buckrogersbarker

that was a cool ep indeed

That's why I stay away from their stuff - if you read the REALLY fine print on their site, they say their costumes are meant for 5'8" to 6'1" (maybe 6'2") with a "normal" body

I am 6'6" with a 38 inch inseam (Doc told me once if my torso had ever caught up to my legs I'd be around 7'2").  The Jacket probably would fit, the pants wouldn't have a chance in hades.

Congratulations!! It is going to be a good year

Congratulations!! It is going to be a good year

Congratulations to our new Detachment Leader
 

 
TK 4584 - Mark C Ryner [captsafe66]

To the IOC members that took the time to actually go to the 501st Forums and vote for the candidate of their choice, I salute you.

A final statement before the voting.  We have entered a new era with Star Wars.  Every year until the end of our lives there will be new material that we can costume.  We need to quickly adapt to that and service the broadest number of members that belong or want to belong to this detachment.  We do not have to compromise quality.  We do not have to give up the things that we have enjoyed using before.  But we do have to be responsive.

1.  Increasing membership participation by adding new platforms for communication adopting best practices used by other detachments.
2.  Surveying and listing what costumes can potentially be added on a yearly basis.
3.  The creation of a private wiki to better store costume research for the development of CRLs.
4.  Aggressive promotion of level 1 CRL creation (no more paralysis by analysis).
5. Creation of metrics to show participation levels by active members of the IOC (inside the forums and without) .
6.  The use of Process sherpas (previous CRL creators) to help potential CRL creators with the process of getting their new costumes approved.
7.  A matching service for those that request assistance in costume creation with the closest physical IOC member that has the costume they want, to meet up in person.

Even if I do not win, these ideas are out there they will be advocated regardless.  Metrics will be collected to show our progress.  I may not run again, but I will see these ideas carried through to fruition.  Everyone here has value.  Everyone here has a say and the mission of the IOC will be to serve everyone in a principled stewardship.  Our processes serve us.  When they don’t they need to be changed.  This is for fun.  When it stops being fun, something dark has happened and we need to get back to it being fun…  for everyone.

Thank you for your consideration.

A final statement before the voting.  We have entered a new era with Star Wars.  Every year until the end of our lives there will be new material that we can costume.  We need to quickly adapt to that and service the broadest number of members that belong or want to belong to this detachment.  We do not have to compromise quality.  We do not have to give up the things that we have enjoyed using before.  But we do have to be responsive.

1.  Increasing membership participation by adding new platforms for communication adopting best practices used by other detachments.
2.  Surveying and listing what costumes can potentially be added on a yearly basis.
3.  The creation of a private wiki to better store costume research for the development of CRLs.
4.  Aggressive promotion of level 1 CRL creation (no more paralysis by analysis).
5. Creation of metrics to show participation levels by active members of the IOC (inside the forums and without) .
6.  The use of Process sherpas (previous CRL creators) to help potential CRL creators with the process of getting their new costumes approved.
7.  A matching service for those that request assistance in costume creation with the closest physical IOC member that has the costume they want, to meet up in person.

Even if I do not win, these ideas are out there they will be advocated regardless.  Metrics will be collected to show our progress.  I may not run again, but I will see these ideas carried through to fruition.  Everyone here has value.  Everyone here has a say and the mission of the IOC will be to serve everyone in a principled stewardship.  Our processes serve us.  When they don’t they need to be changed.  This is for fun.  When it stops being fun, something dark has happened and we need to get back to it being fun…  for everyone.

Thank you for your consideration.

39.  
My question is now: Why not consider trying to become an intergral part of IOC by more interaction and involvement than basically coming from nowhere and idleness on IOC to becoming its DL?

With all due respect this is being repeated because despite your lengthy waffling on you did not actually answer the question. 

Feel free to waffle but within it you actually do need to answer the question which from what I read in your response you did not.



Take on things my appraisal of what is happening.  I have known the leadership for many years now.  They do not hide their opinions on different matters.  And some of my conversations with them have simply been “This is the way it is” with no interest in change.  I tried to bring things up in the forums….not to any good effect.  I am not a political man, I have never had an interest in running, but when I am told that my ideas are shut out and the only way to get them considered is to run for office, that is how you get me to run for office.  Strangely my personal interaction with the many IOC members I know outside of the forums are very different.  Our ideas are very similar.  If that is the only place where that kind of change can happen, that is where I go.  How can you create effective change if you can only get into a group by showing rigid loyalty to individuals and uniformity of thought?

