or170b

My Feedback: (3)

In light of the new rules for registering our models with the FAA I propose that we demand the AMA leadership step down! They have thrown us under the buss in the name of getting $$$$ from the drone crowd. We need better leadership.

jeffEE

My Feedback: (5)

Will we see your name on the next ballot?

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

Exactly. Lots of great ideas and suggestions (usually after the fact)...and lots of excuses why they can't get more involved. Would love to see some folks step up..share their specific solutions too. I suspect it will be a long wait. "Throw the bums out" is rarely the answer..
.but it feels great to say it.

radfordc

My Feedback: (14)

We can throw the bums out...the AMA holds elections every year. We all get a vote....just like in politics. Somebody call Donald Trump and see if he is interested in being the new AMA President.

TimJ

Yeah yeah.....So after the leadership did their best, you want to remove them.

Lets see your ideas of how to get things done first.........

Granpooba

My Feedback: (5)

Hobbyists are dealing with the government. Everybody knows that you will not accomplish anything when dealing with idiots !

What really bothers me is that I feel that we have been BLIND SIDED by both the FAA and the AMA.

I already have a Airline Transport Rating license number.
I have a United States Air Force serial number.
I have a Social Security number.
" All " issued by the US Government !!!!!!

Now they are telling me that I need another government issued number just to enjoy a hobby. Just shaking my head and wondering what comes next and when does all this madness end ?

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

That would be Huuuuuuuuuuuge!

FlyWheel

Seriously? Trump would have the entire hobby banned and all the manufacturers jailed.

And since when was the A.M.A. "leading" us? Represent (or at least try to) maybe, but never was A.M.A. membership a requirement for flying an RC plane.

s3nfo

My Feedback: (14)

Election results for the 2016 EC were just posted less than a month ago, incumbants won handily in all Districts where there was a challenger. Incumbents won handily in all 2015 Elections where the incumbent had a challenger.
So how's that "throw the bums out" thing working for you, incumbents get easily reelected in 99% of AMA elections no matter how qualified the challenger.

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

That's just not true.

I will agree with you on the other point though, the "throw the bums out" thing rarely works. It's because there is a lack of interest in running all together...look how many of those elections had NO challengers.

mr_matt

My Feedback: (10)

I hear you Jerry, and I hope you run again. I think the change we need is not with the elected officials necessarily, rather the unelected leadership we see so often now.

franklin_m

One wonders if any of them will offer their resignation.

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

Why should they?

And who is ready to step up and fill their shoes?

kdunlap

My Feedback: (12)

Porcia83 they should be embarrassed by this epic fail. Model aviation was done a huge disservice today. 70 years of developing safety rules, playing by those rules, and governing the community by these rules resulted in NOTHING. Let's be totally real here... AMA is a multi-million dollar a year business. Period. As an association if don't have the talent to fight the FAA, then you buy it! I'm tired of hearing all of this crying about the poor volunteer officers at AMA. Did you ever stop to think about how many professional staff people your dues money is paying for??

kdunlap

My Feedback: (12)

Here's the answer to my rhetorical question. 2013 Employee expenses as reported to the IRS and posted publicly. Lot of money

Column 1 is 2012, Column 2 is 2013

astrohog

My Feedback: (1)

That, AND the stellar, what was it, 17% voter turnout?

Astro

mongo

My Feedback: (15)

hell dude, 17% is a major step up from the traditional 12-14%.

and jerry, the d8 vp might have a bit of information for ya about that all incumbents won handily thing.
i voted for him, by the way.

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

Exactly. Apathy, acceptance of the work being done, who knows why it's as low as it is. Mirrors state/national politics to some degree, even voting at club meetings sometimes.

This most recent decision may have a silver lining, it might have more people really get involved in the process. There is no lock on AVP, VP, or EC positions. Start small, think big, and work hard. I know it's not possible for everyone, but even those that can't go for those positions can support those that can.
My thoughts exactly...and that win/loss ratio was razor thin. The other remarkable thing about those elections were how many people that had no opponents.

astrohog

My Feedback: (1)

I don't know why you keep giving this as a reason for low voter participation. Maybe I was raised different, but I was taught to vote NO MATTER WHAT! Those doing a good job deserve our vote of confidence, and those that fail to perform, should expect to lose their seat to someone who will do a better job (or at least promises to! ).

Failure to vote due to generally accepting the status quo is dangerous and breeds apathy..

Astro

or170b

My Feedback: (3)

this is what I am talking about! not some vounteers. The leadership in Muncie has let us down.

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

Because it's my opinion? Why does it make you keep wondering?

Perhaps you were raised differently than those that decide they are pleased or accept what is going on. To each their own. They make a choice either way, to vote or not to vote. It's certainly a potential/valid reason to explain an incredibly low voter turn out. I do believe however that if one is given a chance to vote, they absolutely should take that opportunity. Take the D8 elections. How many people made the difference there. I think it was 35. So out of all those states, the VP position was decided on 36 votes. Now how many thousands of people in that district had the chance to vote, and didn't? I sure hope those aren't the folks complaining that the incumbent isn't still there. They might have made a difference but they'll never know, and I think they also give up the ability to complain about the decision as well. Sometimes every hanging chad vote counts!

porcia83

My Feedback: (8)

What lines specifically? Do you mean people's salaries? Is your suggestion to decrease the amount of people working for the AMA? Does the total amount of salaries look out of wack for the amount of people running this organization? I'm not sure one or two numbers really explains the whole picture.

or170b

My Feedback: (3)

If this was the best our leadership could do then we really have some bad leadership! My ideas have always been to distance the ama club modeler from the drone people. The ama didn't want to do this. it was all about $$$ they gambled with their core membership and lost>

skylark-flier

Have you ever successfully fought the US Government? DC does whatever it wants and NOBODY is going to stop them. The US Congress passed a LAW and one of their minion agencies decided (and will get away with) they're ABOVE the law.

Happens all the time. I don't see that as the AMA's fault. Sorry.

blhollo2

My Feedback: (278)

Anyone know how much the AMA president gets paid and the vice pres? just wondering what we are paying for...