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Bronwyn Walker
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Bronwyn commented on the article |Side note: two crazy data cooking stories
Angola, once hard-pressed for an HIV/AIDS prevalence figure, simply took the average of the three bordering countries and made it official. (They had little infrastructure to monitor and evaluate HIV, at the time.)
Then there is the renowned Donald Rumsfeld/US State Department estimate broadcast at a press conference in the build up to the NATO bombardment in Kosovo. He (and many others) reported that the number of male victims alone in the genocide exceeded 100,000. Current estimates place the total victims of war at 5,000-10,000. Statistically speaking, he was off by a factor of 10 or more, but "stuff happens".
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Bronwyn commented on the article |Thanks for reminding us of the big picture. Gerard Prunier's is a great one. Also, recommend James Orbinski's chapter on the Congo in An Imperfect Offering.
For those who can't buy it; therein he describes how it took MSF months of investigation to find a hidden yet large scale genocide. So much so that the other organizations had packed up and left, seeing no evidence. Just goes to show, even those of us who are in the thick of it, may not have a clue...such is the Congo.
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Bronwyn commented on the article |Thanks for the link to Michelle's blog on bra burning
When in Sri Lanka, I found myself at a dinner which was mainly comprised of men passionately asking each other "Should we really keep bowing to the trend of bra hooks when women prefer sewn straps", "How 'seamless' should we go?", and "What's another solution to the problem of modeling crotchless panties?".
At one end of the table, we had aid workers talking about bunkers and shrapnel from cluster bombs. On the other end, some of the world's bra giants discussing the questions above. It's often surreal and sometimes sickening to find how connected the seemingly disconnected can be.
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Bronwyn commented on the article |Many thanks for the blog, Michelle,
When I was an aid worker in Sri Lanka, I found myself at a dinner which was mainly comprised of men passionately asking each other "Should we really keep bowing to the trend of bra hooks when women prefer sewn straps", "How 'seamless' should we go?", and "What's another solution to the problem of modeling crotchless panties?". Over the course of the evening, it slowly dawned on me that I was surrounded by some of the world's underwear giants.
At one end of the table, we had aid workers talking about bunkers and shrapnel from cluster bombs. On the other end, the questions above. It is sometimes surreal and disturbing to find how connected the seemingly disconnected can be.
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Bronwyn commented on the article |You're right, people feel that if they are 'caught' reading a book at their desk, it somehow gives the impression that they are not real workers. For what it is worth, UNICEF has the approach suggested; requiring staff to devote a percentage of their time to learning/studying. Their doorknob signs are really a nice touch with the words "Do not disturb: I am using my 10% learning time."
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Bronwyn commented on the article |Many thanks. While downloading Opium Season from Amazon, I came across quite a different book club- Oprah's. The latest addition is, Say You are One of Them, which is about conflict and development. Now as rough and tough humanitarians, our first tendency might be to scoff, turn up our nose, or indeed catapult the book out the window. In any case, I plan on reading it, because it will influence the soccer moms and grannies out there whose donations keep many of us going. For a parody on Oprah's mothership influence see: http://www.theonion.com/content/news/oprah_viewers_patiently_awaiting ).
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