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This project has been a Charlie Foxtrot from the first. Dirt poor kids don't need laptops - they need clean water, vitamins, and malaria vaccines. The project

by tjic 18y ago

This project has been a Charlie Foxtrot from the first. Dirt poor kids don't need laptops - they need clean water, vitamins, and malaria vaccines. The project was a scam by ivory tower intellectuals deeply out of touch with the real world, and more interested in reinventing the wheel than in accomplishing good. The sooner this project entirely dies, the better.

bprater 18y ago
I don't know. You are right, the kids do need basic stuff we take for granted. No question. So do we stop every initiative until those things are righted? By putting a computer in the hands of a child, it could give him a future he might not have otherwise. At which point, he might return to his village and ensure future generations have those things. I don't know if OLPC has played the game correctly, but in general, I feel excited when I hear computers reaching the hands of kids who would never otherwise see them in their lifetimes. Don't forget the opportunities you've been given living simply by being born in a first-world country.
omouse 18y ago
What kids need is education so they can realize that they don't have to live in this way. OLPC is a long-term thing, and clean water, vitamins, etc. are short-term. You can deliver both the vitamins and the laptops too. It isn't a binary choice.
michaelneale 18y ago
They were never targeting it at the "dirt poor" - that has always been clear and explicit. That is a straw man argument which is used over and over, not worth repeating. (I think its a complete failure in lots of ways myself, but still, enough with the straw men).
cgranade 18y ago
Scam? Ivory tower intellectuals? Those are two very odd ideas to conflate. Who better to attack issues of global inequity than those who have studied and researched the causes? Frankly, I would encourage you to not be so flip about calling such a well-intentioned and, dare I say successful program a scam. If you really think that it is, then fine. That's a tall order, though, and you'll have to do more than invoke some hackneyed stereotypes to convince others.

by tjic 18y ago

bprater 18y ago

I don't know. You are right, the kids do need basic stuff we take for granted. No question. So do we stop every initiative until those things are righted? By putting a computer in the hands of a child, it could give him a future he might not have otherwise. At which point, he might return to his village and ensure future generations have those things. I don't know if OLPC has played the game correctly, but in general, I feel excited when I hear computers reaching the hands of kids who would never otherwise see them in their lifetimes. Don't forget the opportunities you've been given living simply by being born in a first-world country.

omouse 18y ago

What kids need is education so they can realize that they don't have to live in this way. OLPC is a long-term thing, and clean water, vitamins, etc. are short-term. You can deliver both the vitamins and the laptops too. It isn't a binary choice.

michaelneale 18y ago

They were never targeting it at the "dirt poor" - that has always been clear and explicit. That is a straw man argument which is used over and over, not worth repeating. (I think its a complete failure in lots of ways myself, but still, enough with the straw men).

cgranade 18y ago

Scam? Ivory tower intellectuals? Those are two very odd ideas to conflate. Who better to attack issues of global inequity than those who have studied and researched the causes? Frankly, I would encourage you to not be so flip about calling such a well-intentioned and, dare I say successful program a scam. If you really think that it is, then fine. That's a tall order, though, and you'll have to do more than invoke some hackneyed stereotypes to convince others.