Go Back   IceInSpace > General Astronomy > General Chat
Register FAQ Calendar Today's Posts Search

Reply
 
Thread Tools Rate Thread
  #21  
Old 02-12-2009, 10:23 PM
Enchilada
Enhanced Astronomer

Enchilada is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 753
Exclamation

Quote:
Originally Posted by Liz View Post
Townsville Astronomy Group
We keep it as a 'group' so no meetings, committes, etc
Very low key - we meet at New Moon and view and enjoy, no stress.
We decided quite a few years ago, that we wanted no part of big clubs.
Its a great group of people
Liz. Bunch of geniuses. Now if you could teach others that, things would be grand!

★★★★★
Reply With Quote
  #22  
Old 02-12-2009, 10:24 PM
Jen's Avatar
Jen
Moving to Pandora

Jen is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Swan Hill
Posts: 7,102
Quote:
Originally Posted by matt View Post
Well...with a name like that, I'd suggest a few glasses of wine!!!!

Reply With Quote
  #23  
Old 02-12-2009, 11:37 PM
marki's Avatar
marki
Waiting for next electron

marki is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 2,427
Put two or more people in a room and you will have politics . If you really want to see it at its worst join a motor racing club, very dirty tactics employed. It is the reason I will not join any more clubs, astro included.

Mark
Reply With Quote
  #24  
Old 03-12-2009, 01:21 AM
AstroJunk's Avatar
AstroJunk (Jonathan)
Shadow Chaser

AstroJunk is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Moonee Beach
Posts: 1,945
No politics at the AAQ Matt - they are much frowned upon. Come and play with us, you would be very welcome - and if you detect any politics or cliquieness, tell me and I will sort it out!

Today's word is: INCLUSIVE


Quote:
Originally Posted by matt View Post
Not a member...but have been considering it of late.

I just can't stand club 'politics'. I've attended a few club nights over the years in various towns and citites and eventually there's always some form of it that emerges.

Which is sad...because it's such a great hobby/pastime.
Reply With Quote
  #25  
Old 03-12-2009, 02:43 AM
RAJAH235's Avatar
RAJAH235
A very 'Senior' member.

RAJAH235 is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Coast N.S.W.
Posts: 2,571
If you are in an astronomy club - Which one ?
The W.A.A.C.ers.
(Wollongong Amateur Astronomy Club.)

How often do they meet ?
On the 1st Thursday of each month for general "club" stuff.
eg; Latest news, Treasurers Report, Ob Officers Report, upcoming ob nights, coffee break.
Then, very short talks by a few willing members on various subjects.
Coffee & bickies break.

What is the usual turn out ?
Around 16/20.

How often do you attend meetings ?
Every month.
They have really great fish & chips across the road.

We try to keep things very informal at the WAACers.
Everyone gets a go at being on the "committee" every 2 years.
Ob nights....We try for 4 per month ~ last ¼ & new moon. (Weather permitting, of course.)
Just wish "they'd" stop buying stuff.
Reply With Quote
  #26  
Old 03-12-2009, 03:01 AM
Enchilada
Enhanced Astronomer

Enchilada is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 753
Lightbulb

Quote:
Originally Posted by RAJAH235 View Post
Everyone gets a go at being on the "committee" every 2 years.
Bunch of geniuses. Now if you could teach others that, things would be absolutely grand!

★★★★★
Reply With Quote
  #27  
Old 03-12-2009, 03:05 AM
Enchilada
Enhanced Astronomer

Enchilada is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 753
Quote:
Originally Posted by multiweb View Post
Mr "happy camper"(s) in all their splendour.
Looks like the moderators just gave you a free shot, since they deleted my post! Pity.
Reply With Quote
  #28  
Old 03-12-2009, 03:07 AM
RAJAH235's Avatar
RAJAH235
A very 'Senior' member.

RAJAH235 is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Coast N.S.W.
Posts: 2,571
Yep.
We've never had any trouble with the set-up.
Besides which, they're all a good bunch of people.
Club runs real smoooooth..
"No politics allowed."
Reply With Quote
  #29  
Old 03-12-2009, 03:22 AM
Enchilada
Enhanced Astronomer

Enchilada is offline
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Sydney, Australia
Posts: 753
Exclamation You've Got a Good Point...

