We’ve been getting very positive feedback on the ads running on Front Porch Forum. And a certain amount of community pride seems to kick in when a particular neighborhood forum really catches hold. Here’s a note from the ONE Central Neighborhood Forum in Burlington’s North End today…
Just wanted to say well done to all who post here and those who run and advertise on this forum. From what I’ve learned talking to other folks this is the liveliest front porch around. Its great to see a neighborhood dialogue happening.
I love learning things from neighbors on Front Porch Forum… including how to keep an open mind. Here’s a glance at a discussion over the past few days on one of the Old North End neighborhood forums in Burlington, VT.
First from Marissa… she posted about the cost of the Iraq war in dollars appropriated by Congress for each county in Vermont…
With the latest Bush Administration’s request, the total war spending in fiscal year 2008 would be nearly $200 billion, with the vast majority going towards the Iraq War. If Congress passes this proposal, total Iraq War spending would rise to $611 billion.
For Vermont:
Appropriated $663 million
FY2008 New Requests $226 million
New Possible Total $889.1 millionCost of proposed new requests to CITIES/COUNTIES IN VT
Burlington: $11,700,000
Chittenden County: $63,500,000
Then Chris took her to task…
You know it’s interesting you mention that, did you ever think how much the war would’ve cost if the country was united behind the war and freeing the Iraqi’s from not only Saddam, but the Al Quida in Iraq?
Let’s see, surely, the Al Quida would’ve given up by now, seeing how there was no bleeding heart’s in America decrying the war and Democrats crying for soldiers to come home and Bush’s expulsion… You know, it seems to this 20 year veteren of the military and Veteren of Desert Storm, that the “Vietnam syndrome” wouldn’t have been the case senario. Don’t think for a second that isn’t true…
Which brought many predictable responses against the war, including some particularly compelling ones, like this from Paula…
I am a part of a military family, dating back to the Civil War. My grandfather (bless his heart) was dropped on the beaches of Normandy, watching his fellow men get shot to bits. He served again in the Korean War. When Vietnam loomed around the corner, he told his superiors that it was not a war he agreed with and he also didn’t want to take his third chance. With promises of making him a 2 Star General, he decided to retire, with honors, including three purple hearts.
When I asked him what he thought about this war/mess, he just silently shook his head back and forth. “I’m ashamed for this country. We have lost our national face on this. Nothing will ever be the same, except there will be more hatred in this world. And, mark my words, it will not just be from other countries, a majority of it will come from us and pointing the finger at each other; who’s right and who’s wrong. I’m sorry that you and future generations will have to deal with this mess.”
So, to Chris, what do you propose to make this easier for future generations? I just heard a lot of (hateful) words, but nothing of solid worth. And, this forum is for any issues that adults would like to talk about.
While the conversation grew heated, it never erupted into a full-fledged flame war. Chris really knocked my socks off with his follow up…
I must admit, I kind of knew I’d be stoking a fire, but I feel so strongly this way. My post wasn’t meant to involk hate, just express the endless frustrations of the missed opportunity to win this war so long ago. I admit, I view protesting as a right of the United States, but, still, I can’t help feeling the same anger I felt when I was in the first war. When I was in Saudi, durring Storm, the Burlington Free Press would be forwarded to our area. The news always carried pictures of those in front of the Post Office, or those in front of the Unitarian Church, decrying the war. My heart hurt…that’s no lie.
I still carry these feeling inside of me and feel the only way to support the troops, is to ease off on the public negitivity towards the Iraqi campaign. I have a whole company of friends that went to Iraq . This, two weeks after my retirement became final. I wanted so much to jump out there with a sign to support the war and the troops, but I kept my distance. I do apologize for over reacting, but you need to know the man behind the pain.
My National Guard company has recently returned, making me feel good that all are in one piece. I can’t for the life of it suddenly denounce my feelings. If I trounced on someone else’s feelings, that wasn’t meant. It just that soldiers are human too. They see and hear (the news) on the radio and television. Maybe we in Vermont should be aware of this fact. Thank you.
A sane, respectful, constructive conversation about a gut-wrenchingly divisive issue with hundreds of nearby neighbors listening in and several commenting. I don’t see anything like this on the blogosphere, talk radio or the letters-to-the-editor pages. This kind of exchange, unlike the polarizing stuff I see elsewhere, fills me with hope and glimmers of understanding of other viewpoints.
Amy Kirschner writes in Money in the Mountains this month…
Getting to know your neighbors leads to economic opportunities…
If you’re a Burlington resident, you’ve probably heard of Front Porch Forum. The service was started in the Five Sisters neighborhood by Michael Wood-Lewis and his wife, Valerie as a way for neighbors to share news by email.
Front Porch Forum has gotten a lot of press and recognition lately as a community building tool. It’s interesting that beyond building social capital, being neighborly and coming together on community projects, members have found FPF to also be a place to be creative economically.
In the Old North End Central neighborhood, the Soup Mama, started a business delivering soup to neighbors – by bike! – and has been advertising weekly on the forum. A student has taken the fundraising-for-a-school-trip-bake-sale online by offering pumpkin pies delivered to your door the week before Thanksgiving.
Testimonials featured on the website list people who have found plumbers, bought and sold homes, and found tenants for rental properties.
Many of us have skills that we couldn’t pursue full time in the market economy but that could be used to supplement our income. People can sometimes find communities of interest online or in their area that might make a transaction possible, but Front Porch Forum has made it possible to market those skills to your geographical community.
