Here's an idea: how about we keep the scholarship a secret and award it to people who deserve it when they least expect it? So many people blatantly admit they're here only for the scholarship and publish a series of crappy blogs. Some people even think this is just an alternative to their livejournal account. To add insult to injury, and as one user wrote in her blog, going to this website now feels like channel-surfing; there are new blogs every time the browser is refreshed that we can barely keep up with reading them, let alone contribute to the discussion.
I'm not upset as far as the scholarship is concerned; I just think this website has so much potential to be an intellectual online community. The race for the scholarship destroys that potential.
To be fair, the scholarship has brought a lot of us here, and we wouldn't have discovered it otherwise.
~C
Visit my blog.
I would stick to LJ if not for the scholarship. At the least, it generates a great deal of traffic.
How did you find out about Pro U? As the results of the poll "Are you just here for the scholarship?" are clearly showing many bloggers would never have come to this site if it weren't for the scholarship. While I agree it is annoying to have users come posting crappy blogs because all they care about is the scholarship, I don't think this site would be as popular or diverse as it is without the extra insentive the scholarship gives. I also think you'll find a lot of people came here because they heard about the scholarship, and then found the value in being able to express themselves and share ideas with other people who care about politics and the world.
------------------------------
"If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress?"
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure." - Marianne Williamson
Even if you came here for reasons besides the scholarship its hard to get people to put this much work into the site if they are not getting something out of it. You really have to have a passion for people, and writing and politics to stay a long time.
Francesca Chambers
To be honest I wouldn't be here if it weren't for the scholarship, but I realized I do not blog enough to win so now I am pretty much here to blog and read interesting and controversial blogs.
It's a very good idea in theory, but again, most people are here for the scholarship.
How come we only ask ourselves the really big questions when something bad happens?
I understand that yes, there are a lot more people now because of the scholarship, but truthfully saying, it is what brought my attention here. I was on a scholarship engine and it brough up this. I thought it was a interesting concept to blog and all. Yes, there may be crappy blogs and stuff, but the readers and people who are judging will know those kinds of stuff. And I don't feel like this is like LJ. It seems that I put more effort into doing well in here rather than speaking "chat language"
I understand where you're coming from. But the people who wrote before me here are right. If we kept the scholarship a secret, I doubt there would be this much traffic. What I do not like is the fact that some people decide to write as much as possible without thinking about the content. It is nice to have scholarship as the motivation. Still, I wouldn't want people to blog because they're scholarship-motivated. I realize that I'll probably never blog enough to earn the scholarship. I will try my best anyway. Peace.
I can't lie, I initially found out about this great site via a search for scholarships. However instead of even mentioning the people who post crappy blogs (or 'clogs' if you will) put those who take the time and intellectual effort to post something meaningful on a different level free from the association with those freeloaders.
Did that make sense?
I've never heard of crappy blogs referred to as clogs before... nice one!
-----
~Fallon~
"Do not be too moral. You may cheat yourself out of much life. Aim above morality. Be not simply good; be good for something." Henry David Thoreau
-----
I prefer Crogs myself. :)
Click here to read about new ways to save money and the environment that you have never heard!
In theory, I agree, but I would not have found the forums had the site not shown up on a scholarship search engine. I'm in love with this website and have become somewhat attached to it in the short time I've been here.
http://www.progressiveu.org/user/bamers
If there was no scholarship here, I wouldn't even have signed up to post here but since there is, it seems kinda interesting reading and posting on this site.
No matter what, whether we keep the whole thing a secret or public, I think it wouldn't matter that much because the person who desreves the most would get the scholarship anyhow.