Galen Once Again Suggests... (re: Ansteorra website)

[Galen of Bristol]

Good evening all!

Back when I was maintaining an Ansteorra website, I suggested,
after receiving some lesser amount of the sort of flack Pug
has suffered, that we simply dispense with the idea of a
Kingdom website.  This likewise applies to the idea of the
kingdom newsletter being available on-line.

We had heard arguments that events should not be advertised
on-line, lest unwelcome intruders ruin the event.

We had heard that having the calendar on-line would make membership
redundant, and serve as a disincentive to pay dues and join the
club.

We had heard endlessly of the fears of those who wished to hold
office, while retaining their anonymity to the outside world,
and especially that population of dangerous perverts that surf
the Internet.

Lacking officer contact information, calendar information, and
event information, the only other uses for a website are as an
electronic photo album (so long as faces aren't too easily discernable)
and a collection of links.

This struck me as not worth the effort, so I asked what the 
subscribers to this list thought of abolishing the Kingdom
website.  Much discourse ensued, with many conflicting opinions.

Just yesterday, I helped out the Kingdom Rapier Marshal by 
getting the _phone number_ of the rapier coordinator for Gulf
War from the Gulf War website.

When the previous Kingdom Chronicler posted that he was looking
for someone to run an "official" kingdom website, and that guidelines
had come down from corporate, regarding content, I thought these
issues had been resolved in terms of official policy.  Clearly not.
I don't know what those guidelines said, but Pug has put up little
that wasn't also on my site, contact info included.

I have told Pug in private e-mail, and will say publically, that
he is doing an _outstanding_ job, and I hope he keeps it up.  But
is a kingdom website without calendar, event or officer information
worth the embarrassment?  I don't believe so.  If a simple way 
to publish this information -- _not_ in piecemeal fashion -- cannot
be found, I urge we just shut it down.

- Galen
(whose mundane & SCA names, address, phone number, e-mail address,
religious faith and political affiliations may be found at
http://www.flash.net/~pmitchel)
-- 
Viscount Galen of Bristol, KSCA, CSM, etc.
Paul Mitchell, pmitchel at flash.net / "noblesse oblige"
http://www.flash.net/~pmitchel/galen.htm 
Visit the Central Region at:
http://www.uta.edu/student_orgs/sca/centregn.htm