dsb2007 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Isn't the point, though, that the kind of drum corps experience you describe above is no longer acceptable in this day and age?I don't want my kids involved in a corps "that doesn't get enough food at lunch, and one that didn't get any sleep the night before because they were parked in God knows where for countless hours." I don't want my kids to "pee in sketchy allies" or one that finds their bus drivers "sleeping on top of the busses with no director in sight." It's no longer a matter of "putting on your big girl panties and dealing with it." This sort of stuff is precisely why some people should NOT be running organizations like this. So, if your quaint recollections are any indication of what life in the ECJ was really like, then I don't think there's any reason in the world to continue to lament their loss or hope for their miraculous re-appearance on the tour. Any corps operated like this needs to be gone. Period. (In my humble opinion, of course). I really agree with this post! The first responsibility of a corps director is to take proper care of the kids. If a corps can't do that, I don't think they should field a corps until they can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erictuba16 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 (edited) .. Edited October 4, 2007 by erictuba16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erictuba16 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 (edited) .. Edited October 4, 2007 by erictuba16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tborden10 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 Isn't the point, though, that the kind of drum corps experience you describe above is no longer acceptable in this day and age? I don't want my kids involved in a corps "that doesn't get enough food at lunch, and one that didn't get any sleep the night before because they were parked in God knows where for countless hours." I don't want my kids to "pee in sketchy allies" or one that finds their bus drivers "sleeping on top of the busses with no director in sight." It's no longer a matter of "putting on your big girl panties and dealing with it." This sort of stuff is precisely why some people should NOT be running organizations like this. So, if your quaint recollections are any indication of what life in the ECJ was really like, then I don't think there's any reason in the world to continue to lament their loss or hope for their miraculous re-appearance on the tour. Any corps operated like this needs to be gone. Period. (In my humble opinion, of course). The age of a marching member is between 16 and 21. If I learned one thing when I marched, it was to grow up. I don't know what kind of corps you plan on sending your kids to, but I wouldn't expect any of them to pamper your kids. When you have an organization where the membership consists of mostly adults (18-21) then you can leave some responsibility on the member's shoulders. Drum Corps is not high school marching band, and you can't treat the membership like so. As a marching member, you understand that you are responsible for yourself, and as a parent you are entrusting your kid with a level of responsibility. I am not saying that the members need to provide their food and transportation, but as a member you should know that "Hey, I should get as much sleep on the bus as I can because who knows how much floor time we'll get" and if they pee in a sketchy ally it's their own choice as a responsible adult. As far as getting enough food and bus drivers sleeping on buses. Well, I marched two years, and always felt I had enough food, and ECJ is done with hiring bus drivers now that they plan to charter buses so I assume they will be responsible enough. You seem to be intent on bashing ECJ. Maybe you have some history with the corps, maybe you don't. I don't know you, so I don't know what motivates you, but why do you have a problem with the idea of ECJ trying to come back? As far as I understand Tom Chop does not run every aspect of the corps anymore. Youth in the Arts Inc is acting as a board of directors as I understand and they are approaching this with a new direction. Just give the corps a chance, if anything. See what happens, wait until the open house. Who knows, maybe, just maybe ECJ will be successful and then what is so wrong with that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corpsvalues Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I don't know what kind of corps you plan on sending your kids to, but I wouldn't expect any of them to pamper your kids. I don't expect my kids to be pampered, nor am I an ECJ basher. Whenever they visited my part of the country, I did enjoy their performances. If they do come back, I hope that they've successfully dealt with whatever skeletons may be in their closet, and that the sniping about unpaid staff and all the rest goes away as well. Don't miss my point here. It's great that you enjoy drinking the kool-aid that is sometimes used to justify poorly run organizations. "It's ok... it's the drum corps way." I don't buy that. One of your own members is on this board, fondly remembering the hardships of being a member. When I read things like "director no where to be seen," it helps to illustrate the point I'm trying to make. Running a high-risk organization like a drum corps comes with a ton of responsibility. It's a huge undertaking, no doubt. Not everyone is equipped to manage a business of this magnitude. I don't buy into the notion that "every corps lost is a bad thing." Sure, it would be great to have hundreds of well-run organizations competing every weekend, with every participant getting a great experience. Drum corps does much to develop character in young people. But please spare me the crap that unless its a brutal experience, it's not really drum corps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsb2007 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 whats funny in this this toppic is all of the people complaining about our corps are people who've had nothing to do with the organization How do you know that? I don't know that. Was I involved in the corps? No. But that doesn't mean other people who are responding to this topic aren't. They may be. Don't assume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erictuba16 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 (edited) .. Edited October 4, 2007 by erictuba16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erictuba16 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 (edited) ..) Edited October 4, 2007 by erictuba16 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inquadwetrust Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 I just want to quickly put in that most of the "bad parts" of ECJ are what a lot of other corps go through on a day to day basis. I think everyone knows that - and at least to some degree. But aside from all of the great things posted as far as gaining responsibilty, learning how to prioritize, just being more professional in how you carry yourself in life, things like that, to the more negative stuff that's categorized as being "chaotic," look at what the corps has accomplished in the last three years on the field. From winning brass and percussion captions a couple times, visual twice, I even think there was a GE snag there too. And even a World Championship. Granted, I think anyone who has marched with ECJ recently would agree the staff has been outstanding, but I would say more of the "dribbling" is in the kid's hands. Know what I mean? Was it worth it? More than you know. The ol' saying, "the ball is in your court." I said "dribbling..." Oh snap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsb2007 Posted October 3, 2007 Share Posted October 3, 2007 (edited) ....i dont have to assume.. i know and trust me..its not arrogance if you can back it up. Ok, so back it up then. Show us the evidence that EVERY SINGLE POSTER ON THIS THREAD who has challenged the ECJ situation has NEVER had an affiliation with the program. Back it up right here and now. I'll give you a freeby...I never have been affiliated with ECJ (though I really never challenged ECJ specifically...just expressed my general thoughts on not paying staff is all). So prove it now. Back it up. We'll wait. Edited October 3, 2007 by dsb2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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