Talk:Three Cups of Tea

Books Start‑class

	Books portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Books. To participate in the project, please visit its page, where you can join the project and discuss matters related to book articles. To use this banner, please refer to the documentation. To improve this article, please refer to the relevant guideline for the type of work.BooksWikipedia:WikiProject BooksTemplate:WikiProject BooksBook articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.

Central Asia Start‑class

	Asia portal Three Cups of Tea is part of WikiProject Central Asia, a project to improve all Central Asia-related articles. This includes but is not limited to Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Tibet, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Xinjiang and Central Asian portions of Iran, Pakistan and Russia, region-specific topics, and anything else related to Central Asia. If you would like to help improve this and other Central Asia-related articles, please join the project. All interested editors are welcome.Central AsiaWikipedia:WikiProject Central AsiaTemplate:WikiProject Central AsiaCentral Asia articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
???	This article has not yet received a rating on the project's importance scale.

Pakistan Start‑class Mid‑importance

	Pakistan portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Pakistan, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Pakistan on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.PakistanWikipedia:WikiProject PakistanTemplate:WikiProject PakistanPakistan articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
Mid	This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the project's importance scale.

Afghanistan Start‑class

	Afghanistan portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Afghanistan, a project to maintain and expand Afghanistan-related subjects on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion.AfghanistanWikipedia:WikiProject AfghanistanTemplate:WikiProject AfghanistanAfghanistan articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
???	This article has not yet received a rating on the project's importance scale.

Urban studies and planning Start‑class

	Architecture portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Urban studies and planning, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Urban studies and planning on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Urban studies and planningWikipedia:WikiProject Urban studies and planningTemplate:WikiProject Urban studies and planningUrban studies and planning articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
???	This article has not yet received a rating on the project's importance scale.

Human rights Start‑class Low‑importance

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject Human rights, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Human rights on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.Human rightsWikipedia:WikiProject Human rightsTemplate:WikiProject Human rightsHuman rights articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
Low	This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.

Community Start‑class (inactive)

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject Community, a project which is currently considered to be inactive.CommunityWikipedia:WikiProject CommunityTemplate:WikiProject CommunityCommunity articles
Start	This article has been rated as Start-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.

Lead section

The book's title comes from a Balti proverb: The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger. The second time, you are an honored guest. The third time you become family.

Where does it say these words spoken by Haji Ali, the chief of Korphe village, are a Balti proverb? Granted, they certainly sound like one, but I don't recall it being referred to in that way. Also, we should quote it correctly. Viriditas (talk) 03:37, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It appears on page 150 of the book. The words were spoken by Haji Ali and I have made the quotation exact as well as given the reference. If we need another reference, a paraphrase of the saying appears in this article (near the end). Renee (talk) 04:54, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hi, Renee. I looked at p. 150 before I composed my query, and I'm looking at it again now. Where does it say "Balti proverb"? Thanks for fixing the quote. Viriditas (talk) 08:59, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hmmm...that's an excellent point. In this source it's referred to as a Balti proverb here but here it's referred to as a Pakistani proverb. The latter source is of higher quality (the first is an opinion piece). What do you think? Should we keep it? If not, what would you suggest? It seems integral to the article because it's the inspiration for the title of the book. Renee (talk) 12:36, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

The former ref (The Corydon Democrat) works for the time being, so I must thank you again for offering it, however I may want to change some things around in the future to avoid using op/ed pieces as sources. Thanks for your help in clearing this up. I look forward to working with you on expanding this article. Viriditas (talk) 12:53, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, I think we should avoid using op-ed pieces completely. Perhaps we should just remove the word "Balti" and refer to it as a proverb? Renee (talk) 19:35, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's fine for now, but the reference should appear after the quote. Viriditas (talk) 10:07, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I actually did that first here, but take a look at what happens because of the specialized formatting around the quotation. I thought it would be better to be clear than to have the source hidden away, but if you feel it should be the other way that's fine with me. Best, Renee (talk) 12:08, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

We probably don't need to use {{cquote}}, but take a look at the template to see how to insert the source correctly. That's why it didn't work for you before. Viriditas (talk) 12:58, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks! That worked. Renee (talk) 23:44, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There is a part in the beginning, "Subject(s) then the pug ate greg and ate his intestines" which really seems inaccurate. Could someone who knows more about this take a look? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 61.210.139.52 (talk) 02:54, 29 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Thanks for pointing that out. Removed as vandalism. Renee (talk) 22:06, 29 May 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Background section

Section 1 (following the lead) should present information about how Mortenson and Relin came together to write the book. Viriditas (talk) 13:18, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Good question. I spent some time searching for that (in news stories, interviews, feature pieces, and on their websites) and no where could I find information on how they came together. The most I could find was, "when Relin agreed to the project..." or something of that sort. Mortenson is coming to my area in September and I can ask him, but that won't meet WP:R or WP:V! :) Renee (talk) 19:40, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

After thinking about it for a day, I think I have a bare outline in my mind, and I will attempt to put something together (with sources) by Monday. Viriditas (talk) 10:08, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I don't have anything yet, but the "Perspective" section should be merged into the proposed Background section due to overlap. Viriditas (talk) 17:04, 30 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Don't see a background section -- do you mean the summary section? How about merging it with the criticism section (or deleting it altogether -- there is no citation)? Renee (talk) 20:46, 30 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I haven't added the background section yet. The citation would be Three Cups of Tea, "In Mr. Mortenson's Orbit", pp. 1-5, although I'm sure we need to rewrite it. I'm working on two other things right now, so if you want to work on it, you are welcome to jump in at anytime! :) Viriditas (talk) 21:16, 30 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

