Meeting Notes 2012 07 31

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http://piratepad.net/WyQ4H0S47o http://nburl.net/july31

Agenda

The XXXth Meeting of Noisebridge

Note-taker: User:Malaclyps Danny

Moderator: User:Zephry Zephyr

Introduction and Names

Noisebridge is a 501c3 nonprofit that provides a space for creation, collaboration, and learning about technology and creative projects. Noisebridge provides space, power tools, and infrastructure to help the public learn new skills and create cool things. Noisebridge continues to exist through and depends entirely on membership fees and donations. Our code of conduct is 'Be excellent to each other'."

  • Invite a knowledgeable volunteer to give a brief primer on consensus process: We agree and so should you! Only paid-up members can block consensus.
  • Introduce any new or unusual moderation techniques that you may be using during the meeting like: direct responses, limited speaking time, orderless stack, &c.
  • Round of introductions (remember, announcements come later):
    • What's your name,
    • are you a member,
    • what do you do, and
    • if you are new: how did you hear about Noisebridge?
  • Zephyr
  • Eric -- makes 16mm films! Maybe teach a 16mm film collective! Workshops!
  • Justin -- moved here about 5 months ago. I live in the mission!
  • Carlos -- I'm working on libnotify
  • Isis -- I'm still battling with the Great Firewall of China. Great firewalL WILL MAKE TOTAL DESTROY
  • (The Man They Call) Za -- I'm interested in authority (the least amounts of it)
  • Nick -- I'm using a javascript database.
  • Liz -- I just made cute mintyboost charging kit. Helping Malaclyps with killer robot.
  • Steffen (spook)-- I iOS program, and getting interested in Node.js. In and out of Noisebridge, I was curious about the radiation detector project. Everyone agrees that jake@spaz.org would know.
  • Eric -- He is the guy who edits wikipedia. Also interested in non-English language Dr Seuss
  • Snail -- I don't remember what I do. Always starting projects, sometimes going back to them.
  • Steve -- BRAINZZZ computer interface. Rebuilding brain interface for MC Hawking.
  • Alex -- makes Code Hero.
  • Danny -- I'm a retired trial lawyer. Heard there was an electron microscope. Interested in joining a
  • Danny -- I'm writing this sentence.
  • Leif -- I'm interested in counterantidisintermediation.
  • Andrew -- UI designer.
  • Mike -- work with leif on deep hack, digital spelunking for the 21st century, getting down and dirty with the insides of computers. Also technowander, not a quartermaster, or ombudsman.
  • Elyane -- a filmaker. Interested to do a workshop in film.
  • Bruno -- from Vienna, doing startup with seven other people. Wants to talking about delegated voting.
  • Evan -- says don't use ArchLinux, whatever you do. A CONTENTIOUS POINT OF DISCUSSION.

Short Announcements

Toorcamp! Toorcamp! Toorcamp! We are still collecting people for Toorcamp. There is a bus going to Toorcamp! It's a hacker thing in the woods. Some discussion ensues about the Magic Seatless Occubus that is going to Toorcamp. There will be ham radio.

New or Stale Events

Membership Binder

  • Invite a knowledgeable volunteer to describe membership, and the application process.

Being a member of Noisebridge is not like being a member of a gym or your local chess club. Anyone can come to Noisebridge to hack and learn: you don't need to be a member for that. At Noisebridge, membership is something different: it means taking responsibility and committing to help to maintain, improve, and govern Noisebridge. As a member of Noisebridge, you don't just come here to hack and learn, you actively work to improve what you see around you, help to deal with problems, and make this community better than it is today.

If you want to show your commitment to Noisebridge and the community here without becoming a capital-M-Member, consider being a Noisebridge associate. Associates pay their dues to the treasurer just like members, use the space just like members, and are valued participants in the community just like members. The difference is that associate membership doesn't involve consensus: there's no need to go through consensus to become an associate, but associates don't get to block consensus either.

