Mixed up by mixed signals

Howdy!

This article by Paul Gessell serves as a simplistic introduction to the Canadian Government's cultural policy. You might of heard the something called the Museum Assistance Program, where the government gives more than $4 million dollars to museums was threatened with being stopped, and then was saved. What you might have missed is that back in 2004 or so, some bright wags in the Canadian Government decided to evaluate the 'the Museums Assistance Program and Canadian Museums Association Program.' The first sentence of their findings were: 'Evaluators could not say whether the two programs are still critical to achievement of federal objectives. There has been no articulation of the federal government's museum policy and the place of MAP and CMAP within it since the 1990 Canadian Museum Policy, and the context in which the programs operate has evolved considerably.'

I haven't slogged through the entire report, but from a quick scan it looks like they suggested that there be more precise goals and oversight of the Museum Assistance Program. Which would lead me to believe that they were throwing money away willy-nilly - which is not a good thing. I have no idea if any of the recommendations were implemented, or if they have stopped throwing money away willy-nilly, but I certainly hope so.