So now I am involved and we are going to put it to a vote, for those people that will be able to vote.  (that is a topic for the next question). 

40.  With the Q & A portion of the elections winding down, I would like to take a moment to make a few comments and observations, and then pose one last question to BOTH candidates.
I say "both" because lets be honest; The "third party" candidate we have - like many recent American elections - is effectively only there as a protest vote. He hasn't deemed it worthy of his time to grace us with so much as an introduction.
This is my first time going through elections with the 501st, but - and this may be against the rules, the norm, or logistically unfeasible but I would like voting to take place within the forums of the respective Detachment because:
It would encourage Detachment members to show up at least once a year. If even a quarter of the people who only logged in to vote actually stuck around, the boards - and by extension the Detachment would be made stronger. A perspective voter would have to make an effort to exercise their voting privilege. And if a voter doesn't bother to do their due diligence, we would all be better served if they abstained. I also think if a candidate DOESN'T bother to at the very least show up to publicly accept their nomination ON THE FORUMS, that they should automatically have their candidacy rescinded.
Although none of what I just said is a question per se, feel free to let me know if I'm off base or on to something.
 
Now, on to my final question;
To BOTH candidates, you have raised good points in the Q & A's.  What, if any of your opponent's ideas would you like to implement during your run as our Detachment Leader and why.
If there isn't one that you would use, please pick one that you DON'T like in particular and explain why it lacks merit.
 
Thank you both for putting yourselves out there, there have been a fair share of awkward moments and it can't have been entirely comfortable.
Regardless of the outcome, I look forward to your leadership in the coming year, and if you're there meeting you in Orlando.


First… where is he?  He accepted the nomination on the legion board, so did he make it in here?  Does he know how to make it in?  Was he run over by a car?  I didn’t know that there was a special section for 501st approved members.  Guess what?  A lot of people that are imperial officers in the legion don’t know that.  Some of the people that made CRLs like Agent Kallus and Grand Moff Tarkin were surprised to learn that and the Kallus CRL was made just last year!

I didn’t know I couldn’t get in.  I was pointed to the right thread with the instructions, but it is not entirely easy to understand, but some friends told me what exactly they were looking for and how to post it.  Then some people called out for me to be approved to get access.  That is how I got in to answer questions a day after it opened.  Maybe that other guy didn’t have that kind of luck that I did or have the assistance I received.
I agree with Mark in how he wants to increase the participation of the IOC.  We need to help more people as he said and we need to promote more people to come here. 

Where we differ is how we do that.  He doesn’t elaborate on his plan and he talks as if it was just centered around more people coming here.  I believe in using social media to touch more people on a day by day basis.  This would not change the importance of the forums and the business that happens there, it would be a tool to bring more people in. A closed Facebook group is not meant to conduct business that should happen on the forums, it is a means of reaching people in a private matter to let them know that important things will be happening on the forums.  I have also stated how to accelerated the incorporation of costumes and promote what can be done for the CRLS.  I have also stated how you can track our progress and metrics for the coming year.  There are no means of measuring success I have seen presented by my opponent. 

Where I differ greatly from him is when he says the forums are the IOC.  YOU are the IOC.  Our membership is out there.  The forums are a tool.  Some tools you use forever.  Some tools you use more than others.  You add tools to your tool belt as you get older, but tools suit the job at hand.  YOU are the IOC and tools must serve you and everyone else in the group.  The IOC is not one individual.  It exists for a mission, not a select few and not for me, but for everyone that serves in these costumes.

I look forward to seeing you in Orlando.

41.
I know I'm walking in on the tail end of this, and many before me have asked wonderful questions. Congratulations on you all for being it this far, and I'm going to try and start this with a decent lead into the question.

I've been a Legion member now seven years as of the 27th of this month. I've only got one costume, a Bridge Crewman, haven't traveled that extensively, tend to stay in my lane for the most part and not make waves.

This year, some fool nominated me for what you bunch are taking questions for. I declined, one because I have no great desire for leadership, and two because I knew that would be like putting a turtle on a fencepost. But, it did get me thinking that I want to help my only Detachment more.

