And what's the fun in becoming an immortal demon if you're not regular, am I right?

The Mayor ,'End of Days'


Bureaucracy 1: Like Kafka, Only Funnier  

A thread to discuss naming threads, board policy, new thread suggestions, and anything else that has to do with board administration and maintenance. Guaranteed to include lively debate and polls. Natter discouraged, but not deleted.

Current Stompy Feet: ita, Jon B, DXMachina, P.M. Marcontell, Liese S., amych


Sophia Brooks - Mar 12, 2003 8:21:01 am PST #7221 of 10001
Cats to become a rabbit should gather immediately now here

I know I have asked this 55 times, but if one other person agrees with me, I will do it.

Since we agreed on this:

A yes vote on this item signifies the voter agrees that seven days time is sufficient to discuss the issue. The week would be broken down thusly: Discussion: Days 1, 2, 3, and 4. Voting: Days 5, 6, 7. When there is a conflict for major holidays (to be defined) we will make accommodations (to be defined) as needed. We will vote later on whether discussions end on day 4 or continue during the votes.

Should we try to stick to it and announce in PRESS when the discussion begins?


Nutty - Mar 12, 2003 8:21:23 am PST #7222 of 10001
"Mister Spock is on his fanny, sir. Reports heavy damage."

I'm not sure why participants here have been dismissed as a "Gang of 14." Everyone has the opportunity to participate.

Fred, sure, everyone can participate, but then, everyone can get root canals if they want to. The implication behind using such phrases as "gang of 14" (which I find pretty impolitic and unkind, although shorn of its context strangely jazzy) is that there are fourteen people participating in a gigantic bureaucracy-wank, who are driving out everyone else who might otherwise participate.

As I said, an impolitic term. But the truth remains, there are a very few participants to this thread, relative to the voter turnout we've been able to muster. The detail and contentiousness on this thread have made people complain, here and on other threads, that they can't read Bureaucracy any more, for mental health and/or blood pressure reasons.

Operationally, the effect is similar to when mieskie was trolling the Firefly thread -- people stay away in droves. When that happens in Bureaucracy, an important thread for all of us, I think that's a bad thing!

So, proposal.

if so, is there a minimum number of people who have to agree with the original proposer before a proposal moves to formal discussion? Put a number between 1 and 10 into this box, please: [ ]

Does that solve the problem?


Nutty - Mar 12, 2003 8:23:18 am PST #7223 of 10001
"Mister Spock is on his fanny, sir. Reports heavy damage."

Should we try to stick to it and announce in PRESS when the discussion begins?

I say yes. Anyway, a Press announcement would be useful now, if we're looking to move on towards voting soon. (Please!)


Jesse - Mar 12, 2003 8:24:05 am PST #7224 of 10001
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.

Sophia, I've been thinking about this, and feel like a retroactive announcement is fine. I mean, people can see when there are a bunch of posts in here, right? So we could today post in Press that this discussion started yesterday, or whatever, and that voting would start on Saturday. But when did this current discussion start? I mean, it's pretty much the same proposal that's come up several times already.


Typo Boy - Mar 12, 2003 8:25:40 am PST #7225 of 10001
Calli: My people have a saying. A man who trusts can never be betrayed, only mistaken.Avon: Life expectancy among your people must be extremely short.

How about between 1 and 15?


Laura - Mar 12, 2003 8:26:42 am PST #7226 of 10001
Our wings are not tired.

Should we try to stick to it and announce in PRESS when the discussion begins?

Let the discussion begin!


Jesse - Mar 12, 2003 8:27:41 am PST #7227 of 10001
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.

How about between 1 and 15?

To start a discussion? That really seems like a lot, esp. given the now-infamous Gang of 14.


Laura - Mar 12, 2003 8:29:44 am PST #7228 of 10001
Our wings are not tired.

I've been thinking about this, and feel like a retroactive announcement is fine.

I understand your point, but I think we should stick to the 4/3 plan. Discuss today through Saturday, vote Sunday through Tuesday? That also splits up the weekend nicely.


Jesse - Mar 12, 2003 8:31:02 am PST #7229 of 10001
Sometimes I trip on how happy we could be.

I understand your point, but I think we should stick to the 4/3 plan. Discuss today through Saturday, vote Sunday through Tuesday? That also splits up the weekend nicely.

Definitely the 4/3 plan. But I'm disinclined to say this conversation is only just starting now.


Sophia Brooks - Mar 12, 2003 8:34:02 am PST #7230 of 10001
Cats to become a rabbit should gather immediately now here

A new version:

ITEM 1: FORMAL DISCUSSION THREAD

Do we want a separate thread for actual voting discussions?

A yes vote on this Item means you would like a new thread, that will be solely dedicated to formal discussion of future items put forward for voting. This thread will only be open during the designated days of formal discussion.

A no vote means you do not want a new thread. (Presumably in this case, all discussion will take place in Bureaucracy.)

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ITEM 2: CLOSE DISCUSSION

Do we want to close the talking about a subject when the voting starts?

A yes vote on this item means that you would like to end all discussion on a given item when voting starts.

A no vote means you would like to continue discussion through the voting period.

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ITEM 3: VOTER TURNOUT

How many Buffistas does it take to make a vote count? Do abstentions count toward this?

For the first question, put a number between 2 and 100 into this box, please: [  ] An AVERAGE (rounded to the nearest 5) of these numbers will be used to determine the voter turnout

For the second part, it's a simple yes or no.

If you vote yes, you would allow people to register their vote as an abstention -- that is, with no preference for either choice -- and that vote would count toward the minimum number

If you vote no, you want only votes that prefer one option to count toward the minimum.

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ITEM 4: SECONDS

a) Should more than one Buffista be needed in order to move something to formal discussion and vote?
b) Please choose a minimum number of people who have to agree with the original proposer before a proposal moves to formal discussion Put a number between 1 and 10 into this box, please: [ ]
You may answer this question even if you choose to vote no to proposal (a)
An AVERAGE (rounded to the nearest 5) of these numbers will be used to determine the number of people needed to second. [  ]