[Foundation-l] Can a wikimedia-b list be setup

[Jeff V. Merkey]

Michael Bimmler wrote:

>On 9/6/06, Jeff V. Merkey <jmerkey at wolfmountaingroup.com> wrote:
>
>  
>
>>(...) That sort of thing.
>>
>>    
>>
>And why can't this be open to the community as well? You know, the
>wiki principle (at least that's what I thought), is "keep everything
>transparent which does not need to be secret". The aims of this list
>as described by you do not seem to need any special privacy/secret
>status.
>Michael
>  
>
>  
>
You know, I did not want to address this on this list, but it appears I 
will have to in order
for folks to get it.

Business 101

1. Businesses have goals with involve creating revenue and positive 
growth, in almost all ways identical to
the communities eventual goals.
2. Businesses are protected by laws and have legal obligations to their 
customers, partners, the Foundation,
and other entities and they MUST comply with and protect the rights of 
these parties.
3. Businesses make decisions based upon goals which are designed to 
promote their objectives.
4. Wikipedia centric businesses would be expected to have goals which 
promote wikipedia content
in education, business, and attempt to promote the spread of Wikipedia's 
pervasive content and create
opportunties to grow Wikipedia in a positive financial growth model to 
create and support new communities
and expand the power and reach of the existing communities.
5. The goals of the Community will be expected to be at odds with the 
goals of financial growth at times.
6. The community is in fact an "entity" of sorts, separate and distinct 
from the Foundation, and any
business ventures which attempt to promote its goals.
7. Businesses and ventures promoting Wikipedia will have a fiduciary 
duty to protect the investments of the
Foundation and any investors funding such efforts.
8. Millions of dollars may in time be invested in such endeavors.
9. When a faction of the community decides it does not like a particular 
business venture or someone involved, and
resorts to disruptive behavior or other actions to derail or interfere 
with the Foundations projects in the real world,
it's not disruption, it's "tortious inteference" and it's actionable 
will expose the foundation and community to problems
with investors or stakeholders in these efforts. In other words, it 
would call into conflict a balancing of the ventures
fiduciary duty vs. their stated goals in support of the community 
iteself. Many ventures would simply back away and make
a decision dealing with the Community is too great a business risk and 
simply stop supporting it or fork Wikipedia and try to
steam roller over the Foundation. This is not condusive to positive 
growth or the ultimate goal of promoting Wikipedia
and creating opporunities for explosive growth for the foundation.
10. Companies do not make agreements with anonymous email accounts on 
gmail or accounts on Wikipedia, they make agreements
with organized entities and identifiable indivduals and stake holders.
11. A business related list would be a good venue. Certainly, the 
community could provide input, but such a list would need
moderation by a representative of the Foundation, not a community member 
who has no fiduciary duty or responsiblity
to the Foundations policies. Community members should ABSOLUTELY be 
allowed participation as they are the
heart and soul of the basic nature of the opporutnities. They should not 
be running the list or any other element beyond
their suggestions and contributions to creating new ventures. In other 
words, when a non-employee or person without fiduciary
duty attempts to disrupt or lobby against such an effort OUTSIDE of 
FOUNDATION CHANNELs, they are out on a limb
and expose all the parties to liablity.

Hope that explains it.

All my love,

Jeff