is a much bigger draw than the educational one. Could be the infrastructure needed to leapfrog over major industrialization in regions seemingly rich in natural resources and workforce potential, which are squandered by maligned markets. What happens if children in poor markets have laptops? It could provide a means of overcoming parental (and perhaps governmental) problems bottom-up.
"""The child is hungry for parental care from her indifferent parents who have given up on getting their bee stings looked at..."""
Have you spent an time in poor rural areas, or are you just talking out your ass? (Most of the peasant farmers, etc., I know are wonderful parents, nowhere close to indifferent. Their problems are about infrastructure and economic inequality, not attitude.)