[Osmf-talk] AoA changes in Dec?

[Allan Mustard]

Well, we're working on expanding membership, too.  We (the Board)
accepted the MWG's recommendation of 42 days of editing with precisely
that in mind.  Any other ideas you have on how to expand membership are
welcome. 

I don't think we could or would expel members based on statistical
inference, but if statistical probability were high that some sort of
hostile takeover were intended, it would be probable cause for an
investigation that could lead to expulsion.  Statistical inference by
itself would not stand up in court, most likely.

apm

On 10/11/2020 3:06 PM, Clifford Snow wrote:
>
>
> On Sun, Oct 11, 2020 at 8:02 AM Allan Mustard <allan at mustard.net
> <mailto:allan at mustard.net>> wrote:
>
>     It's called takeover protection, with a particular eye on any
>     attempted hostile takeover.  OSM community includes a lot of very
>     intelligent people, including some with good statistical
>     backgrounds, who can certainly draw statistical inferences if a
>     high percentage of employees of company X is correlated with a
>     number of votes for a particular resolution or candidate.  The
>     essence is as you describe, but the point is not to
>     disenfranchise, per se, but rather to dissuade employers from
>     seeking to influence how the community votes in an organized
>     manner.   This would not, incidentally, require an amendment to
>     the AoA, but rather adoption of a policy by the OSMF membership. 
>     The Board already has the authority under the AoA to expel
>     members.  If you have better ideas for takeover protection, now
>     would be a good time to propose them.
>
> The suggestion that we might disenfranchise voters because of a
> statistical inference is not something that I would ever vote for. A
> group of employees might vote for a candidate because they know and
> respect the person running for office. That we would even suggest
> their votes not count doesn't conform to our Mission Statement. 
>
> My suggestion is to continue to expand the OSMF membership. The
> members will protect OSM from a takeover. The recent decision that
> allows people to join with just 42 edits is a good first step. Right
> now our membership is still small compared to the number of active
> mappers. I would encourage the Board to find ways to
> significantly improve that percentage. A good start would be to see a
> goal for 2021.
>
> Best,
> Clifford
>
> -- 
> @osm_washington
> www.snowandsnow.us <https://www.snowandsnow.us>
> OpenStreetMap: Maps with a human touch
-- 
-------
/Allan Mustard, Chairperson/
/Board of Directors/
/OpenStreetMap Foundation/
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