[sudoroom] July Rent: Inversion of a Ponzi Scheme?

Mon Jul 16 21:47:24 CEST 2012

Hi Sudo folk.

Due to overwhelming demand (i.e., a couple people asked me about it), I 
am extending the opportunity to participate in the paying of July rent 
to whomever else is interested, until the start of our meeting tonight 
at 2135 Broadway at 7pm. We are currently at 18 voluntary contributors 
(including myself), which makes it just below $32 per person. It would 
be great if others were also willing to chip so that we can make the 
Sudo-minyan of 23, as determined at last week's meeting. This would make 
it $25 per voluntary contributor to pay for July rent of our provisional 
current interim space.

Since, according to the outlined schedule from the minutes - we will 
have made a compact for the Articles of Association just at the end of 
the month, I wanted to propose another experiment to try and pay for 
August rent. The amount will most likely be $875 by then (once 
accessibility to the second floor will most likely be resolved). I 
wanted to propose that we try the same $[rent]/n formula, but this time 
with /n/ being groups or institutions. It would be great if we could get 
our like-minded friends in the area to enjoy our common spaces as well, 
especially the classroom. We could also solicit a wider range of art to 
be displayed for next Art Murmur on August 3.

Can someone from the Mothership do a straw poll of interest in the 
invitation? And other sudo-represented groups among us? I'd gamble on 
being able to reach a Sudo-minyan of groups as well - and so will offer 
the eddan.com blog as a voluntary contributor.

I also wanted to propose that we hold a formal ceremony at the end of 
our meeting tonight to try and answer the question asked on our 
sudo-nymous pad - "How many hackers can you fit in a Sudo Room?" I 
propose that July rent contributors and/or their proxies would be called 
first to step into the box office room so that we can give an informed 
and empirical answer to the posed question.

Sincerely,
Eddan
[Self-Appointed Exchequer]

