Hey ya'll (or I guess I have to call ya'll you'ins now that I've moved to SW PA :wink:) There's a lot of talk of all kinds of get-togethers over in the Straight, Inc. forums. The last conference was more of a bash than a stiff, morose conference. Some serious business got done, but a good time was had by almost all and I, for one, think that's most important.
Anyway, last time I spent any time in this forum, not many were real interested in my train of thought on the whole thing. But maybe we have some more common ground now.
Basically, we're pretty close to having a formal non-profit organization set up. We have the name picked out; Survivors And Friends for the Ethical Treatment of Youth Network (SAFETY Net). It still may not happen, as there's some contention about what, exactly, the mission should be. Basically, I'm of the mind to just formalize what the hell we've all been doing spontaniously all along so that people who have money to donate and want to see it go to good use (and take a tax deduction) can shop what it is we're doing and decide if they want to support it.
One real popular idea is to do fundraisers in the form of purely recreational parties. Maybe a cruise or weekend camping trip... whatever your fancy. We get a group rate, mark it up enough to put a few coins to the project for postage, research or whatever, but still come in a good deal cheaper than individuals paying their own way.
If you're at all inclined to explore the idea, get in touch with us in some of the other forums, read Wes' site at
http://thestraights.com/ and weigh in on what kind of mission you would or would not support in this way. Personally, I'm all for just doing the research and filings to enforce existing law, maybe repeal some of the DFAF contrived laws that favor coercive treatment and piss testing and to support these open forums where anyone can say whatever they want to about the whole thing.
Oh, and those gratis background checks provided to current employers and constituents.... I think those are worth supporting :wink:
