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Re: Free Ride
Believe me, if FIRST could make all of this free for everyone, they would. The fact is, all of this costs a lot of money, much more than is collected in fees from teams, and it is only through the very generous donations of cash, people, product and facilities from various sponsors that FIRST even continues to exist.
If you knew what stuff costs in the real world, you'd blanch.
But, part of FIRST's mission is to teach you about reality, including the costs. A community of 2000 people can send a team to Atlanta for $10 per family, that's about 20 cents per week. Small, impoverished, whatever, it CAN be done.
Another part of the mission is to get these people - the general public, those who aren't really sure how to pay the next rent check - to believe that people working together in engineering and science can change the world for the better. If you convince them, 20 cents a week seems like a bargain (and it is).
Idealistic? Yes, absolutely. But, I have just enough foolishness to believe that I can change the world. And I sure am trying. You?
Don
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I am N2IRZ - What's your callsign?
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