Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!ctp
From: ctp@cs.utexas.edu (Clyde T. Poole)
Newsgroups: comp.org.decus
Subject: Re: Should we have kept quiet?
Message-ID: <41@gobi.cs.utexas.edu>
Date: 14 May 91 16:27:17 GMT
References: <5321@dftsrv.gsfc.nasa.gov>
Organization: Univ. of Texas at Austin
Lines: 59

In article <5321@dftsrv.gsfc.nasa.gov> tencati@nssdca.gsfc.nasa.gov writes:
>Well Jeff, Bill does have a point. The votes are now in and being 
>counted. What's done is done.  I have avoided the political 

Bill has NO point.  The voting is still open.  His implication that it
was all over because the Board thinks its all over is just not so.

>back-stabbing and muck because it wastes MY time. Now, if others feel
>they have the time to spend debating this, then good for them.

>I was not at the Board meeting on Monday, but if the votes are in, and
>the Board has closed the issue, what good is debating it anymore?

That is just the point.  The Board does not have the right or
authority to "close" the issue.  The issue is before the membership.
Also, the votes are NOT in and being counted.  The voting does not
close for another week.

>If people still feel there is a change needed, I think the bylaws 
>provide the means for another provision to be proposed.

Yes they do.

>And by NOT keeping quiet about it, this newsgroup has raised the 
>awareness of a large number of DECUS attendees and volunteers. No one 
>will know what degree of influence this newsgroup had, but there were 
>a lot of "No Bylaw Change" buttons at the Symposium, so I think an
>impact was made.
>
>I chose to stay neutral, since I really don't have the time nor 
>interest to burn my cycles on DECUS politics.

I respect your right to stay neutral, but you must then take
responsibility for your neutrality.  If the bylaws pass or don't pass,
DECUS as we know it is changing.  It is difficult to tell if it is
changing for the better.  It is incumbent upon us all to be aware of
these changes and to make our feelings about direction known to the
managment of the Society.  If we do not, then changes that adversely
affect the the Society are our own fault.

>Discuss the matter, sure. But don't beat a dead horse.

The horse is not near death.  Dispite the fact that the by-laws change
is before the membership for a vote, the Board at its Monday meeting
chose to begin implementing part the change while at the same time
violating its own agreements on how it will conduct business.

>Ron Tencati
>Security & VAX SIG Steering Committees
>Tencati@DECUS.ORG (?)

ctp
-----
Clyde T. Poole - Technical Coordinator, Facilities and Equipment (in real life)
 DECUS U. S. Chapter, CommComm Chair and Member of the MC (in my spare time)
Univ. of Texas at Austin        Internet/NSFnet: ctp@cs.utexas.edu
Dept. of Computer Sciences      DCS: POOLE@DECUS.ORG
Taylor Hall 2.124               BITNET: ctp@UTXVMS  SPAN: UTSPAN::UTADNX::CTP
Austin, TX  78712-1188          VOICE: (512) 471-9551  FAX: (512) 471-0548