Financial Report

  • Funds in bank: I think we're doing okay.
  • Noisetor (See the bulletpoints at the bottom of http://noisetor.net/finances/#summary):
    • There are $1974.25 earmarked NoiseTor funds
    • Colo service has been paid through Jul 7, 2012
    • There are enough funds to pay for an additional 2 months of colo
    • This information was updated at Tue Jul 31 20:30:03 2012

Consensus items

You may wish to invite a knowledgeable volunteer to repeat a brief primer on the consensus process.

Proposals from last week

(Add any items which pass or are blocked to the Consensus Items History page.) Malaclyps: Is worried that if we spent 10K on party + sent someone to singapore (like last time), I would feel guilty because he works w/ foundation. So this 10 grand will go to our prudent reserve. So wouldn't want to spend it on specific projuects, just two months' operating expenses. The other objection that had been cited was that the Thiel foundation connected to Peter Thiel, and Peter Thiel connected to Palantir, which datamines for the state.

Leif: Not the problem that Palantir datamines for the state, but that it was mentioned in the Bank of America-connected attack on journalists reporting on Wikileaks. He is aalso not a fan of the source of Thiel's wealth: Paypal + facebook. He agreed long ago at last meetings to stand aside but thinks we really, really shouldn't do this. It's not as no-straightforward as it's being made to sound. I understand we can pay a rent, but if they wanted to sue, which he doesn't think they do, they sue us over the contract. It's important to understand that we are entering into a contract that says this 10K is only for operating expenses. We can give them a receipt, but that doesn't make me feel any better about this.

Ben: Don't see a problem. That's that they *want* us to spend it on.

Leif: But we're ALREADY paying our rent.

Malaclyps: I've worked w/ Thiel fund a lot in past couple of years. I'm not sure he can speak to all the connections, but i can really say they would be totally happy spending this on operating expenses only, and, i'm totally happy being the person saying we spent it on just that. I have a continuing relationship with them so i would lose a lot more than just getting sued as a board member, so willing to put a lot more than that on the line for this.

