If Portland can do it, why can't we??

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Permalink Reply by Jason Moriber on May 29, 2009 at 9:49am

We totally can, same for start-up co-working spaces. We either need to group together and pitch in capital "members" or find a handful of benefactors who share the vision.

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Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 12:27pm

There's some seriously flawed logic to this argument. You're assuming that other people already considered the idea of a collaborative effort like this, were willing to put the time and energy into researching it's feasibility, and eventually decided that the demand for such a concept didn't exist. How do you know that any of those steps has occurred prior to this discussion?

I think this is a very intriguing idea, and I'd be interested to hear what kind of response it received via the e-mail conversations.

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Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 12:59pm

But that's my point. You're assuming the idea has already been considered and shot down. How do you know that it has? What if this is the first time somebody has presented the idea? I've certainly never heard of something like this before, and I think it's interesting. What evidence do you have that there is no demand for this?

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Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 1:19pm

In all fairness, isn't the fact that there is a thread about this idea and an e-mail conversation going on privately evidence to the contrary?

And even more than that, you're still using false logic. Just because something HASN'T been done YET, doesn't mean nobody has an interest. Don't you have ideas that you haven't yet had the opportunity/time/finances/etc. to pursue?

Using that kind of logic is like making the awful argument that because something has never been done before, it shouldn't be. You're a more progressive thinker than that, Chris... I'm sure of it. With that kind of poor logic, we'd still have slavery and I wouldn't be able to vote.

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Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 1:35pm

If people are e-mailing and posting about something, it stands to reason that there's some level of interest there. Yes, the posts and e-mails are a test to gauge if there is mutual interest from other people, but that's the initial step toward making it a reality, is it not? You have to start somewhere. Your argument doesn't make any sense. It's like saying that if they didn't read this article and go out and build this facility immediately, they had no interest in it to begin with, which is ridiculous.

If nothing else, I've already proven your argument incorrect from the simple fact that I, personally, have responded with interest. So there is SOME interest. And the point of this discussion is to determine just how much there is, and whether the demand exists. You are essentially dismissing my opinion in it's entirety by claiming that no such interest exists.

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Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 2:01pm

You also haven't provided any evidence that no such interest exists. You're simply relying on a poor rationalization that because it hasn't been done, nobody is interested in doing it.

You're relying on a whole slew of assumptions for your arguments in this thread, really. You have assumed what the intent of this thread is on behalf of the person who initially posted it. Perhaps it was merely a topic for discussion, perhaps it was a means of gauging interest.

And your definition of "interest" is fairly narrow-minded and unproductive to developing any potential idea. Yes, it would be wonderful if everyone who took a genuine "interest" in developing a project could fall into the description you've provided, where they have the means and opportunity to make it a reality, but that's not always the case. Just because it's not the right time for someone to pursue a project doesn't mean that they don't have a genuine interest in making it happen one day. You're dismissing the potential for someone to make their dreams a reality in time, simply because they can't necessarily make it happen immediately.

Circumstances don't determine interest, Chris.

Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 2:20pm

Oy. This argument is getting circular. We're back to my initial points regarding what constitutes interest and the fact that just because an idea isn't already a reality doesn't mean that it can't become that... and so on.

Permalink Reply by Jack Pincus on May 29, 2009 at 3:55pm

I'm part of the e-mail thread. The message that I posted in this discussion was the first response to John Speer's question. The e-mail thread does include thoughts about taking action but there isnt' an easy path forward. Indiana has many challenges that are not easy to overcome.

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Permalink Reply by Jack Pincus on May 29, 2009 at 3:50pm

It's time I rejoined this conversation:-). First, the exact type of organization that is described in the article from Portland has not been peopoaws here but there have been other attempts to create similar entitites. You may not have heard of them because they weren't publicized. None that I'm aware of gained any traction. I believe there is a need for such entities but, as Chris points out, there is a lack of interest. Hoosiers invest heavily in maintaining the status quo. New proposals or new interests don't gain any traction.

The e-mail conversation that Pat Coyle mentioned started last night with Jon Speer's post with the article. The link was mailed to twenty-six people and generated a vibrant discussion with about six people actively participating. The disucssion is still going on. Smaller Indiana has close to 6,000 members but so far there are only three people participating in this dicusssion. I think that speaks volumes about interest.

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Permalink Reply by Steph Woodward on May 29, 2009 at 4:56pm

Well, I'd agree with that if the thread title indicated anything about what the concept is. Many people that might take interest in the concept could easily skip over this thread because the headline does nothing to draw them in. I think that's a very poor basis for making a judgement about interest. When the link was sent out to 26 people, who could easily see what it was about, you had almost a quarter of the recipients respond eagerly, right? That doesn't seem like "low interest" to me, and certainly constitutes enough to warrant further consideration rather than outright dismissal.

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Permalink Reply by Jon D. Speer on May 29, 2009 at 8:46pm

The email didn't either. Simply the subject "Why can't we do this in Indiana?" with only the link in the email.

Permalink Reply by Jack Pincus on May 29, 2009 at 8:58pm

It sounds like Jon Speer is blamng me for starting the tumult :-).

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