We're heading out for vacation for a couple of weeks so I won't have time to do heavy writings or research, but I'll check in occasionally. I can work on it later. Thanks for your work! Renee (talk) 15:44, 1 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Focus on educating girls

There's a lot about this subject in various interviews and news reports, with lengthy explanations to draw from for material. We need a section about this in the article. Viriditas (talk) 10:12, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Two subtitles

I changed this section to "publication" as it should describe the publication history in general. Viriditas (talk) 13:04, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Perfect. Much better header. Renee (talk) 23:44, 19 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Images

Renee, will you be able to take any photographs when you meet Mr. Mortenson in September? I'm wondering if we can just contact CAI and ask them for permission to use a free promotional photograph. I don't see why they would object. There's a number of good ones on Flickr, but they don't have the appropriate licensing for Wikipedia. Viriditas (talk) 03:54, 20 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I just found one "free" photo on flickr. I'm going to crop it and upload it for use in this article. It's not great, but it is better than nothing. Viriditas (talk) 08:07, 20 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I can certainly try. Also, Tauheed has tried to upload photographs many, many times and each time they've been deleted. If he can follow the Wiki format then we'd probably have a boatload. Thanks, Renee (talk) 18:45, 20 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As I said on Talk:Greg Mortenson, if the photos belong to Tauheed or he has permission to release them to Wikipedia, I can help place the appropriate license on the image page to prevent it from getting deleted. Let me know. Viriditas (talk) 02:44, 21 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Update?

Hi folks, I'm back now. What's the status of Tauheed's pictures? Viriditas, what would you like to do regarding the background. Renee (talk) 14:17, 18 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Ack, sorry I missed your message. I hope you had a good vacation. I'm working on these open tasks. Viriditas (talk) 03:41, 4 September 2008 (UTC)[reply]

to IP 71

On the first page of the first chapter of this book, it says that the climb occurred in 1993. Please see this. Thanks, Renee (talk) 13:08, 2 December 2008 (UTC)[reply]

to IP 64

I found phrases that matched descriptions of the book, but when I did an internet search of the whole paragraph it did not appear. I have re-written the paragraph so there is no question about plagiarism. Renee (talk) 00:43, 4 December 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Summary

The article's summary of the book fells more like an advertisement than a plot synopsis. Examples include, "Co-author Relin recounts Mortenson's efforts in fascinating detail, presenting compelling portraits"

I suggest a point of view check is made, and the page revised to be of a more encyclopaedic nature. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.81.76.194 (talk) 03:36, 31 March 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, I can definitely see your point here. Would you like to take a crack at it? Renee (talk) 01:15, 1 April 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Cleanup

Article is in poor shape. I'm trying to cleanup the most egregious parts first. Viriditas (talk) 20:18, 16 August 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I hate this book. Three Cups of Tea is nothing more than a fake liberal person's attempt to make money. Perhaps his intentions were good at first, but he has lost perspective. Everything seems like an commercial. A boring one at that. The book is being sold to schools like mine where teachers are stupid enough to eat it up. There are even Middle School and Elementary versions ---like Listen to the Wind. It also comes with online lessons my teachers like. The lessons are boring too. And, hey, think about it---Where is all this money going and why? Think about it. Americans and the Western world has, for centuries, imposed their morays and belief systems on countries deemed uncivilized or uneducated. This book is nothing more than propaganda supporting a superman complex: that we must fly to the rescue for the great good of the planet and rescue these poor uneducated people. Did anyone stop to think that these people may already possess intelligence? These people are known as great writers and thinkers--even tho some may not read or write. Tradition and local lifestyle and values trump education. Change, democracy, and education has to come from within---not imposed from an outside culture. This book is sold as a package deal to raise up Mr M. as a hero. Many students at my school in Seattle see right through it. Mr M. is not even a good writer. The book is boring and I get tired of him talking about his stature. It is also interesting that a few weeks ago you could google criticism articles on the book and they popped right up...now, somehow---they have mysteriously disappeared! All my friends in school hate this book even tho we are being forced to read it.

I heard the book has been nominated for a nobel prize. ????? What the ______? Are we that stupid? Well, I guess some voted for Bush...so maybe so. Hillary didn't get in and she's a genus compared to Obama who is sending more young men to the war. One of my teachers said -People get the government they deserve. How much are we going to take before we think for ourselves? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Gothgir234 (talk • contribs) 00:34, 30 January 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Firstly, "Boring" is an opinion and not fact. Additionally, David Oliver Relin wrote most of the book. The people of Korphe and the Karakoram WANT schools, you apparently missed that. The villages wanted the first school so much that they threw three feasts for Mortenson just to try to receive it. The people there are NOT known as great readers or writers, because they have no written language and are extremely isolated. The money that the CAI receives (about 85%, read their website) goes to programs for increasing enrollment of their schools.

Translations

I removed the entry with the Hebrew translation, because we don't list translations in such articles. Instead, the article could contain a sentence like "The book has been translated into x different languages", but that would need a source. I checked out http://www.threecupsoftea.com/about-the-book/foreign-translations/, but that isn't reliable because it doesn't make it clear which of the listed books have actually been translated, and which are only planned. Moreover, it lists countries, not languages; it isn't clear which language the books are published in. E.g. is the version sold in Portugal a different translation from that sold in Brazil? What language is the version sold in Switzerland in? — Sebastian 04:36, 19 April 2010 (UTC)[reply]

NPR report

I just heard an NPR report that describes the situation of the students: http://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=127909459&m=127923252. — Sebastian 15:24, 18 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]