Attached below is a message posted by an organizer of the San
Francisco Bay Area ISOC chapter to its list. Compare his complaints
with those being made against ICANN, and draw your own conclusions.
Subject: [BAISOC] Re: BAISOC Bylaws
Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Date: Sat, 03 Jul 1999
After more than two years of effort to create a BAISOC chapter, I have come
to the conclusion that, as things now stand, it would be a grave mistake to
establish a BAISOC chapter until ISOC itself has undergone substantial and
fundamental changes at the executive level.
The final nail in the coffin was Ole Jacobsen's flat refusal even to consider
permitting BAISOC to submit proposed bylaw changes to an ADVISORY vote of its
membership (so as to formally establish the existence of a mandate for
change) before any such change is submitted to him for his approval.
I will no longer support, nor will I assist an organization that claims to
speak for the Internet masses, but which, instead, adamantly insists on
micromanaging what ought to be strictly local chapter decisions.
In view of the fact that ISOC's Board of Trustees insists on conducting its
own meetings behind closed doors and refuses to provide a record of how its
members voted on any given issue -- which speaks to its determination to
avoid accountability -- it is clear to me that local chapters will never be
more than Potemkin villages, the only purpose of which is to provide ISOC's
BoT with the semblance of grassroots representation without the inconvenience
of its actual substance.
I believe that, at a minimum, ISOC must:
1. Open its BoT meetings to any interested observers
2. Publish full and complete minutes of BoT meetings, including a
complete record of votes by its members
3. Free local chapters to conduct advisory votes on proposed bylaw
amendments prior to submitting them to the VP of Chapters for
approval
4. Submit all proposed amendments to ISOC's own bylaws to a vote of
ISOC's membership
Without these changes in its operating procedures, ISOC will remain
essentially a star chamber, not a democracy. It is particularly critical, in
my view, that full records of BoT votes be published. Otherwise, there can be
NO meaningful accountability on the part of BoT members and ISOC's members
can therefor never cast informed votes for BoT candidates. Likewise, it is --
again in my opinion -- unconscionable that changes to Chapter bylaws must
first be approved by the VP of Chapters, but changes to ISOC'S OWN bylaws can
be approved in a secret vote of the BoT.
Unless those changes are made, I will not renew my membership. Instead, I
will use my position as an industry journalist to oppose any expansion of
ISOC's membership and to educate my readers on the insularity and arrogance
of its leadership.
Regards,