Quote:
Originally Posted by RAJAH235 View Post
No politics allowed.
Should be written into every single constitution in every astro-society in Australia!!

The biggest problem is cliques. (See article attached, which is free to distribute per the author's instructions!)

Mandatory reading for all groups / blogs of people across the entire nation!

If you see a clique - do what this guy suggests!!

Also, I do think there should be mandatory restrictions on how long Committees can stay in office, especially for the President, Vice-President(s), Secretary and Treasurer. Once they are entrenched, it is like extracting teeth! Belief in irreplaceability is the number one killer!
Attached Files
File Type: pdf Cliques.pdf (54.6 KB, 25 views)
Reply With Quote
  #30  
Old 03-12-2009, 08:08 AM
multiweb's Avatar
multiweb (Marc)
ze frogginator

multiweb is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Sydney
Posts: 22,079
Astronomy is not all about observing or taking pictures of the skies. It's about getting out in the bush, socializing and having fun. So joining a club, any club is always a good idea to start with. I always learnt something new everytime I met new people and I enjoy everytime I go for a new moon night chatting with people and having a good time. I'm with the ASNSW originaly. Lovely bunch of people, very talented and very active imaging group. I also recently joind the MAS and I had an absolute ball at their dark site skies. Everybody was very welcoming and that's the best night I had this year
Reply With Quote
  #31  
Old 03-12-2009, 08:13 AM
astronut's Avatar
astronut (John)
2'sCompany3's a StarParty

astronut is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Eagle Vale
Posts: 1,251
Like any human endeavour, nothing is perfect but..............being a member of MAS for 12 years now, I couldn't have found a better group of people to share my hobby with.
The reason that committee's can be corrupted is that the office bearers forget that they are there to SERVE, NOT BE SERVED.
I'm happy to say that politics is NOT served at MAS.
So...........come and join us!!
Reply With Quote
  #32  
Old 03-12-2009, 09:30 AM
Ric's Avatar
Ric
Support your local RFS

Ric is offline
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Wamboin NSW
Posts: 12,405
I've just joined the ASNSW, I've always been impressed with what I have seen and read about them.

As I live about 300km away I probably wont get to that many meetings but I'll time our visits to see the sister in law to coincide with the monthly meetings.
Reply With Quote
  #33  
Old 03-12-2009, 09:43 AM
matt's Avatar
matt
6000 post club member

matt is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Launceston, Australia
Posts: 6,570
Quote:
Originally Posted by AstroJunk View Post
No politics at the AAQ Matt - they are much frowned upon. Come and play with us, you would be very welcome - and if you detect any politics or cliquieness, tell me and I will sort it out!

Today's word is: INCLUSIVE
Thanks for the kind offer
Reply With Quote
  #34  
Old 03-12-2009, 10:04 AM
Omaroo's Avatar
Omaroo (Chris Malikoff)
Let there be night...

Omaroo is offline
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Hobart, TAS
Posts: 7,639
Yep - MAS are a really fine bunch of people, with a common interest and no discernable interpersonal politics to speak of. We are all very good friends, in the real sense, and not one member (of 94) would even think to utter a bad word or thought about anyone else in the society. We all really look forward to meetings and viewing/photography nights for a good laugh with great company. It really is a family with a common goal and it shows. Visitors and guest speakers really enjoy coming to our meetings, and we're known as polite and professional hosts that show a speaker how a club should run.

I may be argumentative on here at times, but that is because I tend to quickly react to what I see from time to time as idiocy or unfair/unsubstantiated nonsense. With the MAS there is none of that. We don't have anyone that likes to argue for any cause they think they have to air, so there is no agro and there are no arguments - just fun.

