[OSM-talk] Paweł's q: what can be done?

[Robin Paulson]

On 2013-02-04 07:35, Jeff Meyer wrote:
> To answer your first question, I do. Others have voiced the same

you're making a decision not to have a decision any more (leading 
implies someone making decisions on your behalf)? that's rather 
contradictory

> opinion - theyd like to see some organization, to know that their
> efforts are being applied for the most benefit. Your voice is noted,
> but there should be room for disagreement, no? 

not if it affects me, or anyone else who doesn't want to be affected, 
no. there is the faint whiff of top-down organisation happening here, 
which is very concerning. i didn't take part in osm in order for someone 
to organise me.

> One of the goals of a strategic exercise would be to test your thesis
> whether OSMs (and the OSMFs) "damn good job so far," is "damn good"
> enough to continue to survive and thrive. The thesis that an
> organizing board reduces a community of thousands to the views of a
> handful seems contrary to what has gone on with many other successful
> OS projects.

considering the problems with representative democracy in the last 300 
years, and how the "representatives" are rarely representative of the 
many, i'm not sure this is possible:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/nov/23/congress-us-politics

i recall that 80+% of british MPs are millionaires, while ~0.1% of 
their constituents are. out of touch?

if someone is not being represented, then by definition we won't hear 
from them, so we won't know if there are any problems, such as poor 
representation. so whether the other successful OS projects are 
representing everyone or not is difficult to judge

>
> On Sun, Feb 3, 2013 at 12:57 AM, Robin Paulson <robin at bumblepuppy.org
> [4]> wrote:
>
>> On 2013-02-03 07:41, Jeff Meyer wrote:
>>
>>> was: geocoding trademark thread
>>>
>>> I think Paweł has hit on a key question: does the OSMF have
>>> plans to
>>> operate and lead OSM in a more efficient, organized manner or
>>> not?
>>
>> what makes you think anyone wants to be lead, i certainly dont? or
>> wants to be organised from above? were all fully functional human
>> beings, perfectly capable of organising ourselves, and doing a damn
>> good job so far - look at where OSM and most other digital commons
>> projects have got through self-organising.
>>
>> i disagree with any idea of a board, i think its utterly wrong, it
>> reduces a community of thousands to the views a handful of people
>> can put across.
>>

-- 
robin

http://universitywithoutconditions.ac.nz - Auckland's Free University