Saturday, August 14, 2004
Thursday Aug 12
I got an email from my sister upon her return from gallivanting around the country and Honduras with her kids and grandkids. She frequently throws a whole barrage of good questions at me, and her last message was true to form. I put together a long answer to her, then thought that hey, this might as well be in my Journal. So here it is, the whole thing:
Hi Allegra. It sounds as though you have been very busy, and very wonderfully steeped in family affairs. Reading Steve’s journal, and Matt’s as well, it has clearly been a most memorable summer! I have to admit that I am jealous, and wish I could have been along on at least a portion of that glorious trip.
Life here goes on – I am more comfortable teaching all the time. I’ve used a little different approach in my last few classes here at Nsumba. No homework – they don’t do it anyway – but I have still thrown a lot of material at them. I am giving them a quiz in the latter part of this week, so we will see if they have been able to pick up the information. I gave them all the questions that will be in the quiz already – that is as close as I can come in Tanzania to giving an open book test.
In your message, you wrote:
I re-read Steve's copy of "Eat the Rich" yesterday.....does the author describe
Tanzinia correctly? If I understand P.J. O'Rourke's philosophy, he seems to
feel that the less government gets involved with economics, the better a country
operates.......which goes against your liberal leanings, I suppose.......
My thoughts:
I enjoyed the questions in your letter. I have really been trying to form my own understanding of what it is that makes Tanzania so poor. However I would guess that Tanzania is not as poor as Honduras – certainly not as pathetic as Haiti which is O’Rourke’s analogy for Tanzania. To be fair, you don’t get the feeling of intense deprivation here. The mass transit system of long distance buses, ferries and trains with daladalas locally works well, and people do not seem to be starving. The statistics do indicate that AIDS is a tremendous problem, but it is kept in the closet and is not obvious to people like me at all. I do not see emaciated people staggering down the street. Anyway:
When I read P.J.O’Rourke’s book, I was amazed at how well he caught the feel of the economy here in Tanzania. I can nit-pick some of his issues – it has changed a bit since he wrote that book in 1997 I think it was. High quality roads are now being built everywhere (probably because an election is coming up next year), and there is internet and cell phone access almost everywhere – although it is true that Kara in Sumve can only get reception standing under a certain tree on the top of the hill near her site. But for the most part he really is on-target in describing the situation.
With O’Rourke, I describe Tanzania as a rich country full of poor people. Some Tanzanians work very hard, but in my view, they mostly are passive and do not take initiative or responsibility for themselves. That, I think, is the legacy of the colonial period reinforced by the socialism of their first great leader, Nyerere. But their education system fails them also. It tries to copy a European plan that does not teach the practical skills that are needed here. Together with that, there is no information or support for entrepreneurial efforts, so even those hard workers who do want to start a business do not know how.
On top of that you can add in the other obvious problems of corruption at all levels, a political system that dangerously concentrates the power in the hands of one leader, excessive taxation coupled to lackadaisical collection, a reluctance to try new things, and an international economic system that discriminates against underdeveloped nations. There is also a tremendous dependency culture, so that it is taken for granted that any development efforts will come from foreign aid, not from local initiative – even though there is a resentment of foreign organizations presuming to tell Africans what needs to happen for development. At least Tanzania is peaceful and has a stable government, which is more than most of or neighbors can say.
So when asked, as I frequently am, what Tanzania should do to progress, I say they should take responsibility for themselves to start small businesses, and on a larger scale they should look at what other countries who have developed rapidly have done: Thailand, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malasia, even Japan and China and the US some 200 years ago. My understanding is that the common factor is that these countries developed some strong local industries with governmental support that protected them from foreign competition in the early stages – just what the current international powers prevent, since Bretton Woods in 1944.
I guess this is where O’Rourke and I part company. I do think governmental involvement is needed to foster fledgling industry, provide infrastructure and education, do some preparation for the droughts, locusts, and other catastrophes that seem to occur regularly, and maybe even just to keep the most vulnerable people from starving.
