The problem with ACORN is they applied a market based model

[WCGreen]

for what should have a community organization model.

The whole idea behind ACORN, from what I understand, is to develop professional community organizers as well as to spearhead voter registration drives for a fee.

The days of relying strictly on volunteers to do all the leg work are over. People are too busy, too distracted or too cynical to actually volunteer. At least in the numbers seen in the glory days of community activism, most notable lately in the late 60's and early 70's. Volunteers can not do it all.

What they do is pay people to register voters. They pay, from what I understand, on a per person basis. In other words Piece Work. They do this in order to show the people who hire ACORN quantifiable results.

The temptation is there to falsify registration. Where ACORN dropped the ball is by letting these obviously false registrations get passed along to the various Boards of Election.

They are responsible for being an easy target for the GOP. They brought the attention on themselves by having a lackadaisical approach to their business model.

Were they motivated by a good cause? For sure. But they became, in many instances, corrupted by the money that can be made quickly and with little questions asked.

[Eric J in MN]

1. Nevada law requires organizations which collect registrations to send them in...

...even if they know they're bad.

ACORN separated the good applications and bad applications when it sent them in.

[WCGreen]

2. Well in Ohio they were big on hiring homeless folks....

[CaliforniaPeggy]

3. Money can be such a corrupting influence...

And that's a shame.

How many organizations have started out nobly, and then fallen?

Not to mention individuals...