Chapter 7b
Types of Membership


We propose that there could be two (or possibly more) types of membership available. The two we have considered are ‘supporting membership’, and ‘governing membership’. We believe that creating different categories of membership will provide people a choice as to the level of participation that is most comfortable to them.


Supporting Membership

We believe that theories of fully participatory direct democracy held by some, (according to which all considerations and decisions must be subjected to a vote of all the people), as opposed to representative democracy, (in which responsibility for certain degrees of decision making is democratically delegated), fail to account for the fact that many people simply do not want to participate actively in daily decision-making.

It is simply the nature of people that many are simply too busy with other interests, or with managing the affairs of their lives, to find the time to keep themselves informed to the degree necessary to participate meaningfully in the group’s daily decision-making on an ongoing basis. Yet even so, they may very well be greatly enough concerned about the affairs and emergencies of our times that they want to both support the efforts of others, and participate to whatever limited extent that their time allows.

Supporting Members might be asked to pay a small initiation fee to join, and might be encouraged to make periodic supporting donations as their budgets allow. Various devices designed to encourage participation to the greatest extent possible could be created. The organization could publish one or more magazines, for example, (both online and in hard copy), with a subscription included in membership. Supporting Members can be encouraged to submit material that will appear in these publications, with vigorous 'readers' forums' provided to encourage interactive and ongoing participation.

Many accouterments of membership could be provided to both recruit members by providing ‘perceived value’ in exchange for the initiation fee, and to promote the organization by circulating its logo and ‘brand’ out into the general population. Bumper stickers, door emblems, clothing items, (hats, t-shirts, etc), coffee cups, and useful items of all kinds that project the representational emblems and ethos of the organization, could be offered to provide members with a means of being identified with the goals and aspirations of the organization.

As Supporting Members, people might have limited privileges, and be encouraged to participate in the group’s communications apparatus, (blogs, general discussion groups, etc), while not having the privilege of participating as the actual business of the organization is discussed and voted on. Or, perhaps they might be provided limited voting rights, (as constitutionally defined), to vote for certain offices, (such as the organization’s president, perhaps), or on certain types of issues that affect them directly, or on issues that affect the organization’s most basic directions and purposes, (rather than its ongoing daily business).


Governing Membership

Governing Members will be those who want to fully participate in the organization’s daily functions and decision-making. We believe that one of the most crucially important functional tenets of the organization must be that Governing Members should be required to pay regular dues to the organization in order to provide it with an ongoing financial means of operations and activity. The administration of these dues, these united resources, will be the basic purpose of the organization. The decisions required to determine how the group will apply its united resources in pursuit of its established goals will constitute the organization’s ongoing business. (Our emphasis on creating a dues supported organization will be discussed more thoroughly in the next chapter, and also in chapter 10)

Governing Members should be expected to meet their responsibilities of citizenship. They should be expected to keep themselves informed on a daily and ongoing basis concerning the group's business and general proceedings, with quorum rules established that require them to vote on matters before the group or lose procedural status, (be dropped from quorum roles), and/or privileges. (This will be discussed more thoroughly in chapter 9).


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