Sorry to miss last night's grassroots brainstorming session for GoogleFi (I had a prior commitment to attend a ritual humiliation) but it looks like some good stuff came out of it.

Thnx to Jeff Sykes for producing this:

Comments

[Michele Forrest]

I have dozens of friends who use the downtown library. Everybody complains about how slow the internet is. There's a time limit on your computer use, so slow browsing is a problem, because it limits you even more. It wouldn't hurt to interview some of the folks who use the computers. I know they'd love to have lightning-fast library computers!

[Ross Myers]

Sorry we missed you also....we knew what we were up against when we scheduled the session :)

I hope last night isn't the only demonstration of the grassroots of our Community taking hold in this opportunity.

Maybe a thought for consideration to encourage more participation could be to try to pull several meetings together next week...each one could focus in on supporting the 4 areas of the application process....

* Education
* Health care/Public Safety
* Transportation/Logistics/Product Distribution
* Community/Residential connectivity

....and network them together to assist in answering the questions of Why Google is good for Greensboro and Why Greensboro is good for Google?

Anyone want to take the lead?

Thanks again to the GSO Library for providing a place to meet. They continue to do so much for our community with so little.

[Ross Myers]

Nice thought Michelle...I would add that faster service would enable those using the computers to more quickly receive the service they are seeking .... opening up the computers for more to use.

[Roch101]

* Education
* Health care/Public Safety
* Transportation/Logistics/Product Distribution
* Community/Residential connectivity

-----

That is a superficial construct imposed on the process and not a part of the "application process." It will work to our detriment to shoehorn our efforts into these themes. While people may have something to say about them, they should be discarded as conceptual guides posts because they are exclusionary, leaving out authentic facets of Greensboro such as music, film making, media, government, activism, the arts and citizen journalism.

I wish someone could explain to me why people have such a hard time letting Greensboro be Greensboro.

[Ross Myers]

I wish someone could explain to me why people have such a hard time letting Greensboro be Greensboro.

What do you mean Roch?

[Roch101]

Ross, I didn't mean that personally. I see how it could have looked that way. It was not.

What I mean is that in the conversations that get traction in our community -- our institution, our media, our collective consciousness -- we talk about celebrating Greensboro's diversity and tout our receptiveness to creativity, but that is often only so much lip service because when it comes to things like this, where our diversity and creativity might be a substantial part of what could interest Google, we exclude them. We fall back on our talking points instead of the authentic.

We are not letting Greensboro be Greensboro when we when we cordon off four areas for attention. I mean, hell man, lets just hustle up and get moving. Rather than trying to squeeze Greensboro through one of these four straws or trying to fabricate some impression, what if we just let Greensboro speak for itself? From film makers to gamers there are all sorts of people who want faster internet access and whose desires Greensboro would benefit to bring to Google's attention -- but they don't fit into those four categories.

[Ed Cone]

"... lets just hustle up and get moving."

Yes.

Think of ways to supplement and complement the more formal efforts. Nothing wrong with their stakes in the ground, but no need to be confined by them.

I think you guys are on the same page.

[Ross Myers]

Roch...thanks for the clarification...and I did not take things personally.

I have never looked at those 4 points as a confine...but only as a starting places for all the possibilities you have described.

All conversations and business plans must start somewhere and starting around the value of the infrastructure invested in by our community for generations just seemed to me like a great place to start.

[Roch101]

No harm if they help inspire you, Ross. Others may be inspired to proceed apace in independent directions -- as long as they are not discouraged by being led to believe that what they have in mind does not conform to one of "the 4 areas of the application process."