So, here's the questions: Where do fools like me fit in to the picture? How can we help get from the point A of today to the point B of this time next year?

Thank you for your time, and good luck.

Ben,

It is good to meet you.  You and people like you are an integral part of the legion.  You have already made the biggest leap, you wear an 501st costume in public.  A lot of people who have interest in joining would never make that leap, but you did.  And that makes you special and valued.  The more members come to an event, the more impressive it is and more exciting it is for the public. 

I hope you get involved in any way that you feel comfortable in moving forward.  Improve your costume to get the level 2 or 3 certifications, start making a new costume… or even consider to make one of the new costumes that have not yet been approved.  Join in here and meet others and discuss your favorite subjects.  Or best of all ask the command staff where you can help.  Let them know what you do and what you like to do and I am sure they will find you something that you both would like and be good at. 

When I started, I came from a very sparsely populated state.  The closest other legion member came from another state more than 70 miles away.  I had to drive hours to go to events that were not very well attended.  Sometimes it would be only three of us, but we made it look like the Rose Bowl parade in 2007.  The kids and people we saw loved it.  The other members that came to the event valued us supporting each other.  In the years since, we formed our own garrison in West Virginia and brought in several dozen new members.  It isn’t quite as lonely as it was long ago, but I remember what it was like and I empathize with those not fully engaged.  I was fortunate in those early years to be adopted by a few other garrisons.  Bloodfin in Indiana, New England Garrison and the Dutch Garrison are like family to me and they have a special place in my heart.  They adopted a fool like myself and kept my enthusiasm up.  Keep your spirit going with trooping.  We both need it.

Sit down and figure out what you want to do in the next couple of years.  The beauty of many costumes is that they can build off earlier gathered material.  Offer yourself to volunteer and DO reach out to meet other members, particularly members of the IOC.  No matter where you go or how active you are you are an ambassador for us.  And everyone here would love to have your energy and industry to help us build.

A final statement before the voting.  We have entered a new era with Star Wars.  Every year until the end of our lives there will be new material that we can costume.  We need to quickly adapt to that and service the broadest number of members that belong or want to belong to this detachment.  We do not have to compromise quality.  We do not have to give up the things that we have enjoyed using before.  But we do have to be responsive.

1.  Increasing membership participation by adding new platforms for communication adopting best practices used by other detachments.
2.  Surveying and listing what costumes can potentially be added on a yearly basis.
3.  The creation of a private wiki to better store costume research for the development of CRLs.
4.  Aggressive promotion of level 1 CRL creation (no more paralysis by analysis).
5. Creation of metrics to show participation levels by active members of the IOC (inside the forums and without) .
6.  The use of Process sherpas (previous CRL creators) to help potential CRL creators with the process of getting their new costumes approved.
7.  A matching service for those that request assistance in costume creation with the closest physical IOC member that has the costume they want, to meet up in person.

Even if I do not win, these ideas are out there they will be advocated regardless.  Metrics will be collected to show our progress.  I may not run again, but I will see these ideas carried through to fruition.  Everyone here has value.  Everyone here has a say and the mission of the IOC will be to serve everyone in a principled stewardship.  Our processes serve us.  When they don’t they need to be changed.  This is for fun.  When it stops being fun, something dark has happened and we need to get back to it being fun…  for everyone.

Thank you for your consideration.

Unfortunately I could not attend in London, but Marc was.
The first run of fabric is already done, It was only for members of our garrison. I still have some on stock for one complete uniform. We are thinking of a 2nd run soon which might be international. We can reorder any time but need to get at least 50 meters togethe for the scale price from last time. Also the Leadtime after ordering is about 4-6 weeks, since its woven and dyed just after placing the orders. Anyway, If anyone is interrested in fabric swatches I have plenty of them.

41.
I know I'm walking in on the tail end of this, and many before me have asked wonderful questions. Congratulations on you all for being it this far, and I'm going to try and start this with a decent lead into the question.

I've been a Legion member now seven years as of the 27th of this month. I've only got one costume, a Bridge Crewman, haven't traveled that extensively, tend to stay in my lane for the most part and not make waves.

