Wednesday, April 01, 2009

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

I’m not and never have been a fan of Oprah, but I admire her choice to use her wealth to make a difference in the world.  I like to think that you and I would do something similar if we had that kind of money (Heck, I like to think you and I already do things in our lives to make a difference in the world, even if it is on a much smaller financial scale).  So even though I rolled my eyes at the ridiculous amount of press Oprah received when she opened her school in Africa, I did admire her willingness to help people who need it most.  We should be happy for people who do good things, right?

So awhile back, when there were problems in her school that resulted in staffing changes and quite a lot of hullabaloo (am I allowed to use that sacred word in this context?), it wasn’t something for critics to gloat about.  It’s incredibly unfortunate that it happened at all, and it was tempting for some to allow it to mar the great things Oprah is trying to do there.

But now, when students were recently expelled or suspended from the school, it became a Drudge headline.  If we decide to publicize and blow up every minor “fail,” what are we saying to people who set themselves out there in innovative ways? 

And it’s not just the wealthy, but other innovators in other areas of our lives:  education, science, business, etc.  When we emphasize their failures in an effort to minimize their accomplishments out of nothing more than misplaced jealousy or schadenfreude, we limit the number of people who will be willing to throw their support at these endeavors.  Not that we should never be critical, but let’s face it.  In this world, we need all the help we can get.

(5) Comments
Posted by Wendy at 2233 hrs
Culture

  1. I agree. Having been to Uganda, and having extended my reading about African nations, corruption is a major issue that makes the blending from the old world of starvation and nonexistant health care to a new world of economic opportunity and the wellbeing tacit with prosperity seem like a Sysiphian task.

    Our future is directly linked with Africa’s success, but few realize it now. Oprah’s behavior is exactly why people like Drudge supposedly want Americans to be tax-unburdened for: in order to replace the socialized substitute we continue to veer toward becoming.

    Posted by tee bee on April 02, 2009 at 0019 hrs


  2. I think Oprah went a little overboard at this school, it seemed to me that she was building something she fantasized about when she was a little girl.

    Having said that, she can afford her fantasy.  And if she wants to give that fantasy to kids who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance at a great education, more power to her!  It’s way more productive than my fantasies (mysteries, chocolate and no phone). 

    So problems have arisen.  Wow!  Kids behaving badly!  Kids getting expelled from school! Who knew such a thing could happen!  I’m shocked, shocked (okay, that’s been way overused lately).  It would be so much better to keep the disruptive ones there to, well, disrupt things for the other kids?

    Oprah’s not an angel.  The kids in her school are not angels—they’re kids.  I’m not, you’re not, Drudge certainly isn’t.  I have a number of issues with Oprah.  But she’s using her wealth to try make the world a better place, a few hundred kids at a time.  We should be grateful to her and Bill Gates and others like them.

    Surely, Drudge has more important things to do—like tear the wings off flies or kick puppies or something.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on April 02, 2009 at 0532 hrs


  3. Amen. It’s so much easier to take shots from the cheap seats than actually do something in this world. If you’ve never failed, you’ve never tried anything of significance.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on April 02, 2009 at 0924 hrs


  4. I can’t stand or watch Oprah after she denigrated Christianity with her own spiritualism crud.
    .

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on April 02, 2009 at 0936 hrs


  5. She has done much to help a lot of people. She walks the walk. Ankle biters who usually do nothing for anyone but themselves are always the first to carp about anothers failure. Screw them. Hail Oprah.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on April 02, 2009 at 1441 hrs


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