To strengthen and diversify our local economy, there are two strategies we must pursue: creating the capital and creating the market. Front Porch Forum has filled a gap in marketing and exchanging services among neighbors while building community.
From Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba…
Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales is reported to have told a library group that month:
- 50% of all Wikipedia edits are done by 0.7% of users
- 1.8% of users have written more than 72% of all articles
If we also add evidence from Bradley Horowitz that roughly 1% of Yahoo’s user population starts a Yahoo Group, we seem to have The 1% Rule: Roughly 1% of your site visitors will create content within a democratized community.
I haven’t analyzed all of Front Porch Forum for this, but when I looked at our flagship neighborhood forum awhile ago, we saw 90% of the neighborhood subscribed and 50% had posted in the past six months. FPF’s design encourages a very high level of participation from the general public.
I’ve always wondered about those stories of pets finding their way across unfamiliar terrain to get back home. Now we have a Front Porch Forum version. First, Lara posted her “lost cat” announcement on her new neighborhood’s forum and got no response. Then, she got it posted on an FPF neighborhood forum in Burlington’s South End…
I moved from Adams Street [in the south end] last month to Rose Street in the north end. Since Monday night (10/15), my cat Pickle has been missing. He’s a black and grey tiger-striped short hair. He’s long, lean, and very soft. He’s also double-pawed (he has extra toes that make it looks like he has thumbs). He may be making his way back to our old place. Photos on MySpace and SnapFish. Please call with ANY sightings at 802-318-6125. Thank you!
Now today we see…
The Cat Came Back! Actually, Pickle didn’t technically come back. He went all the way to our old place on Adams Street in the south end! It took him 10 days, but the new tenant Rebecca called me this morning to say that Pickle was on her front porch. He’s healthy (not a scratch), happy, and finally home. THANK YOU to everyone who contacted me with possible Pickle sightings. We moved to ONE a month ago, and I can’t tell you how much it means to me that my new neighbors are so thoughtful. And yay Front Porch Forum!!
This appears to be a genuinely valuable project locally here…
As the age boom impacts Burlington, can residents say with conviction “this is a great place to grow old?” The Burlington Livable Community Project is engaging residents, community organizations and the City to make changes so people of all ages can live in the setting of their choice, get around the city in a variety of ways, and engage fully in the life of our community.
AARP Vermont is the lead and lots of other entities are involved. I heard from their early “community listening” sessions that Front Porch Forum came up from citizens multiple times as a great resource for helping seniors feel connected to their neighbors and community.
This just in from a South Burlington neighborhood forum…
The [neighborhood] Pumpkin Contest will be held this Sunday, October 28 at 4pm. The contest is held in Monkey Park. Bring a pumpkin ready to show (already carved), a candle and flashlight to get home safely. There will be light refreshments (cider and doughnuts) and prizes for best jack-o-lanterns (several categories). It’s a fun event and nice way to chat up your neighbors. See you soon!
Great idea! That sounds fun. Another wonderful use of Front Porch Forum. I hope someone tries something similar in our neighborhood.
Neighbors have plenty of cause to get organized. One Burlington neighborhood nearly had its zoning changed by a last minute political move to allow lots to be subdivided… potentially a big deal for residents.
One neighbor got wind of it and posted a message… “contact our city councilors ASAP!” That message was published to about 100 households today at 1:00 PM. Here’s the note from one of the councilors…
As of 2:30pm on Monday October 22 I have already received almost a dozen emails from you all about the protection of Van Patten Pkwy. To me clearly this shows the effectiveness of Front Porch Forum.
And, this just in (the city council meeting just adjourned)…
Great news, our neighborhood was restored to Amendment 34! Our neighborhood will retain it’s unique flavor, and lessens the risk of over development.
Awards are great, but comments about Front Porch Forum from a member carry even more weight for me. So when I asked one of our longest-running members, a stranger to me, for constructive feedback today after helping her with a tech question, I was left with a BIG smile on my face by her response…
I LOVE Front Porch Forum and am encouraging any neighbor who is not on it to get on it.
We advertised a plant swap at the beginning of summer – it was a great way to get rid of some stuff, get some new plants and meet great neighbors. We’ll be doing it again in the spring.
I enjoy the school board updates, crime updates, free stuff, sponsor advertising, etc. We meet new folks with each posting. We’re encouraged to try Dino’s a pizza place on North Street from the recommendation of someone on the fourm.
Honestly, I have no complaints.
You’ve taken the conversations between immediate neighbors that occur across the fence and extended them blocks away.
I thank you for that and for all your (presumably thankless) work to maintain the forum.
Trouble getting your local government or utility to address a problem in your neighborhood? People are discovering the power of Front Porch Forum in this arena. Here’s the latest example from an FPF member today in Burlington’s New North End…
I’ve been remiss and want to belatedly express my gratitude to all my Village Green Front Porch neighbors who kindly contacted Burlington Electric. The street lamp at the end of Van Patten Parkway and Brook Drive, which was knocked down last winter, was replaced!
Nothing like a load of phone calls from one neighborhood to get a municipality or local utility to tune in and fix the problem.
Ghost of Midnight is an online journal about fostering community within neighborhoods, with a special focus on Front Porch Forum (FPF). My wife, Valerie, and I founded FPF in 2006... read more