There is nothing wrong with mark giveing people a list of user Id of people who are members of this coop infact there would be nothing worng with a members list that includes email address of all member that goes out to other members.
This is a co-op auction site you will know everyones users name from the auction site any how and these will be the people you would need to work and talk with to keep the site running and stay up to date on matters to be voted on.
Also there is nothing out of the way with this group asking for personal info like SS# since when you pay a member ship you become a share holder in this co-op if you read through the things on there site.
posted on July 27, 2001 02:47:26 PM new
booksbooksbooks, you know, I really agree with most of what you say. Some questions which should have been answered weren't. But other questions like "how does a volunteer fire another volunteer" are simply argumentative. Yes, that question is argumentative, because in fact one volunteer did fire another.
I am also uncomfortable with the five year initial term of the board. But you could argue that both ways. You could also say that most of the people who join are only looking for an alternative auction site and don't understand how a co-op works. In looking over VCM's site, I don't see any effort (yet) to educate members, and I think that is a serious drawback. Educating members is one of the seven co-op principles established by the ICA. VCM isn't helping themselves by packaging their co-op as just another auction venue.
But regarding the back-room politics, I am looking at the history of co-ops. When the first co-op was established at Rochdale, the working conditions were so poor that people were starving to death. Children as young as five years old were working 15-hour days at the factories. Forming a co-op was so important that it was really a matter of life or death. I just think there should be some perspective here. Does any of us know what goes on at ANY auction site? Does eBay publish the petty squabbles that occur at their board meetings?
