X-Message-Number: 7245
Date: Sun, 1 Dec 1996 18:17:37 -0500 (EST)
From: Methuselah <>
Subject: Re: Prometheus and Getting It Together

One day recently on CryoNet, Paul Wakfer wrote:

> This is in response to Dave Pizer's posts Cryomsgs # 7230 and 7231
> 
> >1.    Create a steering committee. [plus much more detail]
> 
> Dave, I don't believe in the efficacy of committees. Too many times in the
> past, I have personally done an enormous amount of work and sometimes spent
> an enormous amount of money, all to have it warped, wasted, and misused by
> some committee or someone else actually in control. I simply am not going
> to do that again.

I'm not Dave, or Paul, but I have to say something here (despite Cryonet's
"digest" format making it take forever for me to do so in any legible
form).

I agree committees are problematic.  It seems it takes them longer to get
anything done, by some exponential correlation to the increasing number of
individuals on them.  This is what you buy into, though, if the control is
to be shared by more than one person.  A substantial percentage of
cryonics activity is in organizations today which operate under boards and
committees.  IMO, that approach is preferable for the long-term (the time
when I cannot speak for myself much less "switch groups.")

Having said that, and hopefully by doing so not resurrected any inter-
organizational conflicts, I would ask Paul:  How do you expect to get the
involvement of such organizations in Prometheus if you expect at the same
time to retain individual control?

> >leverage the solicitations with a committee, involve the whole (cryonics)
> >community by having the committee be representative of all organizations, 
> 
> I have already addressed the committee idea. I believe that the whole
> cryonics community *has* been involved through CryoNet, sci.cryonics and
> articles or notices about the Prometheus Project in all cryonics
> newsletters and magazines. It would certainly help if I were allow to
> publish additional Prometheus information in all cryonics publications and
> if all cryonics organizations would allow me to mail to their members (at
> my expense). Any proposed member of your proposed committee is free now to
> pledge, to do pledge raising for the Project and to write supportive
> articles to his/her organization's membership/subscribers.

I have a hunch that the very reason you have not seen official
organization-level sponsorship of Prometheus by many other cryonics
organizations is that their boards and other leaders are not suitably
involved with you from the very beginning, and, at least, now, and in an
official capacity.  Yes, even at this very early stage of your efforts.
Some probably see your initial closed invitation to the CryoCare list as a
suspected involvement of that organization to the exclusion of others.  

Regardless, the bottom line probably is that you will not get official
participation from most organizations if you do not include their
principals on a steering committee with you from the git-go.  I've been
wondering why they did not jump on the bandwagon from the beginning; I am
beginning to see the probable reasons for that.

You probably can still rectify this problem, but you best be prepared to
do a lot of good heartfelt negotiating and willingness to compromise.  You
won't have to give up your goals or even a lot of the control, if you
properly address the concerns and legitimate involvement of all.

Methuselah () - early and continuing Prometheus pledger


Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=7245