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October 11th , DeAngelo's, 6:00 PM

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Baton Rouge Mensa

"Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." -Albert Einstein

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October 2014

October is testing month! The fee is only $20 and all you have to do is email the testing coordinator on the Contacts page for details. Testing is quick and painless, and the benefits of membership are incalculable.

 

Mensa's Region 6, which Baton Rouge is a part of, has a Facebook page. Be sure to stop by for lots of information on Mensa and what's happening in our area.

 

Speaking of Facebook, if you have a child or children that may be gifted and are looking for information, check out American Mensa's Bright Kids page where other parents like you are sharing ideas and information.

Lafayette, Hammond, and Lake Charles are all looking for Area Coordinators. Anyone interested in coordinating events for their area should contact Ellen (also found on the Contacts page).

From the RVC:

The last weekend in August I attended the 2014 version of LoneStaRG in Round Rock.  As usual, the Austin group did a great job, with a variety of speakers, sumptuous hospitality, a really outstanding cheese taste and a “redneck” wine taste, plus a banquet and dance, among other things.  Unfortunately, both of the co-chairs had to leave in the middle of the RG, for personal reasons, but others stepped up and the RG went on without interruption.  Now I’m looking forward to the Region’s next big party, North Texas Mensa’s Feast of Pleasures and Delights, to be held over the Thanksgiving weekend.
The next weekend was spent in Grapevine, at the fall meeting of your Board of Directors.  I was pleased to see several of the folks I had just partied with the previous weekend, as a number of our region’s members made the trek to the Metroplex to watch the Board in action.  I’m happy to report that the proposed dues increase was defeated, but I must warn you that the battle is not yet over.  Notice has already been given that a new dues increase motion will be on the agenda at our December meeting in San Diego, although I hope that our Treasurer will ask for a more moderate amount next time, rather than the inordinate increase we just rejected.
Two reports from outside consultants were reviewed by the Board at this meeting; the first was a technology assessment of our national office data processing capabilities, and we were disconcerted to hear a rather unflattering description of a system on the verge of collapse.  Old and overworked hardware, obsolete and unsupported software, inadequate backup systems and totally insufficient network security were among the problems found by our consultant.  Our system was state-of-the-art fifteen years ago, but has not been kept up over time.  We are continuing to work with the assessment firm to develop a plan for upgrading our facilities to 21st century standards, but the cure for these problems will be neither quick nor inexpensive.
The other report was on the recent personnel turnover at the national office.  Dealing as it does with personnel matters, the report itself is confidential, but although the contents were generally reassuring, a few of the conclusions were concerning to the Board and corrective measures are being instituted to deal with the problems our consultants identified.
As always, if you have any suggestions, complaints, or questions you would like to share with me, please feel free to contact me at rvc6@us.mensa.org, or by snail mail at 9920 Ridgehaven Dr., Dallas, TX 75238.

Roger Durham

 

What are You Doing Here?

My family and I just returned (literally yesterday) from this year's summer vacation in the Great Smoky Mountains. It is an absolutely wonderful location with unbelievable exposure and access to the many wonders of nature. Many shops and attractions in the area are themed around the history of the national park and surrounding area. They offer a grand education in preservation versus industrialization. They are also a great example of replacing an industry(lumber) with an industry(tourism), instead of replacing an industry(oil, coal, space exploration, commercial fishing) with rhetoric(hope and change). Touring the parks and museums in the area you get a brief glimpse of what thousands of people endured and enjoyed settling and exploring the Great Smoky Mountains. It is quite the irony that the American government forcibly removed the Cherokee in the 1830s for settlers that they then forcibly removed in the 1930s to create the national park. I wonder if either group would be happy with what their loss produced. Either way today the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a legitimate wonder that all of us should make a "bucket list" destination. If you enjoy hiking, camping, canoeing, tubing, horseback riding, dining, shopping, bird watching, or just want to get a look at the world from 6,000 feet up this is the place for you. I, gazing out from the observation tower at Clingman's Dome 6,643 feet above sea level, could not help but awe at the accomplishments of all those who came before the Cherokee and since, and the unquestionable majesty of this world and wonder if anyone, ever, would know what I had done here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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