[Noisebridge-discuss] Panic! Noisebridge will close down in July UNLESS YOU READ ALL OF THIS EMAIL (Part 1 of many)

Kelly hurtstotouchfire at gmail.com
Sat Mar 30 05:33:25 UTC 2013


FYI, noisebridge's average monthly expenses (for the last year) are
$6400 not $5000. So, ah... panic more?

-Kelly

On Wed, Mar 27, 2013 at 4:40 AM, Danny O'Brien <danny at spesh.com> wrote:
> Long email. Really really worth it. Go down to bit marked {}{}{}{} if
> you don't want Noisebridge to die. There are links down there. Helpful,
> useful, stop-Noisebridge-dying links.
>
> So, Noisebridge The Great, San Francisco's most awesome
> free-as-in-speech hackerspace, was packed tonight. There was the backend
> webdev with Ruby kids, the Light Patterns with LED and Arduinos gang
> were teaching up a storm, Gent Thaci from Kosovo (the world's second
> youngest country!) was giving a talk explaining how free software
> hackers are helping build a new nation, and how Noisebridge and other
> hackerspaces were inspiring him and his friends.
>
> Lots of people were plotting the fundraiser for this weekend, others
> were mopping and sweeping, somebody is building a huge mysterious thing
> out of wood, and oh my.
>
> We had the weekly meeting, and two things happened. One is that we
> consensed on making me the new treasurer.
>
> Then the old outgoing treasurer revealed we only have $7000 left in the
> bank.
>
> Our monthly expenses are $5000.
>
> THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I AM MADE TREASURER.
>
> I am about to POUNCE on our accounts to explore out what's going on in
> intricate ultra-transparent detail (expect even longer bloody emails
> soon), but I already have a pretty good idea. Our income wobbles up and
> down because we rely a lot on random donations. Sometimes we pull in
> more donations, and sometimes we pull in less. We've been pulling in
> less for a few months now, and if that carries on, we're all done by
> July.
>
> As in, can't pay rent and have to shut down.
>
> I am not too keen on being the treasurer that managed to kill
> Noisebridge in less than three months, but I HAVE A PLAN.
>
> 1) Panic (see this mail)
>
> 2) Big fundraiser on Saturday! Come and party and donate! (I admit this
> was already happening and planned before I became treasurer, but still.)
>
> {{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{
>
> SERIOUS BIT:
>
> 3) When I heard how screwed we were, I instantly ran across the space to
> the Ruby class and gave a little speech asking them to give money. Some
> of them signed up for monthly donations, many dropped some bucks in the
> donation bucket. People love us, and want to give us money! We need to
> ask people who love us for cash more often, and I will.
>
> But for now sporadic donations are not enough. We need to increase
> Noisebridge's regular, guaranteed monthly income so we don't dip so low.
>
> I figure that out of the thousand or so people who use Noisebridge, love
> Noisebridge, have a Noisebridge key they're waiting to use, or are just
> happy something like Noisebridge exists somewhere in the world, young
> and old, bazillionaire dotcommer or ingenious starving hacker, can pay
> $10 or maybe more a month to keep Noisebridge stable and regular.
>
> But it turns out it is actually really hard to pay us regularly. You can
> use Paypal, but some people do not like Paypal, and it needs a credit
> card. You can drop $10 in the box, but what hacker remembers that every
> month? What hacker remembers to pay their *own* bills every month?
>
> Also, what do you get for $10 a month? Sure, you get the world's
> craziest hackerspace, not-even-run by anarchist lunatics who built
> WikiLeaks and run one of the biggest Tor nodes and work for the EFF and
> construct X-Ray Lasers from spare parts and inspire SciFi books and
> start 3D printing companies and make kombucha and robots, and you get to
> come to it 24/7 and we'll give you a key, and share our software and our
> classrooms and teach you how to fix your laptop or use our woodshop or