Last edited by Omaroo; 03-12-2009 at 10:22 AM.
Reply With Quote
  #35  
Old 03-12-2009, 12:52 PM
Terry B's Avatar
Terry B
Country living & viewing

Terry B is offline
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Armidale
Posts: 2,790
It's sad that many people have had bad experiences with astro clubs.
I am a member of UNENTAS
We are a very small club with less than 20 active members. I don't think politics has ever been discussed.
Our meetings consist of a short time arranging any sort of event like school or national park visits or our upcoming talk by Fred Watson.
We then take a look through our 14" scope weather permitting and go home.
Soemtimes a member will give an astro related talk.
All very low key.
It is a nice way to meet other people with on interest in astronomy.
Reply With Quote
  #36  
Old 03-12-2009, 01:08 PM
matt's Avatar
matt
6000 post club member

matt is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Launceston, Australia
Posts: 6,570
Quote:
Originally Posted by Terry B View Post
I don't think politics has ever been discussed.
Not politics in the sense of the ALP Vs Libs etc, Terry.

More personality 'politics' and Us Vs Them rubbish. Human politics, if you like.
Reply With Quote
  #37  
Old 03-12-2009, 01:19 PM
Rob_K
Registered User

Rob_K is offline
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Bright, Vic, Australia
Posts: 2,187
If you are in an astronomy club - Which one ? or which clubs if more than one ? Bright Astronomy Club, and Snake Valley Astronomical Association (I think, if my subs are up to date - sorry Ken if they aren't! ).

How often do they meet ? For Bright, once a month, no 'meeting', just a viewing night under the stars. Don't even know what many of the members look like! With Snake Valley, I just try to make it to the twice-a-year camps.

What is the usual turn out ? At Bright, say 3-12 people would cover it.

How often do you attend meetings ? Meetings? We don't have them (hehe, thanks Eric!)

Quote:
Originally Posted by Enchilada View Post
Astronomical Societies are a waste of time on effort. You are better to be an independent free agent!
007


Cheers -
Reply With Quote
  #38  
Old 03-12-2009, 02:02 PM
Ian Robinson
Registered User

Ian Robinson is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Gateshead
Posts: 2,205
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jen View Post
I wish we had one here
I want to get one started im gonna call it S.H.A.G. Swan Hill Astronomy Group

Any ideas on how to get started

I got together with Irene Towers (who'd I met when she was an doing astronomy talk at the Newcastle branch of The Store) and she befriended me (she's a nice lady) and encouraged me to follow through when I suggested to her that maybe there should be local club, as the BAA was not doing it for either of us , so I asked dad to pay for a series of adverts in the Newcastle Herald (I was 14 so I had no money of my own) . Matty Morel , George Elliot and Mrs Towers and I formed what eventually became The Astronomical Society of the Hunter and our first get together was at my home.

For the first year or two we met at each others houses (bring a plate style) , bringing spouses if we had them , and this was done on a rotation , eventually we become affiliated with Newcastle Tech College and started meeting there on a monthly basis.

If a kid of 14 can start a club , anyone can do it . Would be even easier now to get the word out than it was in the 1970s (no internet then).

My advice , keep it very informal , friendly , and unstructured as long as possible , and when you find people who are interested ask them to bring a plate or something (bikkies, a cake, cold cuts etc) , and maybe a folding chair) when the come along to check out the group , so the person who is hosting the get-together (at their home) isn't out of pocket more than brewing some tea or providing cordial for people to drink.
If you meet at night , ask them to bring their telescope , and set your's up too , and ask them to bring their spouse and kid too , to make it an enjoyable family orientated gathering.
Most important is to not be judgemental about other's (lack of) knowledge and gear when you form a club.
Also when the club starts making decisions on things they want to do , make sure everyone who is present at the meeting gets to vote on it. KEEP IT INCLUSIVE and AVOID FORMATION OF AN ELITE.

Last edited by Ian Robinson; 03-12-2009 at 02:24 PM.
Reply With Quote
  #39  
Old 03-12-2009, 02:22 PM
ngcles's Avatar
ngcles
The Observologist

ngcles is offline
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Billimari, NSW Central West
Posts: 1,664
Sutherland Astronomical Society

Hi Ian

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian Robinson View Post
If you are in an astronomy club - Which one ? or which clubs if more than one ?
Yep, I'm in one club -- Sutherland Astronomical Society at the Green Point Observatory Oyster Bay, Sydney about 12km from my home at Engadine. I grew up less than 1km from our Green Point Observatory at Oyster Bay.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian Robinson View Post
How often do they meet ?
Every week, Thursday 8pm. We have an invited speaker on the first Thursday of the month and a technical meeting on the 3rd Thursday. The other weeks are generally not formal.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian Robinson View Post
What is the usual turn out ?
On 1st Thursdays, maybe 60-80 depending on how "popular" the speaker is and how topical the talk is. 3rd Thursdays 40-odd and on other weeks anywhere between 30 and 60-odd I'd reckon.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian Robinson View Post
How often do you attend meetings ?
I'm usually there about a dozen times a year off and on. I observe at one of our two "observing spots" (Bargo and Waterfall) whenever it is clear on the designated night.

