[sudo-discuss] Instant 24/7 access? Do we allow for this? And how?

[Yardena Cohen]

(Rusty: sorry for the double e-mail)

On Thu, Apr 4, 2013 at 11:56 AM, rusty lindgren <rustylindgren at gmail.com> wrote:
> Basically, it's easy for us to think "hey, we should let this person have
> access, because they seem cool, and we want to remain open," but even I get
> sketched out at night sometimes, and there are real safety issues at work
> here, and we should discuss them in relation to cost/benefits for the space.
> It's also entirely possible that we trust someone, and they just do
> something bad anyway.  We don't really spend a lot of time thinking about
> this, but this is something we haven't had to really deal with yet, because
> we've had really shitty access up until now.

Honestly I'm not comfortable linking access to payment, for a lot of
reasons, but I'll try to outline the most salient thing for me right
now:

* I don't think access means anything if a person can't feel safe here
* I don't feel safe when I'm at the space all alone
* I feel even better when I'm sharing the space with multiple people
who I know and trust
* Our goal should be for the space to be full of known & trusted
people -- if not always, then as much as possible
* It would be silly to turn anybody away at that point

So my goal day in and day out is to look for ways to expand Sudoroom's
web of trust - not just get people to the space, not just facilitate
and encourage them giving money to the space, but helping them feel
happy and comfortable and like they could be a part of a community,
and that coming here will give them a chance to hack awesome things,
work on their projects, get inspired for new projects.

I'm open to solutions in the form of rules and algorithms, but I'm
skeptical of any solutions that seem to close doors (literally &
figuratively) because Sudoroom and hackerspaces in general are so new
and experimental.

The scepter of an untrusted person being alone in the space is
important, but I honestly don't see a good reliable antidote other
than "add more trusted people." Safety in numbers.