[BCN] Harvest Coop(s)

[michaela]

hey,
i'm interested in meeting to talk about harvest too.
i don't live in a coop but used to.
i've been super frustrated with harvest, especially after recently traveling
around the u.s. and seeing how many much smaller cities and towns (as well
as large cities) have such superior storefront food coops.
can someone let me know if a meeting is set?
thanks,
michaela

On 1/12/07, Joshua Laskin <joshualaskin at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> --- Charlene <frcfield at excite.com> wrote:
> > ...
> > It doesn't make sense to attack folks who are
> > in some way trying to do the right thing.  ...
>
>
>   Ok--you make a valid point.  It doesn't make
> any sense at all, to attack people for not
> knowing any better.
>   However, I think I was mostly speaking about
> myself, and others, who maybe DO know better.  I
> was really trying to say that WE are the jerks,
> for not thinking more about our food co-op's role
> in our neighborhoods.  But I need to watch my
> phrasing, to avoid being misunderstood--point
> taken.
>
>
> > And, in response to your question, there is a
> > bulletin board in the Cambridge store that
> > lists a number of organizations, at least some
> > of which are local, to which it (we) make
> > donations. Or am I misreading that?
>
>
>   My problem with that bulletin board, is that it
> doesn't specify the size of the donations or the
> dates when they were made.  Was it only five
> dollars? ten years ago?  We don't know--the
> display doesn't tell us.  It's an illusion of
> information--and an insult to my intelligence, as
> if whoever displayed it thinks I'd be satisfied
> with such pseudo-info.  And, because it's not
> telling us anything specific, it makes me suspect
> that it's fake, a big lie--that we actually
> aren't giving much of anything to anybody.
>   My other issue, with the very idea of Harvest
> giving money to charitable organizations, is that
> I and you and anybody, can each individually give
> to charities, if we each want to, and to
> whichever ones we want to.  Charitable-giving
> isn't necessarily something that we need our
> Co-op to do for us.
>   And, giving to other organizations, can also
> mean that the Co-op is copping out of actually
> doing something for local people directly,
> Co-self.
>
>   I was referring to projects or events that the
> Co-op itself, ourselves, would do for/with local
> people, involving and engaging them.  The only
> reason for not doing such, would be if we're
> totally self-focused, and not interested in
> hanging out with people from dissimilar
> backgrounds than ourselves.  This perhaps would
> qualify us as jerks.
>
>   It's also possible, if we are jerks, that being
> jerks IS bad for business--relating to R.W's
> point, when comparing Harvest to WholeFoods,
> giving WF credit for its staff's "willingness to
> answer a customer question, to find something, to
> accomodate..."--i.e., for better customer
> service--which TraderJoe's ain't bad at, either,
> I've found.  Whereas generally,
> Contempt-for-the-Consumer seems
> counterintuitively to permeate the total
> Marketplace.
>
>   Employee morale has always seemed quite low at
> Harvest.  Never having been on staff, I don't
> know if it's from poor pay, poor conditions, or
> poor treatment.  Or, two or all of the above.
> Maybe someone who's worked there can speak to
> that.
>
>   I believe that if Members organized and played
> a greater role at the Co-op, and if we rewrote
> our Personel-policy to select for workers who'll
> be in tune with the meaning and purpose of the
> Co-op, and if these workers were given more
> opportunity for collective self-management--then,
> I believe, we could create the coolest place to
> shop, on Earth.
>   And, we could also do some other cool stuff,
> outside the stores.
>   Which we must confess, would be good business.
>
> Joshua
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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>
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