I agree with Wirt's point.  Here in Albany, Oregon (state added to avoid
Denys having to spend time figuring out which "Albany" I'm referring to)
Costco is trying to put in a new store. (For those that don't know, Costco
is a membership-based, bulk-purchase warehouse.)  95 percent of the town is
for this but there is a real vocal minority trying to stand against
it.  That minority has hired a lawyer and so forth.  With a little
investigation it was revealed that the costs for this legal battle are
being borne by three local gasoline suppliers.  (Costco also sells gas, at
a significant discount, to members.)  Once that information got out, the
minority's credibility suffered a large blow.

On a related issue, as Chairman of the MPE Forum for Interex, I'd like to
know what action you all would like for us to take. I'm pretty open.  :-)

I'll be sending my credit card number in soon, but not for $7,000. :-)


Bill

At 02:44 PM 08/16/2000, Wirt Atmar wrote:
>Ted writes:
>
> > There has been some talk of raising that limit.  As we're shooting for a
> >  high goal and as the life of the 3000 affects numerous vendors, I'd
> like to
> >  propose that vendor contributions be welcomed and that the cap be
> raised to
> >  $7000 (1/22 or roughly 4.5% of the total).
>
>Actually, let me disagree, if you don't mind.
>
>I believe the $1000 limit to be fairly important. In the years prior to the
>Boston "riot", several vendors pushed very hard for many years to get HP to
>change it's mind about a number of things, and many of those issues then were
>the same as they are now. Nonetheless, the reaction from HP, right up to the
>moment that they walked off the stage at Boston, was that it "was just a
>bunch of noisy vendors trying to save their own asses."
>
>Because we got nowhere with HP when it was just a bunch of noisy vendors (who
>tried to quietly work internally, within HP), success didn't come until we
>essentially recruited a large number of ordinary users to make their feelings
>known. In this kind of situation, ordinary users count a hundred times more
>than do the vendors. The vendors have an obvious vested interest in the
>success of the HP3000 -- and that interest can be discounted in just one
>sentence.
>
>However, on practical terms, a contribution limit shouldn't prove any barrier
>to those who want to give more (as anyone who's been watching the political
>process this year knows). Not only can your company give $1000, but so can
>you, your co-worker, and your dog. We'll gladly accept your dog's
>contribution.
>
>Nonetheless, the "appearance" of propriety is necessary.
>
>All kidding aside, I do believe that the number of contributors is more
>important than the dollar amount. The ad can always be reduced to a half-page
>or quarter-page if sufficient funds can't be raised. But the number of
>contributors remains the key.
>
>Wirt