The case against OLPC?

[Alex Beamish]

On Dec 7, 2007 11:05 AM, Evan Leibovitch <evan-ieNeDk6JonTYtjvyW6yDsg at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> I usually think John Dvorak is a headline-grabbing crank, but this
> latest column rang true with sentiments that simply won't leave my head.
>
> Isn't the whole idea of "let's give the developing world little
> computers" a kind of rich-person's feel-good thinking, when so much of
> the world doesn't even have enough to eat?
>
> Is the OLPC going to fix literacy rates without teachers or books?
>
> IMO Dvorak goes too far in calling the OLPC little more than an
> ad-delivery device, and the project's very existence is driving a whole
> new genre of small, cheap and mostly Linux-based computers. But his core
> point -- about the OLPC being a kind of cultural imperialism, offering
> computers to societies that need food, books, clean water, jobs and
> safety -- is hard to shake.
>
> Perhaps the OLPC isn't really designed for the poorest countries, and
> should be concentrated in places -- such as Brazil and Malaysia -- where
> basic needs are (generally) met and computer literacy is a _next_ step.
> But that's not how the program is being promoted.
>
> http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2704,2227850,00.asp
>
> What do you think?

I enjoy sarcasm when it's cheeky -- like The Inquirer [1], The
Register [2] or Valleywag [3]. Sarcasm begins to wear on me when it's
bitter, as John Dvorak has always been since I first read his column
in the mid-80's in InfoWorld.

I think Mr. Dvorak just doesn't get the goal of OLPC -- it's to
educate. With education comes growth, and with growth, prosperity. I
guess. I'm not a 'visionary politician', just some guy working to
provide for his family and enjoying doing cool stuff with technology.

I think it's the '.. teach a man to fish ..' [4] idea, is all. C'mon
John, cheer up!

-- 
Alex Beamish
Toronto, Ontario
aka talexb

1. http://www.theinquirer.net/
2. http://www.theregister.co.uk/
3. http://valleywag.com/
4. http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/2279.html
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