This year, some fool nominated me for what you bunch are taking questions for. I declined, one because I have no great desire for leadership, and two because I knew that would be like putting a turtle on a fencepost. But, it did get me thinking that I want to help my only Detachment more.

So, here's the questions: Where do fools like me fit in to the picture? How can we help get from the point A of today to the point B of this time next year?

Thank you for your time, and good luck.

Ben,

It is good to meet you.  You and people like you are an integral part of the legion.  You have already made the biggest leap, you wear an 501st costume in public.  A lot of people who have interest in joining would never make that leap, but you did.  And that makes you special and valued.  The more members come to an event, the more impressive it is and more exciting it is for the public. 

I hope you get involved in any way that you feel comfortable in moving forward.  Improve your costume to get the level 2 or 3 certifications, start making a new costume… or even consider to make one of the new costumes that have not yet been approved.  Join in here and meet others and discuss your favorite subjects.  Or best of all ask the command staff where you can help.  Let them know what you do and what you like to do and I am sure they will find you something that you both would like and be good at. 

When I started, I came from a very sparsely populated state.  The closest other legion member came from another state more than 70 miles away.  I had to drive hours to go to events that were not very well attended.  Sometimes it would be only three of us, but we made it look like the Rose Bowl parade in 2007.  The kids and people we saw loved it.  The other members that came to the event valued us supporting each other.  In the years since, we formed our own garrison in West Virginia and brought in several dozen new members.  It isn’t quite as lonely as it was long ago, but I remember what it was like and I empathize with those not fully engaged.  I was fortunate in those early years to be adopted by a few other garrisons.  Bloodfin in Indiana, New England Garrison and the Dutch Garrison are like family to me and they have a special place in my heart.  They adopted a fool like myself and kept my enthusiasm up.  Keep your spirit going with trooping.  We both need it.

Sit down and figure out what you want to do in the next couple of years.  The beauty of many costumes is that they can build off earlier gathered material.  Offer yourself to volunteer and DO reach out to meet other members, particularly members of the IOC.  No matter where you go or how active you are you are an ambassador for us.  And everyone here would love to have your energy and industry to help us build.

Thanks for your help!
Do I change my user name to my ID?
 
Hello Imperial Citizen!

Due to the work you have done for the Empire, along with your correspondence of your Garrison Membership Liaison (GML)  and the Legion Membership Officer, your application to join the 501st has been approved!

Your new TKID is: 12911
 
 
 

If one is interested in an Officer costume with dress shoes rather than riding boots, perhaps one could stand to wait until the Imperial Science Officer CRL and its optional variations are authorized, which I imagine could be shortly after Rogue One's home video release. It is a much more interesting uniform in my opinion. If I were a kid I don't think I would be all that excited to see at a 501st appearance, a squad of Stormtroopers flanked only by an Enlisted Serviceman. But thats just me, and I'm known to be picky.
 


photos by nocternus

Ooh ooh ooh, we finally have an in-universe answer for this one!  The Rogue One Visual Guide indicates that it is a "Private datapad contained in shockproof case".  For those with the book, check out page 121, the picture of Lieutenant Mytus Adema.
 
(and then check out the previous page where we get an in-universe justification for the "non-uniform" rank badges. )

I guess the story of the last mill in germany makes a better sale to customers

40.  With the Q & A portion of the elections winding down, I would like to take a moment to make a few comments and observations, and then pose one last question to BOTH candidates.
I say "both" because lets be honest; The "third party" candidate we have - like many recent American elections - is effectively only there as a protest vote. He hasn't deemed it worthy of his time to grace us with so much as an introduction.
This is my first time going through elections with the 501st, but - and this may be against the rules, the norm, or logistically unfeasible but I would like voting to take place within the forums of the respective Detachment because:
It would encourage Detachment members to show up at least once a year. If even a quarter of the people who only logged in to vote actually stuck around, the boards - and by extension the Detachment would be made stronger. A perspective voter would have to make an effort to exercise their voting privilege. And if a voter doesn't bother to do their due diligence, we would all be better served if they abstained. I also think if a candidate DOESN'T bother to at the very least show up to publicly accept their nomination ON THE FORUMS, that they should automatically have their candidacy rescinded.
Although none of what I just said is a question per se, feel free to let me know if I'm off base or on to something.
 
