>>I couldn't agree more.
>>Since I first heard of the OLPC program, I've found it insane.
>
>>When your world is dominated by where your next meal is
>>coming from and IF your next meal is coming, you probably
>>aren't too concerned about things like PC's, the Internet,
>>etc.
Speaking of the Dalits, this is the kind of liberating device many of them are looking for... most of the Dalit population were the former Buddhist (Theravada) population before the Hindu Brahma ramrodded the caste system down everyone's throat. The Dalits are reclaming their destiny from under the Brahmin thumb through two means: Education & conversion (back to Buddhism or over to Xianity), and their leaders already see computer tech as the great equalizer. The OLPC is spot-on what they need. Maybe $150 per unit is too much, so the first one they get will be shared in a classroom by 8 shifts of science & math students, but down the road families will be able to afford it....
mcooper <mcooper@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
It is a tough call, isn't it? These people are using what they know best to do something for kids in developing countries. In the interview, Negroponte says, "I can't think of anything better," and that might be most important line. These OLPC people are sincere and mean well, but
you don't think they have thought enough about it yet. I would say in their benefit that they are doing what they know. They are using what resources they have. They know PCs, so that is what they are offering.
So what do you give children in developing countries? Financial aid? Or do you teach them to fish? One of the biggest problems with these countries is political corruption and exploitation. So do you give them guns? What are the other options? The developing countries need safety and political stability first. They need food, shelter, and security more than PCs. True.
As long as the people of a particular region/country and the government do not have a hand in these programs or initiatives all efforts will be the equivalent of the US trying to establish democracy in Iraq/Afghanistan with a gun.
An example, after India signed the GATT agreement, the public education system is being systematically dismantled by the government and huge private and foreign capital is being brought in - in the name of opening up education. Result: A huge percentage of the poorer students are forced to quit studies as their scholarships/freeships have been stopped and they are forced to pay exorbitant fees. This considering the fact that they do not know if they will get their next meal!!!
Then there is the point of intellectual self-reliance. With the onset of FDI(Foreign direct investment) in education, our intellectual self-reliance is at stake. This is because if the syllabus of foreign nations is introduced and our own identity is hidden from us we will become dependent on the external entity for all our needs. Thus we see that exploitation is strengthened and our right to resist this is diluted or destroyed.
So if any change of lasting effect should take place then it should be because the people demand it and not otherwise.
While the OLPC and other projects have their relative advantages, they should be implemented as a supplement and not as the main course as is being observed in certain situations.
And wrt Dalits, IMHO a socio-economic-political will and change is required to alleviate their situation. They need to be made financially stable. This can be done only if the government has the political will to do so but this will not happen unless various Peoples' movements are strengthen and this ain't the job of NGOs.