A few thoughts after a quick look: This response demonstrates an outcome of the NRP experience to date; namely, the acquisition of parity in municipal vocabulary. No doubt about it, the folks out there in the 'hoods can talk the talk and walk the walk just like the folks behind the counters in city hall. Now the hard reality is that even with everybody speaking the same language there aren't enough financial eggs around to make a full dozen by anybody's count. So how do we stretch the recipe when there aren't enough eggs? For one thing, we can try for cooperative/collaborative effort. Working together is so much more cost effective than working at cross-purposes.
This is what lies ahead in my world: Federal and likely state funding cut-backs are impacting MPHA in the current fiscal year and this is the easy year. Next fiscal year will be very spare indeed. Ditto for my neighborhood organization. Ditto for the service economy. Ditto for every level of government above my head. Fluency in process, to take a lift from the United Nations Security Council discussion, is not the same as plenitude in substance. I have to work with others because however few the eggs, hungry mouths abound. No point in complaining about the shoo-fly pie. The folks who went through the Depression know about economizing. The folks before them could marvel at a single orange this far north. The folks before them joked about rock soup and pine needle tea. The folks before them ... Premising that NRP is legitimate governance, what are to be the irreducible tasks of government? Hungry mouths abound everywhere, not just in public housing. So do hungry minds. Dismissing after-school programs doesn't erase the kids. Art and music and dance will out and so will desperate acts by desperate people. I think we're going to have to revisit that social contract we've been taking for granted and relearn how to do more with less. Fred Markus, Horn Terrace, Ward Ten, in the Lyndale Neighborhood --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.449 / Virus Database: 251 - Release Date: 1/27/2003 TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Send all posts in plain-text format. 2. Cut as much of the post you're responding to as possible. ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
