Evidently life on the mailing list starts after 22:30....;-)
There is nothing wrong with both local and national membership in and of
itself, I was more concerned with distribution of resources.
A LUG in a small town with a dozen or fewer members can easily meet in
a coffee shop or restaurant and can operate with a $0 budget (with the
exception of an advertisement-free website and mailing list, something
CLUE should keep in mind). These LUGs are usually interested in
increasing their membership and therefore have to keep their entry costs
as low as possible.
On the other hand finding a meeting place for 100+ people, especially
in a reasonably central location takes money or very good connections.
These LUGs first priority is keeping the doors open to future meetings.
Advocacy is another issue. I think Canopener.ca is better equipped to
handle that, they have a broader mandate (all open source software) and
that is their primary objective. Also if CLUE stays out of advocacy it
has a better chance at getting charitable status which will really help
with fund raising.
Ian
On Sat, 2002-07-27 at 23:39, Jack Bowling wrote:
> Hi from central BC, John ::--)) Just wanted to put my 2 cents in here. We have a
>small *free* LUG here in Prince George. If CLUE expects to get a cut of zero, then
>you know what is coming. I can only speak for myself, but I do not see direct
>membership as conflicting with a local LUG. I have been a member of organizations
>which have tried both direct memberships and "buy-in" type memberships wherein a cut
>of the membership kitty goes to the parent org. I feel that a combo of both actually
>works the best since it gives those who aren't the go-to-meeting type an opportunity
>to belong to some part of the overall organization. Unfortunately for those LUGs that
>do not have a paid membership structure, they may be left feeling disenfranchised
>and/or guilty if some LUGs contribute financially and others don't. I know that I do
>not want to see the larger LUGs carrying the financial load for the smaller orgs. A
>more complex subject than I would prefer it to be, I reckon.
>
> Jack
>
> --
> Jack Bowling
> mailto: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
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