Now, on to my final question;
To BOTH candidates, you have raised good points in the Q & A's.  What, if any of your opponent's ideas would you like to implement during your run as our Detachment Leader and why.
If there isn't one that you would use, please pick one that you DON'T like in particular and explain why it lacks merit.
 
Thank you both for putting yourselves out there, there have been a fair share of awkward moments and it can't have been entirely comfortable.
Regardless of the outcome, I look forward to your leadership in the coming year, and if you're there meeting you in Orlando.


First… where is he?  He accepted the nomination on the legion board, so did he make it in here?  Does he know how to make it in?  Was he run over by a car?  I didn’t know that there was a special section for 501st approved members.  Guess what?  A lot of people that are imperial officers in the legion don’t know that.  Some of the people that made CRLs like Agent Kallus and Grand Moff Tarkin were surprised to learn that and the Kallus CRL was made just last year!

I didn’t know I couldn’t get in.  I was pointed to the right thread with the instructions, but it is not entirely easy to understand, but some friends told me what exactly they were looking for and how to post it.  Then some people called out for me to be approved to get access.  That is how I got in to answer questions a day after it opened.  Maybe that other guy didn’t have that kind of luck that I did or have the assistance I received.
I agree with Mark in how he wants to increase the participation of the IOC.  We need to help more people as he said and we need to promote more people to come here. 

Where we differ is how we do that.  He doesn’t elaborate on his plan and he talks as if it was just centered around more people coming here.  I believe in using social media to touch more people on a day by day basis.  This would not change the importance of the forums and the business that happens there, it would be a tool to bring more people in. A closed Facebook group is not meant to conduct business that should happen on the forums, it is a means of reaching people in a private matter to let them know that important things will be happening on the forums.  I have also stated how to accelerated the incorporation of costumes and promote what can be done for the CRLS.  I have also stated how you can track our progress and metrics for the coming year.  There are no means of measuring success I have seen presented by my opponent. 

Where I differ greatly from him is when he says the forums are the IOC.  YOU are the IOC.  Our membership is out there.  The forums are a tool.  Some tools you use forever.  Some tools you use more than others.  You add tools to your tool belt as you get older, but tools suit the job at hand.  YOU are the IOC and tools must serve you and everyone else in the group.  The IOC is not one individual.  It exists for a mission, not a select few and not for me, but for everyone that serves in these costumes.

I look forward to seeing you in Orlando.

37.  For Robert:

Quoting your response;

How am I more imperial than you?  

Well, I think the rebels are filth, I believe the emperor was elected, the Jedi were not and it is a good thing those baby stealing traitors do not exist as an organization or as individuals anymore.

Just kidding.  I don’t know you well, so I can’t tell you if I am more imperial than you.  I am guessing you have me beat with the accent, so I will leave you with this.  I believe that a good imperial “Serves the realm”.  That is my definition of an imperial.  If you believe that too, then I am not MORE imperial than you, but I am not less either.

 

What I find amazing about this statement is;

1. I was stood behind you at Celebration 2016 and you haven't even realised or bothered to see who I am.

2. You haven't even bothered to really notice I am level 3 Imperator 

So I say to you yes I am more Imperial than you.

Just kidding in an election is pretty slapdash to be honest.

My question is now: Why not consider trying to become an intergral part of IOC by more interaction and involvement than basically coming from nowhere and idleness on IOC to becoming its DL?

I am sorry Barry.  I didn’t recognize you.  I was taking in the sights, meeting as many people as I could.  I meant no slight.  But if you knew who I was, why didn’t you introduce yourself?  I would have been excited to have talked to you.  You have an excellent costume and your accolade for being a Level 3 Imperator is well deserved and well earned.  But maybe it is the American egalitarian in me that recognizes the merit, but does not believe that you deserve deference to others.  This is a volunteer group, not the military or a business.  And its mission is to serve its membership.  To do otherwise is to make it a small cloistered private club hurling to oblivion.

To your question now is that I have a much different definition of what you call the IOC.  You see it as the people that you know in a limited setting.  My definition is far broader than that.  My definition is what the legion recognizes and will govern the election by.  Regardless of how this election goes, a lot of really good information is getting out there.  Things like you think you are more imperial than others, that you expect deference and accolades and that you have a narrow definition of who makes up the membership.  There are more than a few people that have learned recently that they are officially IOC eligible.  They will be changing to full members after the election and paying close attention over the next 12 months.  If not me, the ideas will be carried forward.  That is what I am most concerned about.


