I’ve only now just started following the unfolding scandal surrounding Greg Mortenson, the apparently fictionalized accounts in his “autobiographical” best seller Three Cups of Tea, and the alleged improprieties in the multimillion dollar charity that grew out of it. In a nutshell, Mortenson is accused of using an embellished account of a near death mountain climbing experience to produce a hit book, and a charity that builds schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan… a charity that he’s now alleged to have made millions off of.
Disappointing, because the cause is so worthy. But not particularly surprising. In fact, you could describe this whole episode is very, very human:
Some of Mortenson’s devoted supporters — there are many who described reading his book as a religious experience — surely will ask what they likely consider a rhetorical question: In light of the good that Mortenson has done, do these little details really matter?
But isn’t that how most religions are started? If not a scam artist at its genesis, then at least amongst its apostles? Do we dismiss the good deeds a religion promotes, even though its holy book is mythology?
The real scandal is not one of lying in his book, which frankly isn’t that important. It’s about his abuse of his charity for personal gain. If those “good deeds” are themselves mostly imaginary, then yes, it matters a great deal.
The good deeds of all religions are in the end just badly disguised attempts at proselytizing and ways to gain legitimacy in the eyes of the public that makes sure the money keeps rolling in.
Yes. I give no credit to the religion for promoting good deeds, because those good deeds are eventually done BY PEOPLE. The religion may promote certain things, but no religion has ever fed hungry people; that gets done by actual people. And they may get inspired by religion to do one good deed or another, but people get inspired by all sorts of things to do good things; to claim that religion is responsible for the good things done in its name completely ignores the inherent altruistic impulse in people. Religion simply provides a ridiculous fiction for people to hang their altruistic impulses on.
I give government credit for the good things that it promotes, but not religion, because while they both inspire both good and bad things, religion claims to have some connection to some “higher power” associated with infallibility; those claims force adherence to a higher standard. To wit, if you make claims of having a higher moral standard than nonbelievers, and then (for a Catholic example) implicitly allow the molestation of children, you’re full of shit.
The same standard applies to politicians (note that there’s a distinction between politicians and government), by the way; if you claim that what is wrong with our country is a lack of “family values” while cheating on your wife (Newt Gingrich), or work hard to suppress gay rights while engaging in illicit homosexual acts (a ton of Republicans), then you’re a hypocrite and worthy of nothing but scorn. Particularly if you’re making a lot of money off of your hypocrisy.
To get back to the original point; so this guy falsified some things about his experience, and that falsified experience inspired some people to do good things. Here’s the point; you only get to claim that as an overall positive if you can know FOR CERTAIN that those people wouldn’t have done good things in some other way. Perhaps those people who were inspired by his book and who gave to his scam / charity were simply ready to be inspired, and in the absence of this charlatan’s work, they would have been inspired by some other cause, perhaps one with less embezzlement.
The same is true of religions; they trumpet the good works done in their names, but it’s impossible to know that those good works (or similar) wouldn’t be done by the people doing those things in the absence of the religion. At the most cynical interpretation, it’s co-option of the altruistic influence in the purpose of marketing.
This reminds me so much of freshman year!
The problem I see here is that there are few “good deeds” to be found. If you count the money the catholic church spends on anti-condom education as a good deed then perhaps Mortenson has been doing good deeds.
My understanding is that what schools have been given money to were not fully funded, fell into disrepair if completed, and many were not finished or started. The evidence shows that the amount of success he has had building schools is greatly overstated. So yes, we can ignore whatever token good deeds this guy has done and crucify his career already. He has been a leech on the non profit world, siphoning off money for personal gain.
DTMFA!
Wow, glad everyone’s obsessed with this. Wake me up when 60 Minutes gets pissed off enough about Goldman Sachs or Countrywide to the point they feel obligated to squeal and screech about them.
This “scandal” is tempest in a teapot.
Mr. Mortenson probably lied about parts of his story. But these lies are tangential to his purpose: building schools and forging bonds with Afghanis.
People like Mr.Krakauer and I did not give to his organization, The Central Asia Institute (CAI), because he went to Korph in 1993 rather than 1994. Or because he was kidnapped by the Taliban. Or because we were dazzled by his personality.
We gave because he built schools and forged bonds with the people of Afghanistan. He did this with common sense and hard-work, not a barrel of a gun.
If Mr. Krakauer and CBS proved he built no schools, then this would be a scandal. They do not. In fact, they agree he did good work. They do not even allege he stole money.
The only concern is a lack of financial transparency. Were his expenses (advertisement and dubious jet travel) legitimate CAI costs or personal luxuries? His sloppy accounting makes it easy for others to raise questions. Mr. Mortenson appears to lack the ability to run a multi-million dollar organization, but do not crucify the guy for not being an accountant.
The solution is simple. He should remove himself from any financial control and hire an adequate accounting firm. He should make clear accounting of CAI expenses and his personal expenses.
Despite the allegations, he has fulfilled his promise, to both donors and the Afghani/Pakastani people. Mr. Mortenson is not a charlatan.
@8 Did you actually watch the 60 Minutes piece? They don’t prove that he didn’t build ANY schools, they show that many of the ones he has claimed to have built either don’t exist, are half finished w/ no signs of every being completed, or haven’t received funds to operate in years. Plus, pretty sure someone saying you’re using a charity as your personal ATM can be construed as an allegation you’re stealing.
Surely if 70% of the money went to promoting Greg’s book and 30% to the just cause he’s promoting, then he’s not only a liar but a thief.
Even still, if it were 95% and 5% would we all have a problem? 99% and 1%? If he built one school in ten, or one school in total, does that justify misleading his donors?
The good news is the Attorney General and IRS are going to be going after CAI and Greg. So we’ll know soon enough what the breakdown is.
Afghan = a citizen of Afghanistan
afghani = a unit of currency in Afghanistan
Sorry, that mistake just really bugs me.
@10, I watched it. But I expected more proof than Jon Krakauer’s assertions. There is no dispute that schools were built. Rather, the issue is about the number of schools that he may or may not have built.
A video of an abandoned or half-finished school, without any context, does not prove impropriety. Bad planning, maybe, but not theft.
CAI’s purpose is to BUILD SCHOOLS and partner with locals to provide teachers. Maybe an ineffective method, but not theft. Sometime plans fail. But don’t just count the misses and ignore the hits.
The “ATM” quote is sensational, but it is at best one person’s opinion and at worst unsubstantiated hearsay. I don’t deny that the travel and advertising costs are concerning. But CBS provided no evidence of improper withdrawals.
Is it fraud? Is it exaggeration? Is it a misinterpretation? I think it’s to soon to jump to conclusions. But CBS certainly didn’t prove theft or impropriety.
@12, I was referring to the bond with a unit of currency.
@13 I’m not the one with blinders on just counting the misses. I acknowledge he’s helped build some schools. Mortenson is lying by fabricating hits. It looks like exaggeration & it looks like fraud. I’m not ready to hang the man yet, but it’s certainly time for a thorough investigation by the authorities.
@15, I agree. I’m suspending any further donations until there is an independent audit and he relinquishes all control over financial issues. The other shoe will drop one way or another soon.
#1 is right. If he’s used money from donors who thought their money was going to schools for his own use, he’s a thief, and it doesn’t matter what he said in his book. However, what he said in his book directly influenced those donors to contribute to his cause, and if he embellished whatever truth there is, that makes him a less-than-honorable person, if not a liar. However, he’s pretty much admitted to both being less than forthcoming in his use of money and less than truthful in his book, so he’s both a liar and a thief.