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From: csu@alembic.acs.com (Dave Mack)
Newsgroups: news.admin,news.groups
Subject: Re: These new voting schemes
Message-ID: <1989Oct25.051238.4241@alembic.acs.com>
Date: 25 Oct 89 05:12:38 GMT
References: <4771@ncar.ucar.edu> <15249.253f3716@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> <37123@looking.on.ca> <4806@ncar.ucar.edu>
Reply-To: csu@alembic.acs.com (Dave Mack)
Organization: Alembic Computer Services, McLean, VA
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UUCP-Path: uunet!inco!alembic!csu

In article <4806@ncar.ucar.edu> woods@handies.UCAR.EDU (Greg Woods) writes:
>In article <37123@looking.on.ca> brad@looking.on.ca (Brad Templeton) writes:
>>All of the proposals share another major fault: complexity.
>>Complexity breeds flaming.  It's hard to manage, sure to result in
>>misinterpretation, and increases bureaucracy.
>  We have to keep it SIMPLE. That's why I like either the NO vote threshhold
>(again, simple and easy to verify) or having a name czar (or better, a small
>group of name czars just to prevent one person with an axe to grind from
>making a big issue out of a single case).

The NO vote threshhold, as has been pointed out repeatedly, suffers from
the weakness of allowing a small group of people who disapprove of the
*topic*, not the name, to block the creation of the group. Any mechanism
that can be abused eventually will be. (I can see the memo now: "All
AT&T employees WILL vote NO on comp.windows.motif!" [No slur of AT&T
intended, of course.])

A committee structure will suffer from internal dissent, communication
problems, rules of order, selection problems, and all the other ills
that committees are prone to. I presume we all remember the issue that
finally broke the Backbone Cabal?

In all, a single name czar is probably the best solution. The trick will
be pick someone who is acceptable to most people and is also stupid enough
to take the job. This person must be reasonably well-connected, experienced,
level-headed and able to deal with the inevitable abuse that will accompany
the job.

I am therefore announcing my candidacy for the position of Name Czar.

I will post an article detailing my campaign platform as soon as I've
come up with a good campaign slogan. Suggestions are welcome.

Dave Mack
Tomorrow's candidate today!