tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6115556433372076865.post1590683230498305078..comments2022-03-08T01:26:13.872-08:00Comments on <a href="https://votermedia.blogspot.ca">Votermedia Democracy Blog</a>: Locust or Bumblebee raises votermedia design issuesMark Lathamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05570922352903867246noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6115556433372076865.post-59614617133856604482010-11-29T21:39:46.271-08:002010-11-29T21:39:46.271-08:00Thanks Sam for your excellent blog, interest in vo...Thanks Sam for your excellent blog, interest in votermedia, and discussion of this important design question. The AMS Elections Administrator and I would love to have more blogs in this contest. But it's important that student money be directed by students. To ensure that, building a login system at votermedia.org is a high priority this year. Until we get that done, we think it's best to limit entry to websites whose main audience is UBC students.<br /><br />This is not my decision, although I give advice on it. It's an AMS decision. Their point person on votermedia is the AMS Elections Administrator, and as you saw from his email a few hours ago, his view seems similar to mine. But he's the one you would need to convince.<br /><br />Replying to your specific points:<br /><br />1. To add some explanation to my quote -- attracting voters (from the UBC AMS community) is a bigger challenge than keeping voters out (who are outside the community) as long as we limit entry to websites whose main audience is UBC students. If we relaxed that restriction, then voting from outside UBC would become the bigger challenge.<br /><br />2. I agree that there are many things relevant to a UBC student and the community here at UBC besides what happens within the boundaries of Pacific Spirit Park. My advice on not accepting your blog into the contest is not based on its quality or interest level. The whole idea of votermedia is that those judgements should be made democratically, not by contest administrators. But the decision should be made democratically by UBC students.<br /><br />3. I believe that the UBC community is interested in your work. But I also think the city of Vancouver community is interested in your work, and many people beyond that also. Which is great, of course, but we don't want to send UBC student money to places directed by so many people who are not UBC students. I hope the City of Vancouver will fund a blog contest so you could be in it. I funded one for Vancouver 2 years ago as a trial run – see <a href="http://votermedia.org/van/index.html" rel="nofollow">votermedia.org/van/index.html</a>.<br /><br />And again, I'm sure you'd be welcome to enter the AMS's one-time votermedia contest in January 2011, which has a UBC login requirement to vote.Mark Lathamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05570922352903867246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6115556433372076865.post-193956902666039732010-11-29T20:36:44.278-08:002010-11-29T20:36:44.278-08:00really appreciate all the hard work that goes into...really appreciate all the hard work that goes into this funding model and its support structure; I really do think it makes a difference.<br /><br />that being said, if "attracting voters (from the UBC AMS community) is a bigger challenge than keeping voters out (who are outside the community)" then I do not see why the location of our readers is much of an issue. At least not any more than those who use separate computers to vote more than once already. <br /><br />Call me crazy, but I am of the belief, that there are many things relevant to a UBC student and the community here at UBC besides what happens within the boundaries of Pacific Spirit Park. And I think you would be hard pressed to find a student who finds Locust or Bumblebee's posts about frugal student living in this city, fundraisers put on by UBC student-musicians and homeless policy on the DTES less relevant than the (justified) rants on "Tyler's Blog." Agree or disagree, but this is something that can only be decided democratically.<br /><br />We'll go to whatever lengths we have to to show that the UBC community is interested in our work - through raw traffic information, petition, whatever it takes. <br /><br />-Sam Wempe<br />Co-editor of LocustorBumblebee.comWorld According to Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10099136332948343553noreply@blogger.com