Earlier Tim said...
<<I've taken a step back and thought on the census issues raised over the
last few months.>>
You fail to address the key issue which at this point may be mute, but is
ultimately at the root of this problem.
Unless and until The USGenWeb Project can take ownership and responsibility
for its own destiny by having its own servers and paying its own way, many
volunteers will continue to refuse to support the concept of turning over
their data to Rootsweb for their commercial advantage with no accountability
or remuneration back to The USGenWeb Project.
Today - April 1st - marks the fourth year since Jeff Murphy announced the
concept for The USGenWeb Project. While I'm not ready to announce it dead -
The Project has almost entirely lost its identity and recognition as an
entity. I see constant confusion of the roles of RootsWeb and USGenweb on
the mailing lists.
Many of us who took an early role in leadership of The USGenWeb Project have
now moved on to other interests, and I seriously doubt that the path along
which The USGenWeb Project is headed will ever be reversed or redirected, but
I seriously doubt that a proposal to split responsibilities between the large
group of volunteers who do the work and the relatively small core who decide
it's destiny and organization and presentation will do anything to alleviate
the uneasy feelings and downright feeling of betrayal when we realize that
RootsWeb rather than The USGenWeb Project is ultimately benefiting from all
our hard work.
John Rigdon
First National Coordinator
The USGenWeb Project