Alex: dealings w/ paypal mafia at hackmeet a while ago. a friend of his "hazed" him for wearing "hack the future" shirt. feels bad being associated with tear on the face of it, but the shirt is for an org called hack the furuture and a bunch of ppl work at , just hackers like us who happen to work for a shady company. asked him str8 up, "aht the hell? how do you wepxlain your won actions?" said they wanted to make this softwae to make sure no one would abuse sw like it. But ther's a thing this is about, which is the 20 under 20... sepeaking tomororw at hackademic camp. unschooling folks...originally asked by danielle abt coming to nb, sorry, really busy. hasn't seen contract till tonight but only has obligation of 1 501c3 to another teal fellowship is just a bunch of smart kids under 20, and we should welcome them. i hope when someone saysd, "I heard about this from the teal fellowship," they we don't attack the n00bs. There's the utiopian positive arm of tf, and then abi evil capitalist arm, but utopians are awesome. OTher thing brough upt , tshirt as example, fact that you're wearing it "exuses them" because using alex' social capital of wearing shirt. Malc: different from the teal foundation also don't thing tf is particularly interested in riding off nb's social capital or would even think of it malc: they have plenty alex: when there's a drecte "his is going into bed with this" but it's enough places removed it shouldn't be an issue. used to black-marker all m$ logos off shirts but hasn't gotten around to it w/ hack/future t's. Malac: proposes putting up for consensus. Leif: stops paying nb dues for 1 yr. will probably spend his personal surplus on nb projects mod: proposals for next week... Malaclyps: No, no, no! Consensus! You need to do the magic words. Stand aside? Block? As such, it is the consensus of Noisebridge that we are taking this money. Malac: Yuck! @: Do-overs? feels like ppl really want to use the money to do "something" Is that consensus? I don't think it is. Is anybody about taking this money? Alex: I am! Formally noted what it is spent for Snail: + we don't have long discussions on what it's spent on malc: prooposes it's the con Trying to find wording that makes us feel better abt taking $$$. If we're worried it's not consesnsus we should do it. Worried Leif + Carlos aren't happy. Carl0s: Agreesw/ lief. Alex: Missed last discussion, doesn't want to rehash, but what in particular abt him? carlos: feels like it's another individual whos washing their money w/ a nonprofit. happens a lot in the bay. i cannot assure to you that peter does that, but don¿'t ahve time nor tinfo for that, but as individula wantys to defend himself w/ facts, what is really going on? malac: heard it was a sort of $$ laundering tax dodge; this isn't how tax dodges work, hee doesn't pay any less tax leif: him, no but his foundations chairtable found very much a tax shaleter, maybe pejeorative + legal, but it's true he's a wealthey libertarian. all lbillionaries have nonprofits + it's not because they're all really nice ppl. rul is they have to spent 5% of total vlalue + don't pay taxes on profit from investments so he can give away + invest in for-profit enterprisees his wealth is in this foundation, no? doesn't actually work that way. for instandce if i'm 501ce + you decide y0ou're going to invest in an, tere is intese shit you ahve to go thru w/ board. it's not his money, board controls it. but there are multi-gemneraltional keeping-it-in-fam $$$, but this is 1st gen. no, he doesn't pay taxes, but it's not really his money anymore, even if he gets director's salary. what you say on multigen level what leif says has merit but in single gen doesn't work that way mod: have we arrived at any new conclusions abt stance? carl: nothing against ... but nb really believescan really succedd independ..} malac: i do to.. iv'e been wavering on this too, and i think the thing that conveinced me is to push this more was that we get a fair bit of our money that we use on a regular basis from cheques of this size, maybe not quite, but 1 months aog we got one fro 1000 bux from silicon valley charity, so it's my feelthing that his money, aside from this contract that we have to sign is pretty much part of the ebb and flow of money that we get, and how we get moneys is to get donations like this. agrees we need to maintina tindependence, but our independence edependads on sporadic charity of individuals like this + doesn't really change how we work. alex: reason for previous statement: not a great outcome if wevery1 feels like this is dirty money + theese are bad people. all these supersci save-the-workd type of projects .. doesnt' thingk they're evil + thikns if a buncyh of ppl from 20 u 20 show up, it's s good source of new awesome hackers, and there's a bunch of peopel from paluntree r who show up to use nb. ñeif: s welcome as anyone else to use nb, + they re wlcome to be members but that's not related to thte granty. other than being its reason for existing. alac. like to try to rejoin the consesnsus, rewored to say we'¿re going to use $$$ exclusifvely for paying rent why not jus t break it donw + pay a bit of 12 mos rent? does any1 have objections to moving on? leif: shoul write doewn how many ppl are standing aside: at least 2 + maybe more... 4 two wks ago, and malac withdrew it malac: because if there were 4 stand asides we should talk abt it some more. not as a threat, but i'm only doing it this week because there was a strong consensus that he should do it one more wk but he's not going to bring this up again. and they're totally fie either way. anyone else awnt to voice? no one want ts of have 10 mmeeeting to talking abt what to do with 10000$. we have agone to 4 with this Standing aside: Leif, Carlos, El Presidente - doesn't want her executive powers to present a conflict of interest.


Wording of the consensus: It is consensus of Noisebridge that the grant be accepted, and the money be used exclusively for paying operating expenses.

Proposals for next week

(Add any new items for consensus to the Current Consensus Items page.) God forbid Does anyone think a fundraiser with a goal? Alex's roommates think a big giant cartoon thermometer is the way to go mo

Discussion Items

If an item of discussion drags on too long, further discussion may be postponed until after the meeting ends. During discussion, it is not necessary to write down exact what each person says. Record the topics of discussion, and any items of consensus or controversy here. Detailed descriptions of the conversation should go on the discuss page for this meeting. Praveen proposed that Noisebridge fiscally sponsor the new Oakland hackerspace's fundraising activities. We deferred until Kelly the Treasurer had a chance to chip in with her opinion.

End of Meeting

  • PGP Key Signing could happen now, check the list to see who wants in on the action.
  • Return the membership binder to it's rightful location.
  • Clean and tidy the meeting notes, then save them to the wiki.
  • Send a summary of the meeting notes to the discussion list.
  • Enjoy the company of your fellow hacker o* Discuss any items for which there was not time during the meeting.

r robot.