Re: Does anyone else care about this?
Rosskol said:
"The town I grew up in produced enough players (even with only 14,000 residents) that it today maintains its own symphony orchestra. The players volunteer, but there is a budget a full year concert season, and a paid conductor. This is but one small example of the cultural and community-building payoff that can come from a small but intelligent government investment in people."Well I think that's great, but do you believe that in the absence of federal-level funding, your town could not have its orchestra?I'll phrase the question differently: Is it the proper role of the federal government to intervene in the question of whether or not each town of 14,000 should have its own orchestra?An affirmative answer means we ought to be seeing a LOT of orchestras out of this Federal Bureau of Arts (or FBA).What if the federal government did not provide money for the arts? If I'm not mistaken, there was art in America prior to the creation of the NEA. How did that art get made?Speaking simply of the musical arts . . . individuals, towns, cities, . . . they funded grandstands and local bands. How did that happen? Could it happen again?How likely is it to happen (the shaping/creating force that caused "art" in America prior to the formation of the NEA), so long as the NEA is around?So long as a thriving, vigorously funded NEA exists, is each citizen (of means)likely to give more, or likely to give less, to the funding of the arts?"We've got the government to do that."Do you see what I'm on about here?Herring405
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Herring405
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Rosskol said:
"The town I grew up in produced enough players (even with only 14,000 residents) that it today maintains its own symphony orchestra. The players volunteer, but there is a budget a full year concert season, and a paid conductor. This is but one small example of the cultural and community-building payoff that can come from a small but intelligent government investment in people."Well I think that's great, but do you believe that in the absence of federal-level funding, your town could not have its orchestra?I'll phrase the question differently: Is it the proper role of the federal government to intervene in the question of whether or not each town of 14,000 should have its own orchestra?An affirmative answer means we ought to be seeing a LOT of orchestras out of this Federal Bureau of Arts (or FBA).What if the federal government did not provide money for the arts? If I'm not mistaken, there was art in America prior to the creation of the NEA. How did that art get made?Speaking simply of the musical arts . . . individuals, towns, cities, . . . they funded grandstands and local bands. How did that happen? Could it happen again?How likely is it to happen (the shaping/creating force that caused "art" in America prior to the formation of the NEA), so long as the NEA is around?So long as a thriving, vigorously funded NEA exists, is each citizen (of means)likely to give more, or likely to give less, to the funding of the arts?"We've got the government to do that."Do you see what I'm on about here?Herring405
