NGO-ing

As it turns out in Kenya, working at an NGO not only pays well, but is not considered to be a magnanimous profession, fancy that! The people who work at most NGOs are not praised for being martyrs to a cause but simply smart for getting into the only business besides tourism that has any money at all right now. This is not to imply that people are skimming from charity meant for destitute peoples, it is simply that the pay grade for any worker at an international NGO is far higher than any other job in the country. This means, among many things, that people working in NGOs are not as single minded or passionate about their cause. It also means that people take very long tea breaks and watch the news when things are slow. It’s really fascinating that everybody watches the news religiously, not just the evening news but also during the day when they have a Kenyan C-span that films the parliamentary sessions. The government here is something I don’t think I will ever understand, not just the structure but the entire concept, (based loosely on British?) However I really love watching the parliamentary sessions. Everyone is so passionate and angry. When officials make speeches they bang on desks and other parliament members applaud or in anger jump from their seats. It’s nothing compared to the south Asian parliament riots or fistfights but it makes for good television. It is extremely convenient for the TV and newspapers all to be in English, it makes keeping up with the local events really easy. As things become easier at work I start conversations about how so and so should be sent to jail and isn’t it too bad about so and so. Oh but don’t worry, I haven’t missed a single step in American news as Kenya is in the midst of an Obama craze that rivals the beanie baby craze of 2000.