[Foundation-l] Chapter-selected Board seats - brainstorming

[Mike Godwin]

Birgitte writes:

> The US sub-national issue is not about power but logistics.   One  
> national chapter will never self-organize in the US.  All the  
> incentives to do so (tax-deductabilty, legal support, press  
> contacts) have been "stolen" by the WMF.

So far as I know, there is no legal prohibition or hurdle that  
prevents either a national chapter or a subnational chapter from  
forming in the United States.  Such a chapter certainly could organize  
itself as a nonprofit, seek tax-deductible status, and so on.

I do wish you hadn't used the word "stolen," even if you mean for it  
to be a metaphor.

I agree that there are geographic hurdles with regard to a U.S.  
national chapter, but would stop short of predicting that a national  
chapter will "never self-organize."  Over the course of my career,  
I've frequently been surprised at the willingness of large geographic  
groups to self-organize.


--Mike