> share our library or use the darkroom or cook some food or have a free
> shell account or throw a party or chase a robot or paint a picture or
> make a dress. But you could do that without paying $10 anyway, right?
>
> Well, maybe only until July, but yes, I agree you should get more.
>
> {}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}
>
> So here is my deal as the All New Treasurer:
>
> If you send me your email, RIGHT NOW, to treasurer at noisebridge.net , and
> just pledge to me that you would like to pay $10 (or more) a month to
> Noisebridge, I promise:
>
> * I will sort out a way to get you to pay, even if it is sending one of
>   my minions to your house to pick up $10 worth of quarters from your
>   couch. Do not sweat about Paypal or stuff. We are going bust. We will
>   find a way to help you donate in the easiest way possible. For now,
>   I just need you to pledge.
>
> * If 200 people splurge $10 a month, and we can collect the money from them, we will
>   be stable enough to keep going past July (our current burn rate is $2Kish).
>
> * If 300 or so people do this, we will slowly get back to our $15K reserve
>   without support from companies or the government or charitable
>   foundations (though I am hitting up other people of course). At that
>   point, I will advocate we start spending your money on a COMPLETELY
>   COOL RENOVATIONS OF NOISEBRIDGE. I will RAM THROUGH CONSENSUS that we
>   should spend any money that is more than three months reserve on
>   infrastructure improvements. Everyone loves me, so they will agree. If
>   they do not, we will just keep the money around for emergencies like
>   this. It will be like Kickstarter "stretch goal"! Only via a strangely
>   formatted text-only email!
>
> * Everyone on my pledge list will be an Associate Member for the purposes
>   of strange Noisebridge politics. But I insist they will get more!
>
> * As Treasurer, I solemnly declare that everyone on my list will be
>   heretofore known as SAVIOURS OF NOISEBRIDGE. That will make them
>   BETTER THAN ANYONE ELSE IN THE HISTORY OF NOISEBRIDGE. When somebody
>   asks you to move out of the way for a class, you can just say I AM A
>   SAVIOUR. When someone needs you to wash dishes, just say EXCUSE ME I
>   AM A SAVIOUR OF NOISEBRIDGE. Some people may have started Noisebridge
>   and be all hoighty-toighty. BUT YOU WILL HAVE STOPPED NOISEBRIDGE
>   STOPPING. And far more recently than them. YOU WILL BE THE BESTEST.
>
> * If you are another hackerspace, and you communally pledge $10, we will
>   come and wash your dishes and try and fix your 3D printer.
>
> That is my once-in-a-lifetime offer.
>
> Send me mail at treasurer at noisebridge.net with how much you pledge, and
> I will add you to the saviour list.
>
> Go to this web form and add your name, I will add you to the saviour list:
>
> http://nburl.net/pledge
>
> Better still, go to this Paypal page, and sign up for $10 and I will
> INSTANTLY MAKE YOU A SAVIOUR:
>
> http://nburl.net/save
>
> Donate to Noisebridge via Causes.com, and THE SAME THING WILL HAPPEN:
>
> http://nburl.net/causes
>
> As newbie naive hubristic impatient Treasurer I will set up Amazon
> Payments, Square, Swipe, Dwolla and whatever the hell you want. I will
> work out a way to get your payment from China or Brazil, Kosovo or New
> York. But first I need you to pledge!
>
> I will let everyone know how many people pledge, and keep mailing long
> emails until we are saved.
>
> We have three months to save Noisebridge.
>
> Help me, only tenbucks monthly, you're my only hope.
>
> http://nburl.net/pledge
>
> d.
> PS Did I say to come to our fundraiser party? This Saturday, 3PM- late.
> Tutorials, music, raffles, art and more!
> https://www.noisebridge.net/wiki/Art
>
> PPS Pledge 10 bucks and I will also stop with the Star Wars puns.
> http://nburl.net/pledge
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> Noisebridge-discuss at lists.noisebridge.net
> https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss



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