[HCoop-Discuss] Negative member balances

[Adam Chlipala]

Depending on how you interpret it, my deadline for folks to pay off 
their negative balances either already arrived or will arrive at the end 
of today in some time zone.  We're doing pretty well so far as not 
having to kick many people out goes.  Only 17 active members have 
negative balances now, and many of them aren't in all that bad shape, 
for reasons that I'll discuss below.

I'm asking for the help of anyone who reads this mailing list in 
contacting those members whom I describe below as in danger of being 
voted out of the co-op by the board.  I've made best-effort attempts at 
contacting all of them.

So, here's the summary of how we stand now with negative balances.  We 
can divide them into two categories, listed at these URLs:
    - Active members: https://members2.hcoop.net/portal/money?cmd=nbals
    - People who asked to leave the co-op but didn't pay enough: 
https://members2.hcoop.net/portal/money?cmd=deadbals

* Among the retired members, we have two slightly negative balances of 
folks who meant to pay off all they owed, but forgot to take PayPal 
service fees into account, and whose small negative balances I'll just 
pay off myself if it comes to that; and we have teer with his humongo 
negative balance.  This last guy, I think, is playing dumb by engaging 
in lengthy e-mail discussions with me while at the same time ignoring 
point-blank requests to either pay his balance or ask for a particular 
amount of grant money.  Thus, he defaults to asking for a grant for the 
entire amount.

* Among the active members, these people's balances have been negative 
for less than 3 months, prohibiting a board vote alone from booting them 
under our bylaws: ajju, jure, nion, and vikas.  These folks aren't in 
clear and present danger of eviction, but it would be very helpful for 
anyone who knows one of them to ask what's up.

* These members paid recently, but just didn't pay enough to make their 
balances positive: bpalmer and bwanab.  I'm in favor of letting them be 
for at least a month more.

* We've granted an extension on request to one member, rcl.

~~~~ Below this point, every member I mention is in danger of being 
kicked out no later than a week from today!  If you know any of them and 
can get in touch with them to ask what's up, please do! ~~~~

* We have a number of members who both haven't paid since May and 
haven't set any extra contact information on the portal: amalakar, 
basavesh, hnfong, lode, sarao73, and tony.  We have no easy way of 
contacting them save hcoop.net e-mail, and each of them has received 
multiple automated low balance notices and one manual "last warning" 
e-mail from me to that address today.

* We also have another class of members.  The following all haven't paid 
since April but _have_ set alternate contact information.  
Unfortunately, I've not yet gotten any responses trying to ping them 
using it, though the messages seem to have gone through.  barf, corvo, 
and rwh.

* Finally, we have one member who last paid in June and lists an IM 
screen name that I haven't yet seen online since I've been looking: 
frayedthread.


This leaves us with 10 members who I'll vote to kick out of the co-op a 
week from today (or sooner, if that seems reasonable).  With one more 
board member agreeing, they'll be out.  Thus, any help you can provide 
in poking them would be much appreciated.  (And 10 is actually a much 
more optimistic number than I was expecting to have left to deal with at 
this stage! :-])


=== Appendix A: When did they last log into fyodor? ===

I was pleasantly surprised to see that all of the endangered folks had 
last logged into fyodor in 2007, save for one on December 26, 2006.  One 
logged into fyodor yesterday.  I think he's a fluke, as all the others 
last logged in no more recently than September, with plenty last logged 
in many months ago.  You can finger their usernames yourself on fyodor 
for details.