ES - Membership trend

[Matthew G Saroff]

	Just as a bit of a rant, I'd like to explain the likely reason
for a drop in the number of paid SCA members.  It has go do with the
benefits received as a result of membership.
	When one pays their dues, one gets:
*	A membership card (Very little value, saves 15 seconds at 
troll).
*	Tournaments Illuminated (The articles are typically very
shallow.  Useful stuff appears in the Complete Anachronist, but
you pay separately for that).
*	The Kingdom Newsletter (Very Useful, but you can get that 
off the web now).
	In addition, you dues go to:
*	Insurance that does not insure you, but insures SCA, Inc. 
FROM you.
*	Computer purchases that don't quite work well.
*	Professional staff
*	Flying BoD members around to meetings.
*	Lawyers hired in (largely unsuccessful) attempts to deny the 
general membership access to internal documents on the BoD's 
decision making process.


	With the growth of the web, the most basic reason for
paying dues, the need for a kingdom newsletter, is now lessened
because you can get the calendar off the web.
	
--
--Sfi Mordehai ben Yosef Yitzhak, Aka Matthew G. Saroff

This is not the Dream.  This is what I do on weekends to have some fun.

The Dream involves 4 sets of identical twins, 2 gallons of Cool
Whip, 5 quarts of chocolate syrup, 2-1/4 pounds of strawberries,
satin sheets, a magnum of champagne, a trapeze, and a python.
Check http://www.pobox.com/~msaroff, including The Bad Hair Web Page
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes
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