Hey Gang,
Well, it's raining here again... So, instead of being out in the garage laying
underneath one of the cars (seems like everything needs something done so
nowadays I just sort of decide at random which one I will go crawl under) I am
here at the keyboard.
Once again, some interesting comments have been posted on the question of
forming a superclub, a club of Continental proportions, for Morgans stranded
on this side of the Atlantic.
Somebody writes, "Why not just join the MSSC" (which I suspect was a typo and
the reference was intended to be to the (British) Morgan Sports Car Club
(MSCC)). Hey! Why not, indeed? Everybody who believes that they will receive
good value for their money should definitely join. Everybody who believes that
the MSCC can and will answer the needs of Morgan enthusiasts in North America
should certainly join, even if you will never be granted any voice in the
operation of the club.
While I hope the MSCC stays around for years to come I, personally, cannot see
them having any impact whatsoever on an annual North American MOG Convention
or any of the other things we have previously discussed. Maybe they could
lobby with Lloyds' of London for a group liability insurance rate for us over
here...
No, so far as I can see, the only tangible benefit for our $70 we New Worlders
can look for would be the Miscellany Mag (the "gossip shop with adverts")
which seems to be frightfully well named as it has a lot to do with miscellany
and little to do with anything of interest over here. Nice pics, though.
Even one writer to this list who is English, lives in England, and works in
England has said he may not renew his membership because he perceives he will
no longer be getting good value for his dues dollars (oops! that should be
"dues POUNDS).
So, do we want to "reinvent the MSCC?" No. The MSCC has its role in the world
of Morganiana, it just has little to do with our cars, our events, our social
life, our enjoyment of the marque on this side of the Atlantic.
Then someone proposes you just join up with one of the Texas clubs... Again, I
think there are some real issues with relevance. (I will say, though, that I
used to belong to TexMog and still carry one of their fobs on my Morgan key
ring. It is a neat key fob and I may have to rejoin them to get another if,
through some wholly unexpected chain of events, I manage to outlive this key
fob.)
Another netter asks, "If everyone is on the net then could the net not be the
headquarters..." Well, I think in a very real sense the Net WILL be the
headquarters. Although we will likely comprise only a fraction of the
membership (at least initially) the fact that we have this marvelous ability
to communicate across state lines and national borders will ensure that. I
fully expect that being online will be a requirement for the local chapter's
representatives on the Board of Directors.
To ensure that the interests of us netters are protected, I propose that those
of us who are not affiliated with a local club be able to select our own
member of the North American MOG Board of Directors, just as the local club
chapter's will do. The portion of club dues to be rebated to the local
chapters can be held in trust exclusively for future needs of our "Net
Chapter." (Which, I agree with Lorne's suggestion, should be designated the
"InterMog.") Those future needs might include software, hardware, our own
domain, whatever... (You know, I am quite surprised that this list does not
have periodic appeals for funds showing up on it. Three of the other lists I
subscribe to, Alfas, Tigers, and Alpines all do sometimes ask the users to
send in contributions to offset equipment costs. Weird thing is, I think the
same guy is running Tigers, Alpines, and Morgans.)
Maybe we Netters could host the annual convention in a few years and set up
lots of displays of hardware to entice the net-challenged Mogsters to move
into the 21st century with their communication but not their transportation.
Does this mean all of you unaffiliated hackers will HAVE to belong to the
North American MOG? No, it does not. Access to this list (and any successor
list) should remain open to everyone because the free interchange of ideas and
information is essential to all of us.
It is unfortunate that dues are going to be a necessity for the North American
MOG, but I sure think they are. You simply need some organization and some
funds to accomplish much of anything. I note that nobody suggested that, to
save "lots of money," the Texas clubs should just disband and join MSCC...
Maybe I missed that post.
Someone quite accurately stated that a certain "critical mass" is needed to
form and operate a club. That lack of mass is what has prevented some of us
from being in a Morgan Club. If you live more than a couple of hundred miles
from the club headquarters, there just is not a lot of benefit to belonging to
a local club, especially now that the internet gives us access to classified
ads, tech information, and some social interchange.
The thing is, we have now achieved the necessary critical mass through the
internet to form a superclub! We can take one big step forward and find
ourselves with a club of Continental scope which is headquartered in our own
computer! And in so doing we can provide benefits which will cause the
traditional local clubs to want to enter the fold, to come under the umbrella...
Well, the rain has stopped so I am going to go hit it....
Cheers!
--Colin Cobb, Las Cruces, NM, USA
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