ATBI "Self-Destructs"

[Curtis Clark]

At 06:06 AM 05/19/97 -0500, Thomas G. Lammers wrote:
>I only hope that we as a community respond to this setback with a more
>honest response regarding the value of what we do.  I fear that we will only
>be tempted to make every more extravagant promises when we see the golden
>ring slipping beyond our grasp.

I think we, and other publicly-supported enterprises, are being held to a
much higher and unrealistic standard than corporations and other
businesses. Many fewer of the public seek to wonder whether they are
getting a return on the portion of the costs of everyday goods and services
that goes for advertising, executive salaries and fringes, stock
manipulations, lobbying to avoid the payment of societal costs, and similar
everyday activities for corporations. It amazes me that there are people
who object, for example, to their tax dollars paying for public education
of all children, but have no qualms about their purchase dollars supporting
the private education of the children of executives.

I'm not sure we ever had a shot at the golden ring.


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Curtis Clark                       http://www.is.csupomona.edu/~jcclark/
Biological Sciences Department                     Voice: (909) 869-4062
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona    FAX:   (909) 869-4078
Pomona CA 91768-4032  USA                          jcclark at csupomona.edu