I am going to throw in one thing here.  This is supposed to be fun.  It is supposed to be open.  People are throwing around words like “loyalty” and not in character or in an ironic way.  After this election, regardless of the outcome I will gladly welcome any of you I see.  I’ll buy you a beer and eagerly want to hear how your lives are going.  If there are those that believe this is unthinkable or don’t want to, I would hope the things that keep you trooping start tracking back to the core mission of the legion.  We hurt ourselves when we take this too seriously.  And that is something to be serious about.

40.  With the Q & A portion of the elections winding down, I would like to take a moment to make a few comments and observations, and then pose one last question to BOTH candidates.
I say "both" because lets be honest; The "third party" candidate we have - like many recent American elections - is effectively only there as a protest vote. He hasn't deemed it worthy of his time to grace us with so much as an introduction.
This is my first time going through elections with the 501st, but - and this may be against the rules, the norm, or logistically unfeasible but I would like voting to take place within the forums of the respective Detachment because:
It would encourage Detachment members to show up at least once a year. If even a quarter of the people who only logged in to vote actually stuck around, the boards - and by extension the Detachment would be made stronger. A perspective voter would have to make an effort to exercise their voting privilege. And if a voter doesn't bother to do their due diligence, we would all be better served if they abstained. I also think if a candidate DOESN'T bother to at the very least show up to publicly accept their nomination ON THE FORUMS, that they should automatically have their candidacy rescinded.
Although none of what I just said is a question per se, feel free to let me know if I'm off base or on to something.
 
Now, on to my final question;
To BOTH candidates, you have raised good points in the Q & A's.  What, if any of your opponent's ideas would you like to implement during your run as our Detachment Leader and why.
If there isn't one that you would use, please pick one that you DON'T like in particular and explain why it lacks merit.
 
Thank you both for putting yourselves out there, there have been a fair share of awkward moments and it can't have been entirely comfortable.
Regardless of the outcome, I look forward to your leadership in the coming year, and if you're there meeting you in Orlando.


First… where is he?  He accepted the nomination on the legion board, so did he make it in here?  Does he know how to make it in?  Was he run over by a car?  I didn’t know that there was a special section for 501st approved members.  Guess what?  A lot of people that are imperial officers in the legion don’t know that.  Some of the people that made CRLs like Agent Kallus and Grand Moff Tarkin were surprised to learn that and the Kallus CRL was made just last year!

I didn’t know I couldn’t get in.  I was pointed to the right thread with the instructions, but it is not entirely easy to understand, but some friends told me what exactly they were looking for and how to post it.  Then some people called out for me to be approved to get access.  That is how I got in to answer questions a day after it opened.  Maybe that other guy didn’t have that kind of luck that I did or have the assistance I received.
I agree with Mark in how he wants to increase the participation of the IOC.  We need to help more people as he said and we need to promote more people to come here. 

Where we differ is how we do that.  He doesn’t elaborate on his plan and he talks as if it was just centered around more people coming here.  I believe in using social media to touch more people on a day by day basis.  This would not change the importance of the forums and the business that happens there, it would be a tool to bring more people in. A closed Facebook group is not meant to conduct business that should happen on the forums, it is a means of reaching people in a private matter to let them know that important things will be happening on the forums.  I have also stated how to accelerated the incorporation of costumes and promote what can be done for the CRLS.  I have also stated how you can track our progress and metrics for the coming year.  There are no means of measuring success I have seen presented by my opponent. 

Where I differ greatly from him is when he says the forums are the IOC.  YOU are the IOC.  Our membership is out there.  The forums are a tool.  Some tools you use forever.  Some tools you use more than others.  You add tools to your tool belt as you get older, but tools suit the job at hand.  YOU are the IOC and tools must serve you and everyone else in the group.  The IOC is not one individual.  It exists for a mission, not a select few and not for me, but for everyone that serves in these costumes.

I look forward to seeing you in Orlando.

20.
Considering the forum has over 6,000 members, and at minimum 200 active posters, I find your generalizations about "most imperial officers in the legion" to be glib, and frankly untrue.

