This is what I'd expect a community club to do.

[Drew]

6 minutes ago, Stuart Dickson said:

Look at it from a wider perspective Drew. Some of these people could be sitting with £thousands in the bank, and  still have a grim Christmas because they have no-one to share it with, the local shops are closed so they can't even follow their own routine and their normal carers are taking a day off to spend time with their own families. It's the community element of this event that for me shows real spirit and it's why a club like St Mirren should definitely be looking to organise events like this if it really does plan to be at the heart of the community. 

Yes, I accept and agree with much of that.

Its the fact that it is required at all that isn't brilliant.

Anyway, I was being a bit mischievous. It's panto season after all....

OH YES IT IS!

(just goes to show that you also bite sometimes).

Edited December 9, 2016 by Drew

[antrin]

2 hours ago, Stuart Dickson said:

I think most people do eat Drew. The NHS says that obesity is our biggest epidemic, not starvation or malnutrition. Some people are obviously falling through the welfare net and are needing to use foodbanks short term and that's tragic but as far as I understand it many of those people are only in that position because they've been sanctioned for not doing what they are supposed to do when claiming welfare. 

Look at it from a wider perspective Drew. Some of these people could be sitting with £thousands in the bank, and  still have a grim Christmas because they have no-one to share it with, the local shops are closed so they can't even follow their own routine and their normal carers are taking a day off to spend time with their own families. It's the community element of this event that for me shows real spirit and it's why a club like St Mirren should definitely be looking to organise events like this if it really does plan to be at the heart of the community. 

What a load of wanky pish! 

And because shull is such a shrinking violet I should maybe explain myself further...  

St Mirren is a football club.  The heart of its being is to continue as a football club.  The community should be rallying around in order to ensure that the football club survives and flourishes.  I am glad that my few shekels a month are not being squandered on wanky community pish.

When I give to a charity or community cause, it is at my behest.  I don't want to invest money to be diverted from the focus as and when a wishaw wanky-pish heidbanger choses.

 

Next, he'll be wanting smisa to finance world peace, instead of getting a solid centre half.

[Stuart Dickson]

21 minutes ago, antrin said:

What a load of wanky pish! 

And because shull is such a shrinking violet I should maybe explain myself further...  

St Mirren is a football club.  The heart of its being is to continue as a football club.  The community should be rallying around in order to ensure that the football club survives and flourishes.  I am glad that my few shekels a month are not being squandered on wanky community pish.

When I give to a charity or community cause, it is at my behest.  I don't want to invest money to be diverted from the focus as and when a wishaw wanky-pish heidbanger choses.

 

Next, he'll be wanting smisa to finance world peace, instead of getting a solid centre half.

Aye, 19 years+ of that marketing strategy Antrin, it's worked well for the club so far.

[oaksoft]

On 06/12/2016 at 11:20 AM, Stuart Dickson said:

Well done Hibs. Fans and the club coming together to do something rather special at Christmas. 

http://www.hibernianfc.co.uk/news/7039

Wouldn't it be great to support a club that was as pro active in what it did around the community? 

FFS even for you this is pathetic Stuart.

Using a charitible act to beat someone else over the head is pretty low.

[Stuart Dickson]

3 minutes ago, oaksoft said:

FFS even for you this is pathetic Stuart.

Using a charitible act to beat someone else over the head is pretty low.

I'm not. I'm clearly stating what direction I'd like to see SMiSA and St Mirren going in. I've been banging on for years now about the need for St Mirren to be more community focused and each time I've been told that the club is brilliant at taking grant money and running short programmes. That's true, but this Hibs project is probably the best illustration of the type of thing I think St Mirren need to get involved in going forward. The club has to repair the damage that was done between the club and the town and it needs to become a cause that everyone can rally around. The path it's on right now is leading it to a slow death - the kind of slow death I predicted when Gilmour and Co took ownership of the club. Fix it and the club could have a really bright future going forward. 

