GIRL SCOUT ECONOMICS by T. Edwin Perry
When I come out of the local WalMart and there’s a kid in a baseball cap with his mitt outstretched begging for a donation from me to get his team to the State Playoffs, I don’t give him a dime. When the High School Football Team is out on the corner with their helmets out begging for money to pay for a trip, I don’t give them a nickel. When the High School Band is standing on the corner begging for money for a state music competition, I don’t hand over a penny. It’s not that I’m against Baseball, Football or Music: I’m against BEGGING!
You see, I believe that we are teaching our kids the WRONG LESSON when we ask them to stand on the corner and beg for money. It teaches them that it is OK to ask someone else to foot the bill for something that they want, and that it is the responsibility of society to support their leisure activities. And, yes, baseball, football and even the school band are LEISURE activities! (This is from someone who went to college to become a music teacher. Maybe someday I’ll tell that story.)
When I was in High School, I was part of the music program, and we went to the state competition every year. We funded the trip by selling candy, and wrapping paper, and washing cars, and that money was used to pay for the bus, and the hotel, and whatever else was needed for the trip. We went door to door, business to business, and we spent our time providing a service or selling a product, but we earned the money for the trip. And when we went on our trip, we enjoyed it, not only because of the trip itself, but because we knew that we EARNED it! AND, don’t think that I went to a rich school or anything like that. Stranahan High was and is a public school, and not exactly in the best neighborhood, if you know what I mean.
And, maybe your argument is that the world has changed and it isn’t safe out there anymore. Well, are you suggesting that they’re safe standing on the street corner and begging for money? Do you think that kids can’t face danger in front of the WalMart?
Or, maybe you think its our Social Responsibility to support someone else’s kid taking a trip without providing a service or product for the money. Maybe you’re under the impression that it “takes a village to raise a child” a la Hillary Clinton. I disagree. Maybe not every kid SHOULD go to the big game, or sing at the state level. Maybe, like in life, it’s not enough to qualify. Maybe the better lesson is that you have to do more than just the minimum to get what you want.
Perhaps the lesson we should be teaching our kids is the Girl Scout method of fund raising. Every year, for a short period of time, the Girl Scouts sell their cookies, and I tend to buy some every single year. (Yeah, big surprise there, you fat bastard!) But think about what they accomplish: 1) They’ve established a cottage industry that supports both the business of the Girl Scout Cookie Company and the activities of the scouts themselves; 2) They teach their members that they all have to participate in the work in order to participate in the fun; and, 3) They build the character of their members in learning to budget those funds to support activities for the year, particularly since they can only sell the cookies for a limited period of time each year. That’s right, folks: it’s all about taking responsibility, and isn’t that the kind of lesson we want our kids to learn?
I believe that opportunities abound in this country for those who are willing to see it and are willing to do the work to achieve it. Those who are unwilling to do the work are undeserving, in my mind, to share in the rewards. Are there exceptions to the rule? Sure: those who are able should take it upon themselves to help those who are UNABLE to do the work, but that’s where I draw the line. After all, there is nothing LESS COMPASSIONATE than making someone dependent on you to survive.
On that note, I salute the Girl Scouts and their hard work each year. Remember, Cookie Season ends March 14, so get out there and support them while you can.
This is an interesting premise, Todd. I remember getting out there doing more car washes than I care to count (do you remember the time we had an ambulance show up at one of our car washes?)…
But I wonder where you draw the line? How do you feel about true *charities*? For instance, what about the fire fighters standing on street corners with their boots out for MDA? or the Salvation Army’s kettles?
How about the other extreme? The school fundraisers where they actually sell stuff, but it’s seriously overpriced junk?
We’ve certainly washed our share of cars, both in college and high school, I’m sure. The Line I’m addressing in this particular thought is about what we teach kids by having them begging on a corner instead of doing a “job” to raise money. In truth, I’m in favor of charity, and in giving…generously, when possible…to the likes of MDA and the March of Dimes and the American Cancer Society. I particularly like to focus my support for the USO and the Paralyzed Veterans Association. But these are CHARITIES, not extracurricular activities for kids. The difference is that those collecting are typically volunteers, and do not personally benefit from their activities. Kids collecting for a trip to play baseball is not, in my humble opinion, a charity worthy of support without the sacrifice of those who will benefit from it. It doesn’t instill a sense of personal responsibility, but rather a sense of personal entitlement.
As for the other extreme, aren’t most of the things we purchase typically “overpriced junk?” Try selling that big screen TV for the same price you paid for it a week later. I can pretty much guarantee it won’t happen. Certainly, those who purchase products like wrapping paper, candy bars or, yes, even Girl Scout Cookies, pay more than the “Fair Market Value” of the product, and that is being “charitable,” but point is that it teaches that personal responsibility aspect that kids seem to be missing out on these days.
That’s just my point of view on it.