[Artemisia] Pay to Play

[Michael the Loud]

> Also remember that membership does NOT benefit local
> groups except thru the insurance coverage thing -
> the money all goes to corpora. Local groups are
> supported by site and feast fees - better to pay at
> the local level (and cheaper, too).

You are talking about the one reason most people give
for not being part of most groups.  The NAA (archery)
doesn't benefit local ranges except in things like
less expensive insurance or free insurance for youth
archery.  You can say the same thing about the USBC
(bowling) as they don't benefit local bowling centers
either.  It's a valid complaint.

There is a flip side and those funds do go somewhere. 
You just need to look into where those expenses go.

As I'm an archer I can tell you that part of my
$50/year goes to expanding archery.  In the early
years since archery was reinstituted in the Olympics
the US dominated but since Atlanta we haven't done
much but the Koreans have.  There is $400,000
allocated for a new Olympic Archery Coach and more
than $1,000,000 for a new indoor 70 meter training
facility in Colorado Springs.  To most NAA members
that doesn't mean much but to me that means alot.

The same thing is true about the SCA.  While it
doesn't benefit expenses do need to be covered.  The
BOD just isn't a bunch of rich folk that can travel
all over the place on their own.  Postage, computers,
telephones all cost money and that needs to come from
someplace other than the tooth fairy.

Michael





 
____________________________________________________________________________________
Cheap Talk? Check out Yahoo! Messenger's low PC-to-Phone call rates 
(http://voice.yahoo.com)