Subject:
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Re: Self Organisation (Was: Re: No gimmicks, just some free background images)
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.admin.general
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Date:
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Tue, 22 Feb 2000 01:10:51 GMT
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Viewed:
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1873 times
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In lugnet.admin.general, Allan Bedford writes:
> Todd Lehman <lehman@javanet.com> wrote...
> > In lugnet.admin.general, Allan Bedford writes:
> > > What about a good old-fashioned vote by the 200+ paid members of
> > > LUGNET. Might this not be a good time to excercise some democracy?
> >
> > No, the idea behind the council is to vest or entrust the handling of
> > delicate situations (which often require a lot of time) to a larger (but not
> > so large that it becomes stifled) group of trusted individuals, in the hopes
> > of offloading admin time/workload (primarily of the 'judicial' nature) --
> > and also coming up with hopefully more equitable and fair solutions -- due to
> > a better mixture of viewpoints and issue-interpretations. Involving
> > everyone in everything would be unwise, just as it would be unwise to have
> > popular votes on day-to-day legislative issues in the U.S. Senate or House,
> > for example. That's why we have Senators, Representatives, Judges, and so
> > forth -- because they're specialists in their particular area. The average
> > citizen of the U.S. doesn't have the time or desire to become a specialist.
>
> Again, I guess I didn't present this idea clearly. I was just suggesting
> that the council members themselves be selected by a vote, rather than be
> appointed. I agree, trying to involve everyone in every issue would become
> impossible immediately. However I propose that simply appointing people to
> such a position may be equally unpalatable to some. Why not use this
> opportunity to let the membership express itself?
On a hunch: It's because, especially in a small community (which Lugnet still
is), democracy doesn't necessarily bring the best people to the table. I've
worked with a number of small special interest groups(1), and it's very easy
for an elected position to turn into a popularity contest. Not blatantly,
necessarily, but it often happens that the best known person will get the job,
regardless of who's best qualified.
I think Todd selecting who he feels most comfortable with as his "council" is
going to result in the best working environment. Ultimately, this council only
really exists to take some of the more finicky duties of running a community
off of Todd's shoulders, which will let him put his time back into
infrastructure (where, IMO, it is very well spent). Since it is Todd & Suzanne
who provide the direction for Lugnet, it should be they who pick the people
they feel can best work with them to keep it moving smoothly in that direction.
Bluntly, an election would accomplish one of two things:
1:It would give the same result as appointments: people that Todd & Suzanne are
comfortable working with, or
2:It would put forward people they aren't comfortable working with, which would
make the council at best ineffective, and more likely a drag on their time and
resources.
We trust Todd & Suzanne with a great deal... I see no problem with trusting
them with this, too.
James
http://www.shades-of-night.com/lego/
1:gaming clubs, the SCA, church groups, etc.
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