[Sfd] Bundaberg SFD Report

[Matthew Davidson]

Robert Brockway wrote:
> I find this is a symptom of a larger problem in society, specifically that 
> a good deal of the population are apparently convinced that the only 
> reason a person would do anything, or do it well, is for personal 
> financial gain.  Even a cursory view of human history would show how 
> inaccurate this proposition is.  The capitialist system we use is of 
> course a very recent development.  A good many ancient societies appear to 
> have operated as gift economies (rather than barter economies as is often 
> claimed).  In these societies OSS would appear natural, even obvious.

The biggest problem that I've come across since moving to Coffs 
(although I'm sure it's as much evident in Sydney and elsewhere) is that 
the very notion of a self-help community of peers is totally foreign to 
many people, if not the majority.

I've been involved in both of the computer clubs here, and I've been 
shocked by the rudeness of some people who attend meetings with an 
attitude of "I've paid my two dollars at the door, and I demand 
service!"  At the less obnoxious extreme there is the problem of people 
who are reluctant to actively participate despite having much to 
contribute because they feel they are lacking some necessary 
qualification that sets producers apart from consumers.

It's almost as if there are several generations of people who have been 
bred to insist "I am not a human being, I am a customer!"  I would be 
tempted to surmise that this tendency began with the circulation of 
"economic literacy" materials from business lobby groups in schools from 
the seventies onwards, but seniors can be the worst of the lot.

It strikes me as ironic that it's necessary for stereotypically 
introverted computer geeks to teach the rest of society how to behave as 
members of a community.

Matthew.

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