[New-imc] ROGUE/KLAMATH-SISKIYOU

[Jay]

Hi Eddy, Andy, Nick, we know each other already.

Forrest, nice to meet you.  This is Jay from the Philadelphia IMC.  I've 
been involved with indymedia for quite some time, and with the new-imc 
working group since it started.  I'm just coming off of a several month 
break from Indymedia-related work, hoping to get involved again, albeit 
slowly and, ultimately, much less frantically than I have been in the past 
:).  I saw boud's message about needing help with U.S.-based new-imc groups 
and decided to see what I can do to make sure no aspiring IMCs are neglected.

Nick from the Houston IMC has offered to help a U.S.-based IMC through the 
new-imc process.  Nick, might you be interseted in working with this 
group?  I know Houston is nowhere near Southern Oregon/Northern California, 
and of course a more ideal situation would be for someone nearby to 
volunteer to help, but Nick, if you're offering to help with U.S.-based 
IMCs, maybe this will be a good match.

Reviewing the e-mails I've seen on the new-imc list, there seems to be a 
lot of great energy going into the Rogue Valley group already.  A main 
question that Andy (and boud)  have brought up here seems to be outreach -- 
when has enough outreach been done to solidify an IMC?  That's always a 
difficult question, and one that doesn't have the same answer across the 
board.  What we do know, from painful experience, is that most of the local 
IMCs that have failed or have had serious problems have had them partially, 
if not primarily, because there wasn't broad enough outreach done at the 
beginning.  Several of the failed or failing IMCs groups were so excited to 
become "official," web site and all, that they didn't reach the depth of 
organizing that perhaps would have helped them develop into sustainable, 
effective organizations.

So, when will the Rogue Valley IMC group have done enough outreach?  That's 
not easy to answer.  I do think we should all err greatly on the side of 
more time, rather than less, and I'm sure you'd all agree.  All the 
documents you've submitted attest to the fact that there's a lot of really 
positive thought going on within the group.  Perhaps it's a group that has 
to percolate a bit more, and extend itself more, before it's a broad enough 
effort to "grow into" all the work that the current members have 
done.  That's just my sense from reading the conversations that have 
happened here so far.

I'd be happy to talk with any of you about what you feel about that, so 
give me a call if you like (e-mail me and I'll give you my phone 
number).  In the meantime, if you all think you can work together (by that 
I mean the Rogue IMC group and Nick), perhaps you could communicate a bit, 
on or off the new-imc list.

Optimistic,

Jay