http://www.sasi.net.au/

No astronomy club is perfect. They have, without going into all the rights and wrongs of individual cases, hurt a lot of people in the past mainly due to internal cliques and politics. I'd love to see this all disappear but it is simply part of the human condition and while the astronomy clubs are inhabited by people it will happen from time to time. This is not to defend that, but to simply acknowledge an almost self-evident truth. Is it restricted to "astronomy" clubs? No, you can find it in almost any sort of association and work organisations.

In my experience, politics are found more often where the society has (1) A large membership (2) A lot of corporate possessions and (3) Money. Small clubs on this front usually don't have politics/cliques because 1 2 and 3 are not present. In particular, if you don't have 2 or 3, there isn't a lot to fight over. But if 2 and 3 are present and 1 is also there, politics factions and cliques are probably to be expected. I'm not defending that, but it is an almost self evident fact.

When I say "politics", I don't mean Labor -v- Liberal, I mean (in the main) factions forming within the membership with a view to dominating/controlling/regulating society assets to the detriment or exclusion of others; dominating the decision making process about how and when corporate money is to be spent and the perennial favourite: who gets the credit/thanks/acclaim for this, that or the other achievement or work done and exclusion of an individual (s) from decision making processes. Most society "politics" revolve around these issues.

Balanced against that Astronomical clubs/societies do a heck of a lot of good to "grow" amateur and professional astronomy in Australia and worldwide and (like most clubs) provide a lot of facilities for members that are usually not within reach of individuals. I've watched our society grow from a total of 15 adults plus a handful of junior members (I was one) to 200-odd members. Of that 200 members probably over 100 are fairly regular attendees which is a pretty high percentage (50%) on that count compared to other clubs of our size. We have a membership limit of 200 for ... various reasons that are nowadays mainly related to the size of our premises.

At Sutherland, we have generally had a culture of the committee and the executive being turned over pretty regularly. I have been on the committee and have been its President for two years (1998-2000). I stood down because I firmly believe in that culture that it should be rotated regularly. The three presidents before me held office for two, two and one years each. Beside, holding office or being on the committee is quite a bit of (unpaid) work, and that ought to be shared around. There has been the odd instance of disagreement among the membership over our 45 year history but "politics" (as I've defined above) is generally very much frowned on. We have a reputation (rightly or wrongly) of being a very friendly society.

Sutherland isn't perfect in every way but I'm very proud to be there and it may well be one of the best clubs in Australia. I was a member from 1973-1983 and then 1992- present. I dropped out for a while (1984-1992) while the marriage, mortgage and maternity thing got in the way -- you know how it is. I was still a practising amateur but not in a club, that's all. But even in that time I was out, I toddled along to the odd meeting every year or so to see old friends. No present plans on leaving anytime soon.


Best,

Les D

Last edited by ngcles; 03-12-2009 at 06:17 PM. Reason: Added the par starting with: "When I say politics, I don't mean ...
Reply With Quote
  #40  
Old 03-12-2009, 02:28 PM
Louwai's Avatar
Louwai (Bryan)
SDM Convert

Louwai is offline
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 582
When living in Melbourne I was a member of MPAS & Snake Valley.

MPAS was mostly good, but I decided not to go back, mainly because of 1 twat who thought he knew it all, actually knew nothing & couldn't keep his mouth shut.

I miss the guys at SV. Great bunch. I wish I lived closer. Loved being a member of that club.


Here in Brissy I'm a member of SEQAS. Only been to 1 committee meeting. No actual observing meets yet.
Can't comment yet. We'll see.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT +10. The time is now 04:10 AM.

Powered by vBulletin Version 3.8.7 | Copyright ©2000 - 2025, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Advertisement
Bintel
Advertisement