Anyhow, from this discussion you can see why I want to set up a program to teach young Tanzanians the basic principles of how to start and expand a small (micro) business – how to save a little of what comes in to reinvest, how to know if you are making any profit at all. Still, my efforts feel like trying to run in a vat of molasses. The Peace Corps doesn’t want me to sign any agreements until they review them – they have had my Kuleana draft for over a week now. I will need some money to start paying my instructors by the end of the month but haven’t even talked to anybody yet about being on the Board of Directors who ought to help with the initial funding and which I need to do before starting our mail solicitation program. I’ve requested suggestions from my Headmaster, Kuleana, and my friendly bank manager who is my entrée to the Rotary Club for names. My Headmaster is just slow, my Kuleana contact is out of town, and the Rotary is more interested in its internal reorganization right now. Uuuuuumph!
So Allegra, after all this rambling I don’t know how it fits with what you presume are my "liberal leanings." But I am trying to do what I can. And I certainly do not shrink from telling Tanzanians that our brilliant founding fathers set up the best system of government in the world, and that a democratic government with checks and balances to prevent excessive power in the hands of any one person or party seems to be the best system that has ever been developed so far. So yes, Allegra, I do believe I can be objective and fair in describing my country, and certainly honest.
You are most probably right indeed about it being a good thing that I am out of the country during the election season. And I’d better not say more – I know you do not share my opinions or my vantage point to see how drastically our current administration enhances the creation of terrorists around the world.
It is birthday time – Myrna is 50 on the 14th, I am/was 66 on the 11th. Wish we could be together this week. Her messages express much love and concern as well as frustration and anxiety regarding our separation and fear about traveling alone to come here in December. It feels like a long time since we have been together - both of us are really looking forward to December. And I will admit to feeling a twinge of trepidation about how well she will like living in Africa for a year. But we will see, and I think we do have a lot going for us. My house here is relatively comfortable and upscale by Nsumba standards but nothing like her attractive home in Guatemala. I am curious to see what changes she will want to institute here.
I got an email from my sister upon her return from gallivanting around the country and Honduras with her kids and grandkids. She frequently throws a whole barrage of good questions at me, and her last message was true to form. I put together a long answer to her, then thought that hey, this might as well be in my Journal. So here it is, the whole thing:
Hi Allegra. It sounds as though you have been very busy, and very wonderfully steeped in family affairs. Reading Steve’s journal, and Matt’s as well, it has clearly been a most memorable summer! I have to admit that I am jealous, and wish I could have been along on at least a portion of that glorious trip.
Life here goes on – I am more comfortable teaching all the time. I’ve used a little different approach in my last few classes here at Nsumba. No homework – they don’t do it anyway – but I have still thrown a lot of material at them. I am giving them a quiz in the latter part of this week, so we will see if they have been able to pick up the information. I gave them all the questions that will be in the quiz already – that is as close as I can come in Tanzania to giving an open book test.
In your message, you wrote:
I re-read Steve's copy of "Eat the Rich" yesterday.....does the author describe
Tanzinia correctly? If I understand P.J. O'Rourke's philosophy, he seems to
feel that the less government gets involved with economics, the better a country
operates.......which goes against your liberal leanings, I suppose.......
My thoughts:
I enjoyed the questions in your letter. I have really been trying to form my own understanding of what it is that makes Tanzania so poor. However I would guess that Tanzania is not as poor as Honduras – certainly not as pathetic as Haiti which is O’Rourke’s analogy for Tanzania. To be fair, you don’t get the feeling of intense deprivation here. The mass transit system of long distance buses, ferries and trains with daladalas locally works well, and people do not seem to be starving. The statistics do indicate that AIDS is a tremendous problem, but it is kept in the closet and is not obvious to people like me at all. I do not see emaciated people staggering down the street. Anyway:
When I read P.J.O’Rourke’s book, I was amazed at how well he caught the feel of the economy here in Tanzania. I can nit-pick some of his issues – it has changed a bit since he wrote that book in 1997 I think it was. High quality roads are now being built everywhere (probably because an election is coming up next year), and there is internet and cell phone access almost everywhere – although it is true that Kara in Sumve can only get reception standing under a certain tree on the top of the hill near her site. But for the most part he really is on-target in describing the situation.
