Birgitte SB wrote:
--- On Sun, 5/4/08, effe iets anders effeietsanders@gmail.com wrote:
From: effe iets anders effeietsanders@gmail.com Subject: Re: [Foundation-l] Chapter-selected Board seats - brainstorming To: birgitte_sb@yahoo.com, "Wikimedia Foundation Mailing List" <C> Date: Sunday, May 4, 2008, 9:59 AM 2008/5/4, Birgitte SB birgitte_sb@yahoo.com:
The board suggested in the restructuring FAQ
said:
"We acknowledge that giving the chapters an
official voice in the governance of the Foundation makes it more important than before, that chapters -as much as possible- reflect the full range of Wikimedia supporters. Therefore, we now want to encourage the creation of sub-national chapters in the United States." [1]
This is where my interest in the US chapter
information stems from. So please don't patronize me that the US is asking for attention or making an issue out of something that should simply be neglected if the need is not felt. The only reason there is an issue at all is that people from outside of the US are insisting there should not be sub-national chapters without a national one. Perhaps I should have ignored them rather than started this attempt I have been making to see those concerns addressed.
Birgitte SB
[1]http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Board_of_Trustees/Restructure_Announceme...
Yeah, you are right, the FAQ seems to suggest that indeed. OK, I should reword my statement probably to something along the lines that I do not want to tell people that they should set up a chapter. I agree that the balance of pro's and con's has been changed somewhat since the board restructuring yes. But after all, it remains so that the volunteers running the chapter should decide whether it is worth it. Whether things are worth the trouble.
Thank you. I am personally uncertain whether things are worth the trouble.
That is why I am trying to get answers on why the board and people who believe chapters to be important think US chapter(s) to be worthwhile.
Birgitte SB
The way I understood it when we drafted the text is this: We felt that various people considered that the board was not supportive of the creation of a USA chapter; From the moment when the chapters have a say in the board membership, it seemed likely that part of the community could have complained that American citizens would not be able to have a voice about these reserved chapters given that the board did not allow US chapters. As such, what our sentence primarily meant was that the board would not oppose the creation of a USA chapter.
It does not mean that we know or have a clear opinion on how to deal with state level - city level - library level etc..., It does not mean that we yet know what these chapters would do it simply means that on the principle, we'll be happy to approve a USA chapter ... or USA chapters, or USA chocolate cake, or something, that will make it possible for USA citizens to get involved at board membership level.
HMMM, I hope I am clear ;-)
ant