[Dixielandjazz] An Open Letter RE: DJML Facebook

[SargentDrums at aol.com]

Bob Ringwald wrote:
 
<<But I think by the time I asked him not to use the name, he had  already 
established the DJML FB page. That would have been the time to change  and 
start the new page. But by that time he probably felt that it was too late.  
The horses had already left the barn…>>
 
This is correct. I did not want to give a few hundred people the boot  
simply for the sake of a name.
 
Besides, WE are ALL DJML. DJML is a volunteer group of PEOPLE who love  and 
advocate OKOM.
 
Nobody owns it, there are no dues, there is no governing body, and there  
are no elections.
 
DJML now has two ways to communicate, and that is PLUS, not a  negative. 
All this does is expand the purpose, the cause of the group, and the  art form.
 
In a family household, there are kids who use very smart phones, and some  
olds folks may still be using their flip phones or land lines to 
communicate. It  is still the same family.
 
When part of your jazz audience arrives at your concerts by cars, and  
others came by plane or bus, you do not care as to the method of arrival, nor  
the mode of communication. They are all your jazz audience.
 
For years, upon years, you guys have been complaining about dwindling  
audiences and disappearing festival and the seemingly inevitable prospect that  
jazz "OKOM" is dying.
 
So someone like me comes along, and finds a way to expand the reach, grow  
the audience, spread the word, give more people access . . . all while 
giving  younger people an opportunity to develop interest . . . and all I get 
from some  of you is complaints. Those younger people are never going to come 
here. While  there may be an exception or two, this is not the way they 
comminicate.
 
So, here is the pertinent question: it is really the music and the art form 
 you care about, or is it simply yourselves?
 
One last thing here: For those of you who think you have privacy here -  
every single email you've sent is 100% searchable and readable by anyone  
anywhere in the world on the internet. NOTHING you have posted here is private.  
Zip, nadda, zero, goose egg.
 
Now, I suggest it would be a better use of your time to focus on your  
musical discussions than on whether or not what I did was or was not the proper  
thing to do. For everyone of you who dis what I've done, I have had 
numerous  people express grateful "thank you"s (and that wasn't the reason why I 
did  it.)

Very, totally sincerely,
Bill Sargent
A member of the DJML  Email Version since waaaay back when Peter moderated 
the  list.