You consider 1/30 participation a success that doesn’t merit increasing that number?  We only have 1684 active officers in the legion.  Are all the rest crewmen?  We have the wrong name!

In ten years as an officer, I believe you have missed opportunities to connect with active members all over the world by not participating here.


Having traveled the world and met and trooped with people from many different garrisons, that would not be my assessment.


 
There is a method in place here for hopeful recruits to introduce themselves, find a dearth of information, and get help from active officers in creating the best costumes they can.

Yes….I just don’t think it is currently very effective.  Results may vary.



My question is this: How can that be achieved from a closed Facebook group?

The biggest thing is that the people that don’t come or don’t often frequent the forums would be kept in the loop as it is said.  This is a best practice used by other detachments.  We are not blazing a new trail here.

For those that are on social media, we have a very active open Facebook page, would you continue to see that remains accessible or would you close the group?

I would keep it open.  Those pages are great for public relations and public information that can be shared through it.  But not everything should be shared through a public page.

I’ll give you an example right here. A reminder was sent through a private detachment Facebook group that elections were coming up.  This would have told members that don’t frequent the forums they need to get on there.  Therefore, there are some that discovered that they could not ask questions in this forum or read them or the answers.  There are more than a few people upset about that.  Luckily through the legion forums, they will still be able to vote.

If you operated two Facebook pages and a forum simultaneously, would that not confuse new people more?
No, people do it all the time.  The forums would be the prime means of communication. The Instagram, twitter and facebook pages would be for public consumption and publicity and the private group would be for privileged communication with the membership that are not always on the forums. 

Once again, these are best practices adopted  by many organizations and can be handled by us.  No one is losing what they are used to using. 

17.  Perhaps it would have been best to reach out to those you wish to keep on staff. For the Record; I am BJ's Merch Officer, and my loyalty is to him. BJ has asked me to be Mark's Merch Officer, and as such my loyalty is extended to him as well. I am a firm believer in only running on one ticket (there must be consequences for our choices) and as such will not continue as Merch Officer for another DL. I cannot speak for the rest of the current staff, but perhaps you should ask them personally. So I will ask again: Who makes up your command staffs and their positions.

I admire your work very much.  Everyone does.  I was hoping your loyalty would not be to me or BJ, but to the realm as it were.  I will get back to you on who to fill for that role you will leave.

10. Please outline my vision for the IOC? What experiences would make me successful in doing this?

The IOC should serve the membership of the legion that are members that have costumes under our charge, who want to have approved costumes under our charge and to encourage and foster the creation of new costumes to be approved by the broader legion. 

We need to modernize our methods of communications.  Just to get in here to see and respond these questions was a byzantine labyrinth that exemplifies why so many don’t even both.   We are the second largest detachment with the lowest participation rate on the forums.  That is by design and it is a scandal.  That is why so little new comes out of here.

I would immediately institute a closed Facebook group for immediate communication by verified 501st IOC members.  This will become the primary means of every day communication.  The forum will continue, but we will bring up the participation of the active membership.

The second thing we will do is lay claim to everything new that is out there under our charge.  Every Imperial Officer costume in Rebels and Rogue One will be listed.  A survey will be conducted of games, comics and novels.  We will create that list, show its source, state if any have been approved and show the status of people who are working on it.  We will assign the “Sherpas” to help guide its creation and we as leaders will be clearing the path to make it made while maintaining the highest standards.  What is found and approved will be recorded into a private Wiki for future use.  It will be referenceable for years to come for IOC members. 

People want to do this, they want to climb these mountains, but they get knocked down into the foothills before they start.  Why does someone want to spend hundreds of dollars and hundreds of hours making something to be rejected out of hand by someone who buys everything they wear?  Not to knock people who buy what they wear.  I buy why I wear.  But this is the most soul crushing blow that we deal to potential new members.  And it has been done many times. 

Goals should be defined, attainable and measurable.  How do I know this can happen?  I can do all three.  And I can lead the group to assist this.  While as an individual IOC member you will have the ability to turn your nose up and not like certain costumes.  But as a member of my staff, they will not make fun of any costume that anyone aspires to.  Service will be our motto.  As a volunteer organization, we will make this our manner always. 

Can staff please fix any issues with the other 2 nominees so they may answer questions as well?  Thank you.