With O’Rourke, I describe Tanzania as a rich country full of poor people. Some Tanzanians work very hard, but in my view, they mostly are passive and do not take initiative or responsibility for themselves. That, I think, is the legacy of the colonial period reinforced by the socialism of their first great leader, Nyerere. But their education system fails them also. It tries to copy a European plan that does not teach the practical skills that are needed here. Together with that, there is no information or support for entrepreneurial efforts, so even those hard workers who do want to start a business do not know how.
On top of that you can add in the other obvious problems of corruption at all levels, a political system that dangerously concentrates the power in the hands of one leader, excessive taxation coupled to lackadaisical collection, a reluctance to try new things, and an international economic system that discriminates against underdeveloped nations. There is also a tremendous dependency culture, so that it is taken for granted that any development efforts will come from foreign aid, not from local initiative – even though there is a resentment of foreign organizations presuming to tell Africans what needs to happen for development. At least Tanzania is peaceful and has a stable government, which is more than most of or neighbors can say.
So when asked, as I frequently am, what Tanzania should do to progress, I say they should take responsibility for themselves to start small businesses, and on a larger scale they should look at what other countries who have developed rapidly have done: Thailand, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malasia, even Japan and China and the US some 200 years ago. My understanding is that the common factor is that these countries developed some strong local industries with governmental support that protected them from foreign competition in the early stages – just what the current international powers prevent, since Bretton Woods in 1944.
I guess this is where O’Rourke and I part company. I do think governmental involvement is needed to foster fledgling industry, provide infrastructure and education, do some preparation for the droughts, locusts, and other catastrophes that seem to occur regularly, and maybe even just to keep the most vulnerable people from starving.
Anyhow, from this discussion you can see why I want to set up a program to teach young Tanzanians the basic principles of how to start and expand a small (micro) business – how to save a little of what comes in to reinvest, how to know if you are making any profit at all. Still, my efforts feel like trying to run in a vat of molasses. The Peace Corps doesn’t want me to sign any agreements until they review them – they have had my Kuleana draft for over a week now. I will need some money to start paying my instructors by the end of the month but haven’t even talked to anybody yet about being on the Board of Directors who ought to help with the initial funding and which I need to do before starting our mail solicitation program. I’ve requested suggestions from my Headmaster, Kuleana, and my friendly bank manager who is my entrée to the Rotary Club for names. My Headmaster is just slow, my Kuleana contact is out of town, and the Rotary is more interested in its internal reorganization right now. Uuuuuumph!
So Allegra, after all this rambling I don’t know how it fits with what you presume are my "liberal leanings." But I am trying to do what I can. And I certainly do not shrink from telling Tanzanians that our brilliant founding fathers set up the best system of government in the world, and that a democratic government with checks and balances to prevent excessive power in the hands of any one person or party seems to be the best system that has ever been developed so far. So yes, Allegra, I do believe I can be objective and fair in describing my country, and certainly honest.
You are most probably right indeed about it being a good thing that I am out of the country during the election season. And I’d better not say more – I know you do not share my opinions or my vantage point to see how drastically our current administration enhances the creation of terrorists around the world.
It is birthday time – Myrna is 50 on the 14th, I am/was 66 on the 11th. Wish we could be together this week. Her messages express much love and concern as well as frustration and anxiety regarding our separation and fear about traveling alone to come here in December. It feels like a long time since we have been together - both of us are really looking forward to December. And I will admit to feeling a twinge of trepidation about how well she will like living in Africa for a year. But we will see, and I think we do have a lot going for us. My house here is relatively comfortable and upscale by Nsumba standards but nothing like her attractive home in Guatemala. I am curious to see what changes she will want to institute here.
