Desertia,
On behalf of the PCC Team, thank you for drawing this to our attention.
You are most welcome. I'm very interested in hearing how the development of this new body progresses. Clearly the old 70s-style, leftie trade unions are a dying breed, so it's fair to say that many people in many industries have a vested interest in the success of such a body as the new Crew Council. If successful it could end up being a model for 21st century industrial relations.
It is very evident that those that run BASSA have their organisation by the throat. No-one seems to be able to produce or refer to a constitution of any kind, or even a set of accounts. How on earth can you assess the leadership when you don't know what they are doing, or how much it is costing? And obviously challenging such an oligarchy is almost impossible, if not dangerous.
If Steve Turner is upset about the desire for an alternative, he can blame the BASSA leadership for being so secretive, sinister and self-protective. I think that the reason that they have failed to keep their members informed is because if the members actually saw what they were really doing, they'd be out on their behinds.
BUT every potential member of the PCCC should read the book (or watch the DVD/Video) of Animal Farm by George Orwell (it has been referred to previously on this thread). It is probably the most famous example of the story of how power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
There is little point in setting up an alternative to BASSA if one of two things are allowed to happen:
(1) Those that form it get drunk on their new found power and end up abusing it exactly like Loopy Lizzie and her cronies.
(2) It is insufficiently protected from the risk that BASSA send the lemmings in en masse to vote in their cronies and then seize control.
It is not easy, but I just think that the constitution of the new council must allow equal access to all members, but without permitting an immediate BASSA-led power shift that allows the council to commit hara-kiri.....
I sincerely applaud your efforts, as much as I wish for the BASSA leadership to slope off back under the rock from whence they crawled.
To coin a phrase,
The Best of British Luck to you!
