[CIMC-work] onward decentrally... good luck!

[Doug Morris]

Hi all,

I sent the withdrawal note to some global lists today.

Having reflected on the conversations at the last cimc meeting and due to 
many responsibilities....

I am going to keep my indymedia volunteering mostly to indymedia local and 
perhaps some regional efforts for a good while (and I may keep my noodling 
to the consideration of various existing and possible local and regional 
things for awhile).

So, after things slow down in my personal life, I'll see you'll in a few 
months.

Good luck with the fund raiser and stuff!

Best, Doug

A fare well statement,
speaking for myself:

There is a lot of great media creativity and collaboration in the network 
of indymedia locals.

There are great positive works unfolding and many potentials in the network.

It is unclear whether the network in the long run will be *a* collaborative 
network or a loose collection of locals and networks with often not much 
connection. Or, perhaps there might evolve in indymedia networks hybrid 
changing mixes of overlapping loose and richly connected networks....

For what it's worth, having been watching and participating in global indy 
processes for 2 years and from a decentralist social theory point of view:

For the indymedia network to be a network for liberation of all people from 
all oppressions and not just a decentralized media process...

In addition to agreement to the principles of unity, there need to be 
editorial, comm, *and* techno-economic standards and processes in the 
network about how to *cooperatively* and *decentrally* express the unity 
principles in flexible processes for ongoing cooperation.  Because of the 
way that indymedia has multiplied .... those agreements seem unlikely any 
time soon.  Hopefully, such agreements will grow over time.  That will take 
a great deal of ongoing discussion, inquiry and strategizing.

I am in favor of encouraging the intentional collective planning for, and 
spontaneous growth of, decentralization -- between various groups of locals 
-- of global indy processes such as the global website, tech server issues, 
languages used, and finance planning/admin., etc...

In the Indymedia network as it is now, it seems there is a potential for 
oppression and blocking of indy activity from above and alienation from the 
locals, due to some centralization of tech, comm, editorial (in english), 
and finance processes.

Yet, already, various decentralized cooperation processes are evolving 
organically through inter-local collaborations now.  At some point those 
will hopefully come together with the global process... in dialog and 
planning.

This being a volunteer network, there is a natural built in turn over of 
facilitation work to encourage diversity of facilitation 
efforts...  Hopefully there will be a circulation of multiple comm and 
editorial efforts in an ongoing way.

So...

Due to weighty family and work commitments I have to bow out from 
co-facilitating the imc-process list and helping editing news updates and 
other activities for a good while.

I'll be reading indy wires and following the work in the indy network with 
deep appreciation....

Best of luck with everything,
Doug
stuck in the muck, plodding on, trusting in the power of people working 
together, and enjoying the scenery in Chicago