[sudo-discuss] [BAPS-Organizing] Re: [omni-discuss] Replacing the term "bottom-liner" with..?

[Ed Rippy]

On 01/11/2015 10:17 PM, Michael Nicoloff wrote:
> I know on the BAPS side of things there's been on-and-off problems 
> with finding enough people to bottom-line classes, and that often the 
> duties of bottom-lining have unevenly fallen on a few key people, so 
> that even if the name bottom-liner hasn't struck me as a problem, the 
> organizing practice has at times felt built on shaky ground. What in 
> theory is a non-coercive, equal, from-each-to-each kind of 
> horizontalism becomes not so much that in practice, with 
> responsibility (and power) concentrating/burdening a small number of 
> folks.

-- This always happens. Democracy is a great ideal, & it wd be even 
greater if our fundamental equality as human beans translated into 
equality of work output. It doesn't for a lot of reasons. This is the 
toughest part of the whole process.

    The only way to reduce this problem is for more people to step up. 
This is very tough, because pretty much all of us are overextended 
anyway, but it's still crucial. We all grow up in a society where just 
about everything happens because someone gets paid to bottomline it. If 
we want to create an alternative we need to deprogram ourselves & 
realize that there ain't no-one else to do it. Many of us are also 
programmed to feel that we aren't good enough and can't be 'leaders.' 
This is what we have to transform if sudo room or omni is gonna survive. 
Unfortunately I can't offer a whole lot myself, but I'll think of 
something. One thing I've learned is that little things add up.

    We need to know ea. other & trust ea. other if we're really going to 
work together. And we need to believe that our efforts will actually pay 
off -- that they'll be well received & help create some great experience.

>
> So I feel like lurking under concerns about the name are questions of 
> organization, of how to ensure a horizontalism not just in name but 
> also in reality, and so it seems like any discussion of renaming the 
> bottom-liner task is also going to have to take a real look at our 
> practices as collectives. Maybe I'm getting a little far afield here, 
> but it seems like pulling on the thread of what to call what we're 
> calling a bottom-liner pulls a lot of other issues with it.
-- Me 2. The term "bottom-liner" has gotten pretty traditional, & I 
can't think of any great alternatives. "Project Manager?" Gack. We can 
change the name if we like, but IMO it's more important to talk about 
what the bottlenecks are & how we can be creative working together so 
more people feel like getting involved. I'm a newb here so I don't know 
the issues/specifics, but I've been an activist long enough to know the 
pattern. We need to hack our mindsets so that we all see a little bit of 
organizing/bottomlining here & there as part of a fun life.

Cheers,
Ed Rippy