Make Or Break (Jeff Kemp) (910k)   ISBN 1-904896-02-2   Chapter by Chapter... Size Pages Introduction (99k)         2 Rich Man Poor Man (158k)     3-11 Not Why Bangladesh Is Poor (148k)   12-18 Pericles Or Hamlet? (108k)   19-20 Lack Of Dignity (217k)   21-36 Exclusivity (210k)   37-52 Abstractions (163k)   53-61 Compartmentalisation (192k)   62-74 The Style Of Leadership (138k)   75-80 Conclusion (135k)   81-86

"Make or Break: Bangladesh in the 1990's" was written toward the end of my near-decade-long tenure in that country, writes Dr. Kemp. It was deliberately written in a conversational manner - startlingly so, to my post-doctoral self (the thesis - "Informal Religious Leadership in a Bangladeshi Village" - examined the rôles of healers, musicians/story-tellers, and festival convenors in a village in central Bangladesh: a summary of the "healers" aspect is available in the Institute for the Study of Islam in the Modern World newsletter 10, published December 2002, available online at http://www.isim.nl/files/newsl_10.pdf - see page 18).

In retrospect, then, I might have written "Make or Break" in a more formal manner - but, in re-retrospect I might not have either. It's not meant to be scholarly so much as to provoke thought-not-anger and help those grappling with Bangladeshi realities as they attempt to transfer their expertise into effective work. As with all endeavours to understand "them" it ended up suggesting more about "us" - a process that has been academically described by, for example Bourdieu. I certainly never thought there was some unique flaw in Bangladesh that produces poverty: since settling in Europe I've had cause to reflect on areas in which "us" could learn from "them". As, for example, governance in Europe becomes increasingly centralised and voluntary sector organisations are contracted to provide localised services I've increasingly recognised how much could be learned from Bangladeshi NGO's (as equivalents to the British "voluntary sector") regarding effective service delivery.

So - read if interested, hopefully enjoy and reflect. If feedback is desired it could be directed through or through the lameduckpress website when complete which serves as a conduit for my poetic persona (writing under the name of Artnoy Dosh - yep, it does mean 8 9 10).

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