On 7/4/12 6:54 PM, Hilary Naylor wrote:
> +1 (prefer Paypal)
>
> On Tue, Jul 3, 2012 at 1:38 PM, Max Klein <isalix at gmail.com> wrote:
>> I will pay $[rent]/n too.
>>
>>
>> On 3 July 2012 11:34, Victoria Bogdan <bogdan.victoria at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Also happy to contribute for July, so please add my name to the tally!
>>>
>>>
>>> On Tue, Jul 3, 2012 at 10:14 AM, Eddan Katz <eddan at oaklandlocal.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>> Hi Jehan -
>>>>
>>>> There are two keys for 2135 Broadway that have been duplicated and
>>>> distributed around so as to make getting a copy easier - those are the keys
>>>> to: (1) the Box Office; and (2) the Orange Closet. I recently made another
>>>> set of those keys though and would happily meet you there and give them to
>>>> you. The landlord has no restrictions on the number of duplicates. There is
>>>> also a key to the main door - for the door itself and the gate-lock when
>>>> opening up and closing down. There are only several of these keys, though
>>>> the landlord would be willing to make additional ones for an additional
>>>> $10/month. Since that door is usually already opened by 8am by one of the
>>>> tenants and generally only closed at around 11pm - that key would not be
>>>> relevant for many users of the space.
>>>>
>>>> I have also paid the July rent ($300) for the upstairs office at 2141
>>>> Broadway, which has allowed us use of the reception area for the past couple
>>>> meetings. Accessibility is still only temporarily resolved with the
>>>> permission we've had from the landlord and the East Bay Meditation Center
>>>> where the elevator is, and therefore does not yet meet the criteria to which
>>>> we've committed in getting an appropriate Sudo Room space. I therefore
>>>> didn't think it would be appropriate to include that in the amount I was
>>>> asking from the Sudo folks on the list. If you want to start using that room
>>>> - let me know and I will make a copy for you as well. Right now, about 5
>>>> people have keys to that room. My apologies for some of the junk lying
>>>> around - still making my way through it.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -Eddan
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On 7/3/12 9:15 AM, Jehan Tremback wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Cool, I can bring $50 by for the next meeting... are we meeting this
>>>> wednesday? I guess my question would be, once I have helped pay, how can I
>>>> access the space to work there? I would love to get started hackin' in our
>>>> new hackerspace. Which part of the building are we actually renting, and how
>>>> do I get in?
>>>>
>>>> -Jehan
>>>>
>>>> On Mon, Jul 2, 2012 at 8:09 PM, Eddan Katz <eddan at oaklandlocal.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>> Thanks for the immediate offers to help out - on and off list. I'm sorry
>>>>> if the intended tone of my suggestion didn't come across. I was actually a
>>>>> supporter of postponing the decision to use existing funds until we have a
>>>>> better sense of how we work and what we're about. I'm very glad to hear
>>>>> people think we're at a critical mass and are impatient to move forward.
>>>>>
>>>>> Given our current status as an unincorporated association of people, a
>>>>> proposal for voluntary contributions seemed to make the most sense. To
>>>>> clarify, I was hoping to use the occasion for paying July rent to expand our
>>>>> base of people who are connected and feel involved in Sudo Room. I am hoping
>>>>> that this would be incentive to get more people on board. It was not meant
>>>>> to be a suggestion for another fundraising campaign for Sudo Room. By
>>>>> suggesting that everyone give an equal amount, I think we can demonstrate
>>>>> how small that amount can be.
>>>>>
>>>>> For example, if 12 people go in together (including me) - then it will
>>>>> be less than $50. If split by 77 (the current number of email subscribers to
>>>>> the list) - it would be $7.50 each. If divided by 142 (number of likes on
>>>>> Facebook), we would each pay $4.
>>>>>
>>>>> There are many ways to cover mutual expenses without necessarily using a
>>>>> membership dues model. I think we should give ourselves the opportunity to
>>>>> try them out - at least in the interim.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> sent from +1(415) 728-5800
>>>>>
>>>>> On Jul 2, 2012, at 7:01 PM, "mattsenate at gmail.com"
>>>>> <mattsenate at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Eddan,
>>>>>
>>>>> I wish we were in a better position to have sorted this out before July,
>>>>> I am happy to kick in some cash, and I think we could get art murmur
>>>>> donations easily too.
>>>>>
>>>>> Tracy,
>>>>>
>>>>> I'm very much interested in establishing, very soon, a way to contribute
>>>>> regular dues, and to take donations from people who use and appreciate sudo
>>>>> resources infrequently.
>>>>>
>>>>> However, it would be smart to establish what paying dues means. To me
>>>>> they should carry reasonable weight and an articulated benefit to the
>>>>> duepayer. This of course must cherish a commitment to access and
>>>>> participation not contingent on funds. I believe that is hat underlies this
>>>>> whole governance discussion.
>>>>>
>>>>> I plan to explain this position in more detail on wiki and with more
>>>>> resources!
>>>>>
>>>>> Join me http://hackerspaces.org/wiki/Sudo_room/Governance_Structure
>>>>>
>>>>> - Matt
>>>>>
>>>>> ----- Reply message -----
>>>>> From: "Tracy Jacobs" <kinetical at comcast.net>
>>>>> Date: Mon, Jul 2, 2012 5:51 pm
>>>>> Subject: [sudoroom] July Rent: Inversion of a Ponzi Scheme?
>>>>> To: "Eddan Katz" <eddan at oaklandlocal.com>
>>>>> Cc: <sudoroom at lists.hackerspaces.org>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Sorry Eddan,
>>>>>
>>>>> I can give you fifty dollars for July when I next see you or  by
>>>>> paypal if you prefer.  I don't understand the politics here or why we
>>>>> are not deciding to pay some dues for rent.
>>>>>
>>>>> Tracy
>>>>>
>>>>> Tracy
>>>>> On Jul 2, 2012, at 5:32 PM, Eddan Katz wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> At the decision-making in-gathering last week, it was decided not to
>>>>>> make a decision about existing Sudo Room fund-raising income to be
>>>>>> used to pay rent at 2135 Broadway, at this time. The rationale being
>>>>>> that we've had a hard enough time making a decision about how to
>>>>>> make decisions that the process should probably not be complicated
>>>>>> any further. I applaud our resilience of deliberation, but then
>>>>>> there is the matter of July rent.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I would like to propose something not on behalf of Sudo Room
>>>>>> officially, but that I hope will help us accomplish our goals, at
>>>>>> this time. The rent due for July for the "Box Office" and "Orange
>>>>>> Closet" amounts to $575. Since the "box office" will be central to
>>>>>> our Art Murmur happening and the "orange closet" continues to be
>>>>>> filled in our obsolete technology drive, I wanted to ask the good
>>>>>> Sudo folk on this list to pitch in for that amount. Tracy already
>>>>>> gave me $40 last week and Marc publicly announced his willingness to
>>>>>> give me $60 on-list. I want to make sure that everyone is clear
>>>>>> about the fact that if you would like to give me money at any time,
>>>>>> you are most welcome to. I have accounts with most mobile and online
>>>>>> payment providers, if that makes it any easier.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> But in terms of the $575 for July rent at 2135 Broadway, I wanted to
>>>>>> continue in our straw poll practice of gauging how many people would
>>>>>> be willing to chip in. If you're willing to go in together on rent
>>>>>> for the space in July, please reply to this email with a +1 (to me
>>>>>> and/or the list). By 6pm on Friday (the start of Art Murmur), I will
>>>>>> ask these voluntary contributors to give me $575 divided by the
>>>>>> number of people willing to volunteer. Needless to say - the higher
>>>>>> the number of people contributing, the lower the contribution
>>>>>> amount. If the number of contributors results in a sum too steep for
>>>>>> any volunteer in particular, the Art Murmur event could be an
>>>>>> opportunity to draw in others to cover that amount.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> This contribution does not constitute membership in Sudo Room, nor
>>>>>> does it enable special voting power, the use of a shelf, or a free t-
>>>>>> shirt. I was hoping though to get some help to display a running
>>>>>> list of the names of contributors against one of the walls at 2135
>>>>>> Broadway on Friday. If someone objects to the use of this list to
>>>>>> solicit July rent for and/or to the display of the names of this
>>>>>> group on the wall, please speak up and/or use the anonymous Sudo
>>>>>> pages to voice your concerns.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> -Eddan
>>>>>> [self-appointed exchequer]
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> sudoroom mailing list
>>>>>> sudoroom at lists.hackerspaces.org
>>>>>> http://lists.hackerspaces.org/mailman/listinfo/sudoroom
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
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>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>>
>>> __
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> victoriabogdan.com
>>>
>>>
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>>
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