Monthly Archives: July 2010

The Iconic Treadle Pump

Posted on July 24, 2010 by Al Doerksen

If IDE employees were forced, by policy, to wear a tattoo of IDE’s most successful technology, it would be a treadle pump.  No, we didn’t invent it.  It was introduced to us by Gunnar Barnes working for LWS in northern … Continue reading →

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Carrying a green card

Posted on July 15, 2010 by Al Doerksen

So here I am on the 4th of July in my fifth homeland. No, this might be overstating it – this is my 5th country of residence. Preceding this one were Mexico, India, Germany and Canada, whose passport I continue … Continue reading →

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Ra’pberries are my favourite

Posted on July 14, 2010 by Al Doerksen

When I was 14, my sister & I shipped off to spend the summer with an uncle & aunt on their raspberry farm. We spent the season picking – as I recall, I could pick up to 8 flats a … Continue reading →

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IDE has no beneficiaries!

Posted on July 13, 2010 by Al Doerksen

In one of my former lives, I worked for Canada’s largest food aid organization. I have been witness to. and participant in. free food aid distribution to very hungry deserving people many times. What always struck me was that the … Continue reading →

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What’s wrong with poverty alleviation?

Posted on July 13, 2010 by Al Doerksen

Well, nothing really, since there are some one billion or more people below someone’s definition of poverty. Without a doubt, poverty is repugnant and abhorrent, just like starvation and hunger is. It invokes a visceral reaction. The trouble with “poverty … Continue reading →

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