I have some thoughts on this whole mess that I'd like to share later - but for now, my summary opinion is this - Lisa & Christian had the right to make the call, and they did. While we are a large community, and have considered slipstream home - it never was. It was always someone else's home to do with as they please. This is what needs to change, if we are going to be the bunch that we are. If we are content to play by the rules laid down by the lady of the house, then that's something different. But our outspokenness and determination to be heard is just inappropriate -under the circumstances - and Lisa proved it by pulling the plug. I contend that asking for slipstream back is tantamount to changing who and what this community has become. I don't support that at all.

I want to be totally clear - I'm not bashing Lisa for her decision. And pertinent to all of the upheaval that lead to this decision - I'm not bashing the mods. I will state for the record that I BELIEVE that those who assert a right to say and do anything on a board which is owned and operated by someone else is wrong... I believe that we have a choice to either be a part of someone else's community, or to establish one of our own, but we do not have the right to try to turn someone else's community into our own community. Inherently, that is something akin to squatting, or reappropriating someone else's land, while they are still using it.

We have come to feel a sense of entitlement to basic fair play, when in fact, we have no such entitlements or rights. We have forgotten that in fact, we are invited guests, not citizens with rights. It is very much like being invited to the popular kid's party - it's fun to be IN! But, it is THEIR party. In my opinion, slipstreambbs has (thus far) been like this. The moderators, who do the best that they can do in most instances, nevertheless are not exempt from cliquishness - indeed, they are most subject to it, because they are "IN"! Even the method used to choose the moderators highlights this fact: The "IN" people choose some new people to be "IN" with them! This works out well for a small community of friends, but over time, Slipstream has grown, and has turned into something like a town...in short, we have outgrown the "club" mode of interaction that we started with. The evidence of this is clear:

***Moderators, doing their best, still have personal likes and dislikes of people and that disposition spreads through the moderator group.

***Slipstreamers, even knowing that the board is privately run, feel that their opinions ought to carry weight, and that their rights ought to be near equal to that of the adinistrator!

Because of this, I think it's time that we consider a new paradigm for a fan board - a new kind of Slipstream (even though we can't call it that! )

I propose that the fans acknowledge themselves as what they are - an online community, and that we act responsibly as such. I propose that we establish a board, to which we each contribute some monetary contributions to keep the board afloat (dues), and elect a president, secretary & treasurer with administrative responsibilities to keep the board running. I propose that one of those responsibilities is the hiring and paying of a professional moderator (or two, depending on the size of the board), and a professional administrator (to maintain the board), another of which will be to review, along with the hired moderator(s) and administrator(s) policies for the effective running of the board. Board elections should be yearly, so that no one is stuck in the job forever - community members can choose their trusted servants democratically. I think that its time for us to break the mold, and be responsible! If we really want so much say so in how things are going, then we need to be willing to really step up to the plate and say "here are my due$, I'm a member of this community."

Those who are members of Keith's board (or Gordon's, I think) have a ready contrast - even though Osiris is friends with the fans at Keith's, and is also friends with Keith - we never get the sense that Osiris is in any "exclusive" club. Why? Because Osiris is a professional, hired to do a job. His relationship to us (and to Keith) is different from the relationship of a volunteer moderator chosen from amongst the fans. This shows ME, at least, that there is value to having a professional moderator - the next step is for the FANS themselves to do the hiring.

That's all. Thanks for reading my thoughts!


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