Eleran

Hey now ... I believe you said you didn't need to hear back from him until the May meeting. And now you are pressuring him? Tsk, Tsk.

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Thanks again. Not sure I will enjoy reading it, though.

Thanks - nice read! I won't presume upon your hospitality to ask where I could find the G7's letter which prompted that ...

That would be impossible. Exemption for charitable, religious AND EDUCATIONAL purposes goes all the way back to the Wilson-Gorman Tariff Act of 1894.

For those of us who weren't here at the time, do you have a link to that? I'd like to catch up on some recent history.

They are not legally designated as "charities". 'Charity' is mostly a layman's term. Those groups are legally designated as not-for-profit educational organizations. The government feels that such groups, even though they charge entrance fees, are good for society and should be encouraged through tax-exempt status. That doesn't make them a 'charity' in layman's terms, nor have they applied for 501©(3) status under the "charitable" organization language. And some of those organizations (as will some charities) will produce nice salaries for their employees, and some will have all employees working on a volunteer basis. Doesn't negate the value of supporting them with donations, but each person comes to their own judgement over what is more deserving in their mind for their donations. [501©(3) text: ... organized and operated exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, testing for public safety, literary, or educational purposes, or to foster national or international amateur sports competition (but only if no part of its activities involve the provision of athletic facilities or equipment), or for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals, ...] EDIT: I see from prior posts that my response was redundant. Nevermind ....

Stu Does that mean colleges and private schools should not be allowed to charge tuition to their students? because they too are all non-profit educational groups, just like drum corps, and sports clubs

By the way - everyone's idea of a "charity" is subjective. Do you consider United Way or Susan G. Komen charities? Does the fact that their CEOs make over $750k and $675k respectively color your view? More similar to a drum corps, I founded and run a non-profit sports club that charges its players to cover the club's costs. No trustees or officers (including me) are paid. Does the fact that my work is volunteer make it more charitable, or does the fact that the players pay make it less charitable? Very few black and whites in the realm of non-profits.

I'm even talking with my son about the possibility of forming a SoundSport corps. What the heck - I'm a masochist!

Bump. How about a SoundSport sub-forum under DCI?

How can you create a definition of something, which encompasses the common attributes of everything that fits that definition which you haven't yet created? Either (a) you are implying that the definition already exists and is agreed-upon, in which event there is nothing left for him to construct, or (b) you are asking him to present circulus in probando, because once he defines the sport, then all activities which meet his definition ipso facto have their attributes encompassed by the definition. My personal definition off the top of my head? A physically-exertive activity where an individual or group competes against another individual or group, with the potential for any participant to achieve results superior to the other participant(s), based upon objectively applied rules and purposes. Things necessarily excluded from that definition: figure skating, gymnastics, diving, half-pipe snowboarding, Dancing with the Stars, regional band auditions, beauty contests, and yes, DCI. So shoot me - I'm old school.

The corps could save save some money by firing their attorneys, who clearly don't know the difference between "council" and "counsel". ;)

I don't even understand the need for the question - to what end does the activity need to be categorize as a sport or not anyway? Does it feed the ego of some who want to brag that they're in a sport? Will it affect funding in any way or how it's generally viewed by the public? When the perdiodic discussions arise (usually during olympic times) as to whether figure skating, or gymnastics or rhythmic gymnastics are sports or not, all that does is provide a forum for those who already dislike the activities to make fun of them, without dissuading those that like it from continuing to like it. PS - my vote: not

Questions: Has money already been spent on new player or colorguard uniforms for this season, and if not, how much was budgeted for that? How much is budgeted to spend on new instruments or equipment, and can those expenses be deferred for another year with repairs as needed instead? I'm afraid I'm not up to speed as much as others as to actual line item amounts spent by corps each season, but so far I've only seen discussions over shortening the season to save the necessary money. If the $30k emergency is unlocked and you're looking at a potential $20k-30k deficit at end of season, I'd want to look at every aspect of the budget to see where it can be trimmed.

