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Re: NEON- Re: Tube benders Assoc.
>I agree with you 100% here. One of the biggest hurdles in organizing a
>national association would be reaching out to the vast majority not
>represented here. Ideas welcome <g>.
>
> -John
AND
>I'm as guilty of this as anyone. There's a lot of excellent armchair
>discussion and thesis-writing but it never goes further than that. There are
>a lot of activists on line, don't get me wrong but they are organizing the
>essential activities OUTSIDE the Internet using the Net as a way to
>communicate to get organized. There are definitely limitations to the
>Internet as an organizing medium. As any salesman will tell you, you have to
>get your customer to take action, physical action if possible, before any
>meaningful committment is reached or results obtained. In my case, there's
>only so much I can do to contribute outside of ideas when I'm in my usual
>survivalist mode.
>Jeff Golin
Yeah, I think that armchair thing would be one of the largest hurdles.
But, we really have some great assets to work with here (tools and PEOPLE).
There's no reason we can't utilize part of what Jeff is suggesting.
Admittedly, my experience isn't as long standing as some others on the
list, but I think it's fair to say this list has already moved the trade by
leaps and bounds for those 'wired' to it. We have communicated; we have
organized; we have increased our communal knowledge immensely. I'd guess
that there was never any similar feeling of a community of tubebenders like
this before. Now that we've started it, it's time to extend it. It feels
like a natural progression; just like The Neon News sort of gave birth to
Neon-l in an effort to spread the word.
This is a great example, too, of what many have said would be *essential*
for an association: each person doing their part (Think globally, act
locally). If each person could shake off that initial apathy and make a
minimal commitment to contact shops in their area to disseminate
information, think of how quickly word could travel. If I spent the time
on several days to do this instead of reading and replying to the list; I
would accomplish my part.
I realize this might be idealistic and also brings up issues of competition
communicating with competition, but that's the whole point of such an
organization that we're talking about; to unite to better the industry and
ultimately ourselves. It might even develop some more comradery amongst
shops/benders which may (?) help some of the ridiculous pricing wars some
of us face daily.
Even if folks weren't comfortable or didn't have the time to do this in
person or over the phone; there's always that old primative thing called
the postal service. (Urgh)
Tom U.