Gatekeepers They Are, Sleepers Are We, Part 6

“Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?” is a Latin phrase variously translated as "Who will guard the guards?", "Who watches the watchmen?", "Who shall watch the watchers themselves?", 
or similar.
 Decimus Iunius Iuvenalis,
known in English as "Juvenal," was a Roman poet active in the late first and early second century CE
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juvenal  

The disconcerting conclusions from parts 1 through 4 of this essay were that there were many gatekeepers and that they held back our youth and us adults, that is, we missed opportunities.  In part 5 we considered solutions with which to overcome this big problem.  Here we consider a weakness in the solutions and a solution to that weakness.  (Are we dizzy yet?) 

Solutions in part 5 included increasing the number of gatekeepers.  While each of us has her / his limitations, the chances of youth and adults on the other side of the gate missing opportunities because of gatekeeper limitations decreases as the number of gatekeepers increases.  But the questions arises, “Who has the time to be a gatekeeper?” 

Our lives inexorably become busier.  It is expected that, to get ahead, one would work longer hours.  This is frightening because, unable to or unaccustomed to think outside the box, we feel helpless and fail to act.  When do we have the time to become gatekeepers who could and would connect youth and adults with opportunities? 

A solution to this weakness lies in our being paid to become gatekeepers.  Then our volunteer and leisure time becomes reprioritized and we have more gatekeepers. 

Easier said than done?  Whence would the money come?  Government is the bank of last resort, so the answer would not lie there.  However, there could be an answer at www.ithacahours.org .  Many communities have printed their own money.  Money could be printed and dedicated to specified uses to improve communities, in addition to serving as a local economic stimulus. 

What would it take to print money?  First, we would need several Montebelloans who acknowledged the problem of gatekeepers and were ready to do address the problem.  With such a group involved, printing money and then spending it to pay gatekeepers would become less difficult.

September 27, 2007