Quote:
Originally Posted by 4throck
Last time I checked, one person is not a representative sample. I truly am sick and tired of the belittlement of high schoolers that exists not only in this post, but is a heavy undercurrent in this thread. Saying that I must keep up my grades "for my future" is very sweet of you, but making vague references to how an extra four years in a university setting makes you somehow smarter and more qualified than I am about the situation that I am currently in is downright insulting.
|
everytime you post on here under a screen-name that has your team name or number, or wear you team shirt (or some other team paraphernalia), for better or worse, you are representing your team, and therefore your school and your sponsors. as unfair as it is, it would be niave to assume otherwise. this goes doubly so for someone who has "leadership" in their title.
and you're right; assuming that i'm smarter than anyone simply because i'm older is mighty presumptious of me. but if you read this thread, you'll probably note that a great many mentors, teachers, and veterans are saying more or less the same thing. this seems to suggest a trend.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 4throck
Secondly, where do you get off telling people how and why they should be doing FIRST? FIRST may be for recognition and inspiration and whatnot, but we paid our money, and if we do it for fun or the hell of it or anything else, what business is it of yours? The purpose of FIRST is to be fun. Why? So that it can inspire.
|
you're completely and totally right. you paid your money to do FIRST, and can do whatever you want. but don't claim that by building a robot you are changing culture; there's more to FIRST than that. if all any of us ever did was build robots, then FIRST would quickly become stagnant; no new members or teams would be reached, and no new real world problems would be solved. there's a world outside of FIRST, and FIRST was created to change that world for the better. to presume that FIRST is simply here for your enjoyment is to demote it to nothing more than an expensive game.
and furthermore, it appears that a public school is in your team name; i can only assume that many/most of the students on your team attend this school. while i may not be a taxpayer in your state, i think i speak on the bahalf of them when i say that they would like you to take advantage of all that money they pay for you to attend that school (i.e., taxes, lottery, etc.), and not blow off your classes as a waste of time. they paid their money too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 4throck
And if you had actually read her post, you would realize that there is nothing wrong with what she is saying. She is simply repeating a FIRST mantra. She loves science and engineering, and that is why she is doing FIRST. In what greater way could FIRST succeed in its mission?
|
as i stated above, there's more to FIRSt than just building a robot. its a means to an end, not an end in itself. sometimes you need to step back and realize this.