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Archiver > BOARD > 2000-05 > 0957311035


From: Teri Pettit <>
Subject: Re: [BOARD-L] Motion 00-10 Clarification
Date: Tue, 2 May 2000 16:43:55 -0700


At 3:33 PM -0700 5/2/00, Joy Fisher wrote:
>The group presently calling itself The USGenWeb Census Project headed by
>Ron Eason is engaging in a shell game by re-inventing itself after I made
>the motion 00-10.
>
>Since I made the motion, they have changed the name of their group from
>USGenWeb Census Project, Inc. to USGenWeb Census Project and has since
>repudiated their affiliation with the corporation formed by the same Ron
>Eason. They have removed the word "Inc." from their main page, but it
>remains on many of their other pages.

This has all been changing awfully rapidly. The announcement of
incorporation, your motion, the repudiation of the association,
the demand by USGenNet that the corporation be dissolved, the
call for a vote, etc. all happened overnight in a single evening.

The repudiation of any relationship between the USGenWeb Census Project
and "USGenWeb Census Project, Inc." was demanded by USGenNet, and would
have undoubtably happened anyway regardless of any Board actions.


>My motion is intended to sever the relationship with the Census Project
>(whatever it is called), presently headed by Ron Eason (or whoever he
>designated to be the front man of the day) that is presently located at
>http://www.us-census.org and/or http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgwcens/ or
>wherever they choose to move it between now and the close of voting.

Thank you for this clarification that you intend the motion to be
interpreted broadly rather than literally. I will therefore vote no.
(This message is not itself a vote, lest anyone mistake it as such.)


>The fact remains, Mr. Eason has unilaterally decided to incorporate using
>the term *USGenWeb* without Board authorization and this is the sole
>reason for the motion. No amount of back tracking can change that.

I agree that no project member should incorporate any entity using the
phrase "USGenWeb Project" without Board authorization, not even a
"USGenWeb Project Booster's Club" or a "USGenWeb Project July 4th
Parade".

It is definitely cause for censure, and for a call as strong as Carole
Hammett's that the corporation be dissolved. It might even be cause
for asking the members of the USGenWeb Census Project to pick another
coordinator who had not used the phrase "USGenWeb Project" in the name
of an entity that had no right to it.

But there are hundreds of volunteers of The USGenWeb Census Project,
the vast majority of whom had no idea that Ron was thinking of doing
what he did (and then undid.) To most of these volunteers, it was as
much of a surprise as it was to us. If we lose the good will and energy
of all these volunteers, it is a lot bigger loss to the USGenWeb Project
than it is to them. We would only be shooting our Project in the foot.

It would be like kicking California out of the United States because
the Governor did something impeachable. The nation and the citizens
of California would both suffer unfairly for the actions of an
individual. Yes, we elect our officials, and we are responsible to
the extent of holding them to account in the next election, but we can't
be expected to predict everything they're going to do, nor be assumed
to have approved of it.

-- Teri

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