Re: [libreplanet-discuss] membership confusion, FSF way forward

[Leah Rowe]

I take issue with this: there is the issue of vetting regular members.
What if a bunch of members are present who do not share the FSF's
hardline stance on free software?

On Sun, 22 Sep 2019 17:49:45 +0200
Daniel Pocock <daniel@pocock.pro> wrote:

> 
> Recent discussions show a lot of confusion about FSF (associate)
> membership.
> 
> The FSF publishes[1] copies of the financial statements
> 
> The 2018 filing[2] shows that FSF has only registered 7 people as
> voting members and the other 1466 people only registered as
> volunteers.  Why the distinction?
> 
> Given the scale of the recent problems, a change of leadership is not
> just about changing the president.  The existing board have supported
> the president through many years.  Any of them could have resigned at
> any time if they didn't agree with his leadership.
> 
> Therefore, it is my personal view that:
> 
> 1. all the 1466 volunteers, associate members and any new volunteers
> who joined recently must be given equal voting rights.
> 
> 2. the entire board resigns and the entire organization is then
> engaged in the election of both a new board and president.
> 
> The actual resignation date could be deferred until LibrePlanet so
> there is time for reasoned decision making.
> 
> A new president alone doesn't mean much if the existing board or staff
> carry on doing different things.  It may take time to see just what
> success the president really has.  People may want to know who the
> president will be and what their platform is before deciding to renew
> membership or make further donations, it is too early to decide right
> now.
> 
> Given the extent to which recent discussions demonstrate
> misunderstandings about membership status, it doesn't feel correct for
> the FSF to continue using the term "associate member", as this term
> and the marketing around it (phrases like "Renew your membership!")
> appear to be giving people an inaccurate understanding of their
> status.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Daniel
> 
> 
> 1. https://www.fsf.org/about/financial
> 2.
> https://static.fsf.org/nosvn/financial-statements/Form990-FY2018.pdf
> 
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