4 ms·

The interesting question is, if this is a sign for an achievement of McDonalds or a failure of the society?

mikeash 10y ago
Yes.
wutbrodo 10y ago
I wish the article had expanded on the unsuitability of community centers due to their bureaucracy. It just mentions it in a couple of words and never elaborates. It seems like it should be easy to provide just a simple public space with basic amenities, without even any activities (which is the low bar set by McDonald's). The big exception of course being that food isn't served, but running a little competent sandwich shop or something is far from impossible (every bus and train station I've been too manages that).
- Normal_gaussian 10y ago
  It is the bureaucracy that amazed me about the Sikh community - or should I say lack of it. As long as you obey a few simple rules (essentially just no alcohol, tobacco, or being under the influence, cover hair, no shoes) you pretty much what you will. Notably with the Sikh's the langar hall (where langar, a free meal, is always served) is the hub of a Gurdwara - seemingly food is the great social leveller!
jernfrost 10y ago
Yeah that is my issue with the whole thing. I don't blame McDonalds. I blame the rest of society for being such a big failure that a multinational junk food maker becomes the community center for poor people.
Millennium 10y ago
I'm not sure it's either one. I doubt that McDonald's has put much if any particular effort toward building their restaurants into community centers. Without that, I'm not I'm comfortable calling it an achievement on their part. They just sort of fell into the role, and don't seem to have done much to expand it. As for it being a failure of the society, I'd be tempted to argue the opposite. Lacking a suitable community center (for values of "suitable" that vary from community to community, and which I do not presume to dictate or even know), the community improvised one of its own from what was at hand. We can say that the aesthetics of the implementation are kind of bleak, but to have done it at all is a major success.
dimino 10y ago
It doesn't feel like an effective use of space; what is it about McDonald's that makes it a better focal point than a community center or a space built specifically as a gathering point for the community?
- zaphar 10y ago
  The article details exactly what it is that makes McDonalds better: 1. It's clean. 2. It's local. 3. It is welcoming. 4. There is no beauracracy.
  - dimino 10y ago
    Sorry, I meant to imply the larger question, "Why aren't community centers offering this?"
    - Retra 10y ago
      Because it costs money, and people don't typically pay their community centers every time they visit.
      - dimino 10y ago
        What costs money, a community center? Well yes, community centers are literally buildings, and as such, have expenses. Most US communities still have them, however, so it's probably not the money that's preventing them from existing.
        zaphar 10y ago
        McDonalds has an economic incentive for having all those qualities. Employees get fired for not cleaning the floor. A store goes out of business if people don't feel welcome there. A business wants as little in the way of customers as possible so the bureaucracy is kept to the minimum A community center however is usually run by volunteers and is funded often as not by government money. The money comes with bureaucracy and there usually aren't enough volunteers to go around. There are exception to both of the above of course. Some Mcdonald's are dirty and unwelcoming and some Community Centers are clean and simple. But in the general case the above often holds true.

Yes.

I wish the article had expanded on the unsuitability of community centers due to their bureaucracy. It just mentions it in a couple of words and never elaborates. It seems like it should be easy to provide just a simple public space with basic amenities, without even any activities (which is the low bar set by McDonald's). The big exception of course being that food isn't served, but running a little competent sandwich shop or something is far from impossible (every bus and train station I've been too manages that).

Normal_gaussian 10y ago
It is the bureaucracy that amazed me about the Sikh community - or should I say lack of it. As long as you obey a few simple rules (essentially just no alcohol, tobacco, or being under the influence, cover hair, no shoes) you pretty much what you will. Notably with the Sikh's the langar hall (where langar, a free meal, is always served) is the hub of a Gurdwara - seemingly food is the great social leveller!

jernfrost 10y ago

Yeah that is my issue with the whole thing. I don't blame McDonalds. I blame the rest of society for being such a big failure that a multinational junk food maker becomes the community center for poor people.

Millennium 10y ago

I'm not sure it's either one. I doubt that McDonald's has put much if any particular effort toward building their restaurants into community centers. Without that, I'm not I'm comfortable calling it an achievement on their part. They just sort of fell into the role, and don't seem to have done much to expand it. As for it being a failure of the society, I'd be tempted to argue the opposite. Lacking a suitable community center (for values of "suitable" that vary from community to community, and which I do not presume to dictate or even know), the community improvised one of its own from what was at hand. We can say that the aesthetics of the implementation are kind of bleak, but to have done it at all is a major success.

dimino 10y ago

It doesn't feel like an effective use of space; what is it about McDonald's that makes it a better focal point than a community center or a space built specifically as a gathering point for the community?

zaphar 10y ago
The article details exactly what it is that makes McDonalds better: 1. It's clean. 2. It's local. 3. It is welcoming. 4. There is no beauracracy.
- dimino 10y ago
  Sorry, I meant to imply the larger question, "Why aren't community centers offering this?"
  - Retra 10y ago
    Because it costs money, and people don't typically pay their community centers every time they visit.
    - dimino 10y ago
      What costs money, a community center? Well yes, community centers are literally buildings, and as such, have expenses. Most US communities still have them, however, so it's probably not the money that's preventing them from existing.
      - zaphar 10y ago
        McDonalds has an economic incentive for having all those qualities. Employees get fired for not cleaning the floor. A store goes out of business if people don't feel welcome there. A business wants as little in the way of customers as possible so the bureaucracy is kept to the minimum A community center however is usually run by volunteers and is funded often as not by government money. The money comes with bureaucracy and there usually aren't enough volunteers to go around. There are exception to both of the above of course. Some Mcdonald's are dirty and unwelcoming and some Community Centers are clean and simple. But in the general case the above often holds true.