Hmm...I have always been a supporter of the organization, I think they do great work. I just thought this was a wacky proposition....maybe it will work though, provided they get the traffic. If they do, the money raised will be a huge boon to their cause.
However, I couldn't resist a couple of suggestions for rides: Drive-by shooting bumper cars; Virtual landlord dispute; Whack-a-rat; Shell game: One cup has crack, two have coarse salt...which one has the crack?
I suppose my jokes indicate a strong need for organizations like Habitat for Humanity. Hope the theme park works out...
It makes me think of the days when my father (who is an architect) got involved in designing very innovative low-cost housing, something he has always been interested in. The government put the 86 on all these projects (this was a long time ago, btw). It seems that today, when you can sell a condo with less space than our 1 bedroom apartment for $300 000, why build low-cost housing?
Ah, they may run into some public confusion, with people thinking
"amusement park" (rides, games and entertainment) rather than
"theme park" (exhibits, demonstrations and live tours).
I first imagined something like Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts
where they have old colonial cottages and docents in period costume
demonstrating how each part of the village works.
Only this would be modern slums, from various parts of the world.
Far more practical and pertinent today! And closer to a nature exhibit,
than a "give me some cotton candy" entertainment center.
I haven't travelled all around the world, so I'm actually very interested to
go see this park now, like visitting five countries in one day.
Also, with well over a billion people living on less than $2/day, I'd like
to see how people really manage that!
That kind of tenacity is worth a monument and a whole museum.
These people deserve a lot more respect than I could ever earn in a lifetime.
CodeBorg, I have traveled around the world, and have seen slums unlike we can see in the US. Many in Africa still live in mud huts, barely large enough to squeeze through it's small entrance. They cook inside these small mud huts without a chimney or opening, so you can imagine how smokey it gets inside. In India, many live on the streets. How they "survive" is a lesson in human tenacity. As you say, billions of people live on less than $2/day. The poorest in our country is wealthy by comparison. c.ii.
I had another idea: The food bank line-up ride...you line up for hours only to find there is no food availible.
Okay, hopefully the last joke, but this is a good one: "The Taunt"...the park could hire homeless people to stand around and laugh at the folks lining up to pay to go see Slumworld. That, I think helps everyone all around.
I'd like to see a mock up of the home I shared with my family at age 12. We lived in my step father's sister's orange grove. Had our furniture set up beneath a very big fig tree. Took baths in the irrigation tanks. It was arid country. Never got rained on.
edgar, After WWII, our family lived in hostels where our family lived with many others in the same house or in school rooms at the Buddhist Church in Sacramento, partitioned by army blankets. When we lived there, I used to think things couldn't get any worse. In my travels, I see many who live in much worse condition. Looking back on our experience, we really didn't have it all that bad. It's a matter of perspective and exposure to how the rest of this world lives. Things have improved dramatically during my life time for our family. Those living in squalor in many parts of this world will never see any improvement during their life times. That's sad. c.i.
You're right, C.I. My own children always had a roof over their heads, never missed a meal, and now all are self suficient. In some places it never does get better. In some pockets of this country there are children going to bed hungry, but they have at least a shot at doing something with themselves. I do what I can by way of donating to the organizations associated with Jimmy Carter, knowing they are making a difference for many both overseas and here at home.
