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Hugo Awards controversy
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<blockquote data-quote="EKovarr" data-source="post: 9285172" data-attributes="member: 7044826"><p>People are confused because I’ve been confusing, numbers unrelated to other in the same post. And was annoyed enough that I really exaggerated one. I’ll try starting with the structure with the numbers in the right place. Please, <em>please</em> remember that I’m speaking only for myself, and that I’ll probably get some things wrong.</p><p></p><p>There is the World Science Fiction <u>Society</u>, usually abbreviated to WSFS. Anyone who wants to can become a member. WSFS is not set up for that; you join via the seated Worldcon. (This is why it used to be called a “supporting membership” for that convention.) As with all societies there are benefits of being a member.</p><p></p><p>The Society has an annual convention called, not surprisingly, the World Science Fiction <u>Convention</u>. Often referred to as a Worldcon, sometimes by the name or the location. Worldcons are chosen by a vote of the members of WSFS and everyone who’s a member of WSFS can attend. Each Worldcon sets it’s own attending rates.</p><p></p><p>In any given year number of members of WSFS runs from 5,000 to 7, 000, perhaps 1,000 of them not attending the convention.</p><p></p><p></p><p>The World Science Fiction Society has a constitution and the only way to change the way WSFS does thing amend, change, the Constitution. This is done at the WSFS Business Meeting, often abbreviated to the BM. Some people have claimed that it’s difficult, confusing, arcane, insular, all sorts of things.</p><p></p><p>Balderdash. Any attending member of WSFS can be there and everyone is welcome. They’re held three mornings of the Worldcon, generally 10:00 AM to 12:01 PM. The meetings are run under Roberts Rules of Order, there’s a one-page handout that covers pretty much everything you need. If you get stuck sit next to someone and ask. The other handout to pick up is the Order of Business, which sounds fancy. It’s just the proposed amendments and changes with the sponsors explanation of what each is supposed to do.</p><p></p><p>Someone once mentioned a serpentine vote as an example of how difficult the BM is to understand but it’s just counting off, something 3rd graders do it all the time. The number of people who’ve counted off at past Business Meetings gives me a very rough estimate is that about 150 members of WSFS attend. They don’t do it because they’re control freaks or want to be in charge, or are in charge: someone’s got to do it and they’ve volunteered for the job.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Worldcons themselves are the annual WSFS convention but each one is a separate entity, legally, financially, how they do things, pretty much everything. This is where you find organization: obviously a convention has to be organized if it’s going to happen. Typical is a Chair or Co-Chairs who head up the Committee. That is made up of Divisions such as Member Services, Programming, Exhibits, Logistics, etc. Divisions are then broken into Departments, Tech, the various Program Tracks, some, such as Exhibits, further broken down.</p><p></p><p>You need people who know what they’re doing at management levels, sometimes they’ll choose advisors as well. Which is why “The same people working all the time!” Volunteering, working, is the only way you’re going to learn this. If you’re an epidemiologist you don’t know the first thing about programming. You don’t learn more about programming unless you do this year after year. People know when to move you up and in which area of Programming depending on your experience. I’ve never particularly thought about how many people are required. But it’s not just all those people, it’s the kid who wandered in, volunteered, and is now watching a door.</p><p></p><p></p><p>However. When I said there were thousands of people who could have stepped in to help Chengdu I wasn’t thinking: a lot of those positions required getting to China in the first place. But there are thousands of people who know how to do things. Denver is an extreme, high-speed example: they didn’t expect to win the Worldcon, the Chair wasn’t even staying, but by 10:00 AM the next day they were selling memberships. Things need to be done, people get them done. That they didn’t in 2023 doesn’t let the Westerners off the hook. But this is one of my communities and I'm a bit bitter about the whole thing.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="EKovarr, post: 9285172, member: 7044826"] People are confused because I’ve been confusing, numbers unrelated to other in the same post. And was annoyed enough that I really exaggerated one. I’ll try starting with the structure with the numbers in the right place. Please, [I]please[/I] remember that I’m speaking only for myself, and that I’ll probably get some things wrong. There is the World Science Fiction [U]Society[/U], usually abbreviated to WSFS. Anyone who wants to can become a member. WSFS is not set up for that; you join via the seated Worldcon. (This is why it used to be called a “supporting membership” for that convention.) As with all societies there are benefits of being a member. The Society has an annual convention called, not surprisingly, the World Science Fiction [U]Convention[/U]. Often referred to as a Worldcon, sometimes by the name or the location. Worldcons are chosen by a vote of the members of WSFS and everyone who’s a member of WSFS can attend. Each Worldcon sets it’s own attending rates. In any given year number of members of WSFS runs from 5,000 to 7, 000, perhaps 1,000 of them not attending the convention. The World Science Fiction Society has a constitution and the only way to change the way WSFS does thing amend, change, the Constitution. This is done at the WSFS Business Meeting, often abbreviated to the BM. Some people have claimed that it’s difficult, confusing, arcane, insular, all sorts of things. Balderdash. Any attending member of WSFS can be there and everyone is welcome. They’re held three mornings of the Worldcon, generally 10:00 AM to 12:01 PM. The meetings are run under Roberts Rules of Order, there’s a one-page handout that covers pretty much everything you need. If you get stuck sit next to someone and ask. The other handout to pick up is the Order of Business, which sounds fancy. It’s just the proposed amendments and changes with the sponsors explanation of what each is supposed to do. Someone once mentioned a serpentine vote as an example of how difficult the BM is to understand but it’s just counting off, something 3rd graders do it all the time. The number of people who’ve counted off at past Business Meetings gives me a very rough estimate is that about 150 members of WSFS attend. They don’t do it because they’re control freaks or want to be in charge, or are in charge: someone’s got to do it and they’ve volunteered for the job. Worldcons themselves are the annual WSFS convention but each one is a separate entity, legally, financially, how they do things, pretty much everything. This is where you find organization: obviously a convention has to be organized if it’s going to happen. Typical is a Chair or Co-Chairs who head up the Committee. That is made up of Divisions such as Member Services, Programming, Exhibits, Logistics, etc. Divisions are then broken into Departments, Tech, the various Program Tracks, some, such as Exhibits, further broken down. You need people who know what they’re doing at management levels, sometimes they’ll choose advisors as well. Which is why “The same people working all the time!” Volunteering, working, is the only way you’re going to learn this. If you’re an epidemiologist you don’t know the first thing about programming. You don’t learn more about programming unless you do this year after year. People know when to move you up and in which area of Programming depending on your experience. I’ve never particularly thought about how many people are required. But it’s not just all those people, it’s the kid who wandered in, volunteered, and is now watching a door. However. When I said there were thousands of people who could have stepped in to help Chengdu I wasn’t thinking: a lot of those positions required getting to China in the first place. But there are thousands of people who know how to do things. Denver is an extreme, high-speed example: they didn’t expect to win the Worldcon, the Chair wasn’t even staying, but by 10:00 AM the next day they were selling memberships. Things need to be done, people get them done. That they didn’t in 2023 doesn’t let the Westerners off the hook. But this is one of my communities and I'm a bit bitter about the whole thing. [/QUOTE]
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