Open corps are still an attractive option for young players.

I'd love to hear Phantom incorporate into a show Strauss' Death and Transfiguration ... or maybe Walton's Funeral March from Hamlet ... or Wagner's Liebestod ... or Grieg's Aase's Death ... or Mahler's Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen ...

Bump: SoundSport announced new competitive divisions ... perhaps DCP might consider an actual SoundSport sub-forum? 1. Cadet (13 years and under) with 5-50 members 2. Cadet (13 years and under) with 51 or more members 3. Youth (up to 21 years) with 5-50 members 4. Youth (up to 21 years) with 51 or more members 5. All-Age with 5-50 members 6. All-Age with 51 or more members They've also announced, and are taking registrations, for four official events: 7/19/2014 – San Antonio, Texas 7/25/2014 – Huntsville, Alabama 7/26/2014 – Atlanta, Georgia 8/9/2014 – Indianapolis, IN

Don't get me wrong - I'm not overly in favor of literal reenactments of story lines. But I'm also not overly in favor of abstract interpretations through dance. I'd be happy with gorgeous music, sharp eye-catching marching, and a little color from the guard thrown in [in that order, as well]. I'd prefer fewer attempts at story-telling and more devotion to emotionally compelling music.

But they were simply following the plot of the opera. The beheading and impaling is a prominent part of every production of Turandot that I've ever seen. As both an opera and DCI fan, I really enjoyed Phantom's version. I'll take it over a lot of the new "concept" shows any day of the week and twice on Sunday.

I think the Raiders may have done a better job last year of tying into their Raven-themed show with their feather sashes and plumes. The ostrich feather of Oregon seems to undermine any reinforcement given by the black plume.

Actually, this is my son's first year marching a corps, and we looked at two DCA and one DCI Open corps. What swung him towards the DCI corps was specifically the point that he would marching with younger players, and I understand that. He's a teen, and this is his opportunity to get out a little more on his own and spend time working and playing with his peers on the road. He's happy to have me work with him at home on his marching and playing technique, but the thought of me marching beside him in a DCA corps wasn't what he wanted. I can accept that. Anyway, although I was tempted, my other two children's sports and activities really wouldn't give me the time to devote entire weekends to training and touring with a corps at this point. We all have choices to make. I wish I had made different choices at 18, but at 47 I know what choices I have to make. Maybe when he's older - when I'm 55 or so - we could do DCA together.

I'm 47 years old with three school-aged children - doing DCA for myself might be nice, but at this point in my life I more greatly value doing things with and for my children than for myself. I wish I had done DCI when I was young, with the freedom to pursue what I wanted just for myself.

Too bad there isn't a "Frommers Drum Corps" to give prospective players a better idea of what distinguishes various corps from one another, on a "real life" level, not so much on the performance level, which can be viewed from the outside. It's such a big commitment of time, and you can't really sample multiple corps very well given their simultaneous camps all across the country, and you only have a limited number of seasons to play. And of course I'm sure everyone finds different positives and negatives in each corps, or perhaps there aren't significant differences between most - I wish I knew! Luckily, we are happy so far this season.

While I understand that urge to see if you can make the existing structure better (I told my wife two nights ago that my next project is forming a Drum Corps - was I serious or not? hmmmm .....), I wonder how much the individual player can do. If the Corps is not on solid financial ground, or is not very-well organized (which costs valuable preparation time), or cannot attract and keep the top players or staff, then I'm not sure the players that stay have much ability to effect the necessary changes. Players can certainly raise their own level - but what if they do that and the rest of the Corps does not? Edit: And please understand that I am not a Drum Corps insider, so forgive my ignorance when it arises. Wish I had marched DCI, but I can't go back in time. However, I have a good deal of experience with athletic clubs and organizations, and see the same issues there between lower, mid and upper level clubs, and what makes them and keeps them that way, and what makes players go to or leave them. There appear to be certain similarities with drum corps as to this issue.