What Gransnet is for

Dear Gransnet,
Congratulations on your new website!
A forum for grandparents is a great idea, and I hope it becomes as valuable and useful as Mumsnet has done.
What I would love to see happen to this website is that it serves not only as a forum for grandparents to discuss internal issues but also as a means of breaking the media stereotype by expecting more from its members than new recipes for coronation chicken and reminders to take your false teeth out before you bungee jump.
What we have as a generation is an invaluable resource ? our life experience, our trained intelligence, a crusading habit and in some cases a little more time ? at least more time than our exhausted, heroic sons and daughters. We also in some cases have connections, and clout.
We are halfway through a revolution that our generation started and until we get to the point where men and women can lead fulfilled lives in both their private and their working lives, our grandchildren will continue to suffer.
We need to lead the way towards developing and initiating new laws, not just protesting about the present ones.
I know nothing about local government but I bet there are many potential members of this site that do ? could we not open a forum about affordable housing, for instance? The latest Panorama highlighted a problem that concerns all of us with growing families.
Could we not try to come up with ideas of schemes which might be affordable within this economic climate?
For instance:
Are there empty houses in London that are falling into disrepair because councils can?t afford to do them up?
Is there a scheme whereby a council does the essential gas, electricity plumbing and structural repairs and then gives the house, rent-free, to a homeless family under the agreement that they undertake the rest of the renovation and repairs?
They could pay for their own materials, paying council tax and utility bills as they worked, closely monitored and advised by a council team, until the house is up to council housing standards , at which point they could begin to pay a rent, reduced appropriately in acknowledgement of their work, which could go towards eventual ownership of the property.
If not, why not? If ideas don?t work, finding out why they don?t might lead to other, better schemes.
If we could come up with some ideas that had legs, and find an MP that would lobby for them, we might be able to go on making a difference in the world.
Which after all is what our generation has always wanted.
Best wishes,
Meg.