[Foundation-l] Omidyar Network Commits $2 Million Grant to Wikimedia Foundation

[Thomas Dalton]

2009/8/25 Anthony <wikimail at inbox.org>:
> On Tue, Aug 25, 2009 at 4:22 PM, Thomas Dalton <thomas.dalton at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> 2009/8/25 Nathan <nawrich at gmail.com>:
>> > This is good news. It doesn't seem strange to me at all that a major
>> donor
>> > gains a limited voice on the Board, particularly when the donor can offer
>> > expertise and connections in addition to funding. It also serves as a
>> more
>> > plausible explanation for Halprin's appointment than the conspiracy
>> theory
>> > about Wikia, corrupt practices and misuse of tax-free funds.
>>
>> The cash is obviously useful, and I think this kind of arrangement is
>> fairly common in the charity world, but it will inevitably cause drama
>> in the community.
>
>
> That fight was lost years ago when the Wikimedia Foundation became a
> non-membership organization.  I doubt this is "fairly common" among
> membership organizations.  Wales was right when he said that the community
> is irrelevant.

When did Jimmy say that? I rather suspect you are taking something he
said out of context...

>> We voted for these Board members, in most cases repeatedly; it does them a
>> > disservice to essentially accuse them of abusing the trust granted them
>> by
>> > the community.
>>
>> I don't recall an intention to sell seats on the board being mentioned
>> in any of their candidate statements...
>
>
> We don't even know (yet?) which board members voted for and which voted
> against this arrangement.

We may yet find out. Minutes of board meetings are being published
again (after a period of secrecy).