Re: Chris' comments on economics: There was a piece on NPR recently
about corporations which have begun to provide a variety of services to
their employees in order to "relieve their stress": the corporations
will do your laundry, buy your childrens' birthday gifts, transport
family members to the doctor's, do your lawn, etc. etc., so as to give
employees peace of mind when they are too busy at work to do these
things. There are, moreover, companies which are beginning to make a
career out of filling these needs--doing your grocery shopping, cooking
your family meals--while you are at work. Perhaps the next thing they
will do for you while you work is your community service. They might say
hello to your neighbors for you, go to church for you. They could send
professional "volunteers" to serve food, mentor children. What a novel
idea. Then we all could happily and with free hearts spend our lives at
work.
On Tue, 12 Mar 1996 KOLIBAC@guvax.acc.georgetown.edu wrote:
> The never ending discussion keeps going, and I love it. If we are
> looking at culprits for the lack of civic engagement out there I'd like
> to add "economics" into the discussion. Americans are working more hours
> per week than they did 20 years ago. Instead of technology alleviating
> the pressure to PRODUCE, technology is being used to used to raise
> expectations. Just think about it, a memo that may have taken 2 hours to
> write,now takes 15 minutes. But that extra 1 hour + gets used up doing
> MORE. Some of that is our own expectations, but a lot of it is "otherly"
> generated (the corporate model comes to mind). So here is my theory:
> because we are expected to do more (in cases of white collar jobs that
> means more mental work) our capactites to give to our communities (and
> family) is taxed to the limit. And so, t.v. steps in for a quick fix
> leasure moment.
>
> what does service learning have to do with alleviating this? i believe
> it teaches us to SLOW DOWN and think about the value of face to face
> interaction. and for most, relating with people who, if life were to
> follow its "predicted" paths, you would have never come into contact
> with. serivce learning should be viewed as an intervention and
> ultimately a form of "civic association" that transcends institutional
> boundaries (whether that institution is abowling league, the masons or a
> bridge club.) There is something inherantly wonderful about recasting
> civic association in the mold of interacting with people not like
> yourself. service learning, when practiced successfully, facilitates
> that movement.
>
> regards, Chris Koliba
>