[Park] proposed dues cahnge

[Jeff Porter]

Dave,
I guess I have opted out of various organizations in life, due to;
1 - insufficient time to spend with them
2 - relative high costs to maintain membership vs. time spent
3 - undefined other reasons (I am cheap, boring, too much gas, hair falling out,
whatever)

For example, Mensa, despite my lower IQ than KE3FY (Debbie my wife)  and our
daughter, and likely N3NDA although he never actually joined, I am not a member
because of high yearly dues.
It seems dumb to me to have such high dues, if they allowed some activities for
more of a "budget", they might retain a great many of their membership!

PARK, well, it seems like the dues were going up and I was having difficulty
finding time to participate, so I (we) gave up on that one. (Of course being
cheap is always a factor too)

AGO membership is also expensive, so that is another thing I dropped out of
years ago. (American Guild of Organists)

There are others also, I might have forgotten, hmmm Alzheimer's organization?

Well, I can deal with free!

After all my baloney, I must say, thanks Dave for your significant efforts with
the newsletter, internet all all!
OK, my life as an amateur is spotty, always has been, but I would never let the
call drop! (At least the license.)
73, Jeff AI7D


Dave wrote:

> This is my response to the proposal to eliminate membership dues for the
> year 2002. (It also apprears in the PocoNoise, but I am sending this in case
> some of you don't get around to reading the newsletter before the January
> 10th meeting).
>
> When I was a little kid, I was always compelled to spend whatever meager
> funds I had. My dad always said, "That money is burning a hole in your
> pocket." This proposal is a good example of that. So what if the treasury is
> in very good shape? That means we have been living within our means. Just
> because we are in good shape now does not mean that the future won't bring
> unexpected pitfalls (like greater-than-expected membership declines or
> expenses). If you think that can't happen, just remember the gigantic
> surplus the US Treasury had not very long ago; now we have a deficit. Didn't
> take long, did it?
>
> For one, I have worked DAMN hard over the last nearly 10 years to make that
> healthy treasury a reality. I sold "Friends of PARK" ads, I spend many hours
> (as did some others) every summer creating a quality display for the West
> End Fair so we could expose the public to a little bit of what amateur radio
> is all about (and didn't that prize money come in handy, too?). I donated
> and collected items for the annual auction all year long so the Klub could
> add a little more to the treasury. I spend a whole day working the joint
> hamfest to add more to our coffers. Now we have this proposal to just throw
> this money away because "We have too much money?"  There is no such
> thing---ever.
>
> I feel like all my efforts have been for nothing, and I sure won't bother to
> participate in any of these events in the future if this is how poorly we
> utilize the proceeds.
>
> Just because you have money, don't be lured into spending it foolishly.
> especially in these unsettled times.
>
> On January 10th, I urge all members to loudly vote "NO" for this wasteful
> and dangerous idea.
>
> Dave Haney
> W3SJ
>
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