@tyedyeskyguy wrote:

Candidates,

Considering the fact that this game we play is meant to be fun, and not taken to seriously, does this election seem to be taking on a demeanor that seems far more serious than in years past?

Is all of the political BS necessary?

Most importantly; What will you do, should you make it to office, to keep politics from ruining/running our most loved pastime?

Thank you for your time.

In the past couple years there were also questions for the candidates. Some are fun to answer, some are really tough. And I’m sure our answers do have impact on voting.

Not all members know all of us, so by answering the questions you might get a little more insight into each candidate. So yeah, perhaps the politcal BS (not the term I would use, but it’s just fun to say BS!) may be necessary.

Is it more serious than in the past? A little bit. I remember when I last ran for BOD. I think there was question as to what color I would be (if I could chose any color in the rainbow) and why. That was fun!!

To me, the WGA is about great Wisconsin geocachers, placing great Wisconsin geocaches and having a great time in Wisconsin. There is a little bit of political stuff going on in the background (DNR, county stuff, maybe someday the DOT) and it’s nice to know that there are a few people who are willing to take on a little extra responsibility to keep geocaching in Wisconsin a fun activity.

Myself, I never want to let the “business” of geocaching interefer with my love for it. If that happened, I would probably stop geocaching. I also don’t want WGA members to feel that the WGA is only about “business” and not fun. That will lose us members. I keep this in mind at all times.

Bec

I agree, in the fact that we need to keep this fun, for us to continue. Politics do have a tendency to spoil some things. All of us are reachable, and will answer any questions that you may have. Politics are a necessary part to a degree, but I can guarantee you that the Love of the game will not change in one way on my Account.

Justin

What are you going to do to keep politics from spreading, and ruining this sport that we all love so much?
Well this morning I met with Jeremy and K0rpl and we spoke briefly…there was no tension in the air; we were smiling, shaking hands and enjoying each others company. None of us were overly worried that we needed to plot, plan and defeat each other. We recognized that no matter what the outcome, the BOD would continue to move in a positive direction, in part because this election has brought up so may good questions and really forced all of us to look at how the organization operates.

I guess this election could be more serious than those in the past but I think a good part of that is due to the fact that everyone was fairly sure that the board members up for reelection would pretty much get the votes they needed to be reelected. Now the membership has grown as has the pool of candidates…there is bound to be some more “political stuff.”

But to specifically answer you question: I in all honesty do not see the politics of the BOD ruining the sport. What the DOB does is make the sport if anything more fun. The job of the BOD is to deal with the political BS so you do not have to. The WGA got us back into State Natural Areas (conditionally) and had gone to great strides to get things such as the $10 Brown county fee shot down. They are working all the time to make sure that this sport even remains in the state as we know it.

So if there is some politics and even some BS politics, I’m not so sure that’s a bad thing as we don’t want a board who is ineffectual in its ability to deal with the bureaucracy of local, state and even federal agencies.

I’m Justin Korpal, and I approve this message!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, I think this election definitely has a more serious tone than those in the last few years. The candidates are putting more effort into articulating their positions and answering questions, possibly because there are so many great people running and few Board positions available. And more importantly (and encouragingly) WGA members are questioning the candidates about their plans for the future and are giving serious thought to who they will vote for.

In the past, we were always worried about the Board elections turning into a popularity contest or Board positions simply being seen as a way to honor those cachers with the most finds. I’m happy to report that is not currently NOT the case and that our members appear committed to selecting the people who will do the best job.

This race and the organization in general are definitely not political. I’ve communicated with almost all the candidates since the start of the race, and the overall feeling is that no matter who wins, the WGA will be in good hands and some positive changes will take place in ’08. I pretty sure there will be no political backstabbing in an effort to win votes. (Justin, put that knife down. :))

As soon as Board members have to deal with “spin”, political posturing, working out back room “deals” to get things done, appeasing special interests, etc. I’m going to cut all ties with the WGA. But I don’t see that happening anytime soon, and would strongly resist anyone who tries to take the organization in that direction (user accounts can mysteriously get deleted you know ;)).

And, I could add if it all starts to get “too serious” it means it is time to go find a few caches ..