Membership, Awards, Local Participation

[Nathan W. Jones]

Greetings, from Gio,

> FitzBubba wrote:
> People join the SCA for a variety of reasons.  If I didn't have
> two...er, three jobs in Ansteorra that require me to be a member, then I
> would still be a member of the Society.  It's because I believe in what
> we do here, and I want to support it with my money as well as my time
> and sweat.

I am not currently a member, although I have been one for most of the 
five years that I've been in the SCA.  From my point of view, there are 
only two reasons why I send a check to SCA, Inc.:

1.  _The_Black_Star_:  Because I tend to travel and participate around
the
	Kingdom, I like having my own copy.  Although I might be able to get
	a copy of the calender elsewhere, I rely on the event announcements
	and resources that are printed in the BS.  If I could get a copy 
	without having to be a member, I would probably do that. 
	(and, yes, I do know that it is know online, but that's not 
	the same as being able to keep a copy in your car! *grin*)

2.  	Because I have to be a member to hold office, or to autocrat
events.
	Again, if there were a way to get around this requirement and still
	be active at the level that I prefer to be in the SCA, I would do it.

But, because I have been mostly inactive for the past year or so, and
because 
I have been poor, I haven't sent a check to Milpitas in a while.

And while I recognize that SCA, Inc. has a place and purpose, I'm not
overly
fond of the way it's stuctured.  Count me as a reformist, not an
abolitionist.
*grin*

Gio.