Out with Godwin, In with the new sycophant Options Rating

[thekohser]

This seems very, very, very, very, very fishy to me.

How does a non-profit 501-c-3 that files a Form 990 intend to keep secret, forever, a severance package for one of the top paid employees of the organization?

What rotten thing is going on here?

(Original and official announcement is here.)

This post has been edited by thekohser: Tue 19th October 2010, 7:53pm

[NuclearWarfare]

Quite interesting that they wrote up a Q&A summary that anticipated most of the usual questions. Have they done that before?

[GlassBeadGame]

Quite interesting that they wrote up a Q&A summary that anticipated most of the usual questions. Have they done that before?

I did not heretofore understand that FAQ meant Frequently Avoided Questions.

...and three days notice? WTF?

I'm currently reading an account of the Tlatelolco Massacre of '68. After the event one of the students described the way they read the newspapers as "Why is my government telling me this particular lie at this particular moment?"

[Kevin]

Quite interesting that they wrote up a Q&A summary that anticipated most of the usual questions. Have they done that before?

I did not heretofore understand that FAQ meant Frequently Avoided Questions.

...and three days notice? WTF?

I'm currently reading an account of the Tlatelolco Massacre of '68. After the event one of the students described the way they read the newspapers as "Why is my government telling me this particular lie at this particular moment?"

3 days notice and a severance package tells me that he was pushed, and pushed hard. And the list of things that are not the reason leave a lot less to speculate on.

[TungstenCarbide]

meh ... sounds like he got laid off - fired without cause.

Since when do people who quit get severance packages.

I suppose the unprofessional and childish public letter to the FBI didn't help.

[Kelly Martin]

meh ... sounds like he got laid off - fired without cause.

That's the official line, of course. But the reality is that he was shoved out the door for being incompatible with Sue's vision of what Wikimedia is about.

It'll be interesting whether Erik gets shoved next. He's pretty much the last of "Jimmy's people" (defined as people who were part of the Foundation before Sue came along). Jimmy himself better be watching his back; it's a matter of time before Sue and Company decide that he, too, is redundant.

[GlassBeadGame]

meh ... sounds like he got laid off - fired without cause.

That's the official line, of course. But the reality is that he was shoved out the door for being incompatible with Sue's vision of what Wikimedia is about.

It'll be interesting whether Erik gets shoved next. He's pretty much the last of "Jimmy's people" (defined as people who were part of the Foundation before Sue came along). Jimmy himself better be watching his back; it's a matter of time before Sue and Company decide that he, too, is redundant.

My hope is that this is a move away from FreeKulture. Not only will this open up the possibility of acting in a more responsible manner but strained relations might make FK and the tech press less likely to circle the wagons the next time WP steps in something nasty. Yep, could be Erik next.

[Kelly Martin]

My hope is that this is a move away from FreeKulture. Not only will this open up the possibility of acting in a more responsible manner but strained relations might make FK and the tech press less likely to circle the wagons the next time WP steps in something nasty. Yep, could be Erik next.

That could happen, but there's no reason to believe it will. Sue's only interest in governing Wikimedia as her personal fiefdom is going to be in maintaining revenue. While I don't believe she has any real commitment to FreeKulture the way Moeller does, at the same time she probably believes that many of her donors do, and so she will not actively encourage any change on this front. Absent Moeller's influence, I suspect Wikimedia would move away from its current positions on such matters only in a piecemeal fashion, as specific incidents lead to ad hoc edicts necessary to keep specific donors happy.

[SB_Johnny]

My hope is that this is a move away from FreeKulture. Not only will this open up the possibility of acting in a more responsible manner but strained relations might make FK and the tech press less likely to circle the wagons the next time WP steps in something nasty. Yep, could be Erik next.

That could happen, but there's no reason to believe it will. Sue's only interest in governing Wikimedia as her personal fiefdom is going to be in maintaining revenue. While I don't believe she has any real commitment to FreeKulture the way Moeller does, at the same time she probably believes that many of her donors do, and so she will not actively encourage any change on this front. Absent Moeller's influence, I suspect Wikimedia would move away from its current positions on such matters only in a piecemeal fashion, as specific incidents lead to ad hoc edicts necessary to keep specific donors happy.

Meow! Pfft! Pffffft!

When does Sue have to go through re-election/re-rubberstamping?