[Drew]

1 hour ago, Stuart Dickson said:

I'mp not. I'm clearly stating what direction I'd like to see SMiSA and St Mirren going in. I've been banging on for years now about the need for St Mirren to be more community focused and each time I've been told that the club is brilliant at taking grant money and running short programmes. That's true, but this Hibs project is probably the best illustration of the type of thing I think St Mirren need to get involved in going forward. The club has to repair the damage that was done between the club and the town and it needs to become a cause that everyone can rally around. The path it's on right now is leading it to a slow death - the kind of slow death I predicted when Gilmour and Co took ownership of the club. Fix it and the club could have a really bright future going forward. 

What damage between the club and the town?

Genuine question.

 

[antrin]

2 hours ago, Stuart Dickson said:

Aye, 19 years+ of that marketing strategy Antrin, it's worked well for the club so far.

Thank you.

 

I concede that for once you are correct.

 

The fans are buying the club.

 

Now perhaps the football club will survive unless a crazy person pays heed to your wanky pish community bollox.

[Stuart Dickson]

3 hours ago, Drew said:

What damage between the club and the town?

Genuine question.

I would have said the evidence of damage was obvious for anyone who lived through all the town hall scenes after each cup win and league win. The towns enthusiasm for the team has certainly waned. 

 

[antrin]

8 hours ago, Stuart Dickson said:

I would have said the evidence of damage was obvious for anyone who lived through all the town hall scenes after each cup win and league win. The towns enthusiasm for the team has certainly waned. 

 

That seems like evidence pointing in the other direction.

When the football is shite, enthusiasm wanes.  Due to the football being shite - not because there has been a dearth of wanky community projects.

"Win a cup or a league and they will come to Feegie Fields".

probably a wise man said that...

Edited December 10, 2016 by antrin

[Stuart Dickson]

3 hours ago, antrin said:

That seems like evidence pointing in the other direction.

When the football is shite, enthusiasm wanes.  Due to the football being shite - not because there has been a dearth of wanky community projects.

"Win a cup or a league and they will come to Feegie Fields".

probably a wise man said that...

The wise man clearly wasn't you. 

The point I was making was that when St Mirren have had a success to celebrate the crowds at the town hall have gotten smaller and smaller. I had to do a bit of digging yesterday for pictures of the scenes. They weren't hard to find and I don't fancy trying it again, but if you can have a look at the scenes in 1987, then 2000, 2006 and 2013. It's an even more telling story when you look at 1959. 

[Isle Of Bute Saint]

32 minutes ago, Stuart Dickson said:

The wise man clearly wasn't you. 

The point I was making was that when St Mirren have had a success to celebrate the crowds at the town hall have gotten smaller and smaller. I had to do a bit of digging yesterday for pictures of the scenes. They weren't hard to find and I don't fancy trying it again, but if you can have a look at the scenes in 1987, then 2000, 2006 and 2013. It's an even more telling story when you look at 1959. 

The town was bouncing on each occasion pubs were bursting at the seems. You obviously did not attend the celebrations. 

[Stuart Dickson]

The town was bouncing on each occasion pubs were bursting at the seems. You obviously did not attend the celebrations. 

I certainly did. I even checked last night it wasn't just my memory playing tricks on me. The crowds had definitely gotten smaller. There were also far more bars in Paisley in 1987 than there was in 2013.

[antrin]

You can try to change the subject, cos you are failing to make your point, if you want.

I won't go along with it, of course.  Football crowds are dwindling due to an array of reasons that are irrelevant to this discussion. (Though I know in your mind it IS just talking about you)

There are shoals of other diversions available and at a cheaper price than football etc etc

 

The fact remains that people are interested in seeing a successful team rather than in a buzzing community project.

[faraway saint]

I don't get al the anger and bluster about this.

I don't think there is any doubt a successful team on the pitch is the main aim but there is absolutely no reason that some form of involvement can't go hand in hand with this and help grow the overall feel good factor this would generate.

Anyone who can't see this is, more than likely, a dinosaur.

Simples really.

[Stuart Dickson]

http://www.motherwelltimes.co.uk/news/toy-giveaway-in-forgewood-1-4313793

[pozbaird]

1 minute ago, Stuart Dickson said:

http://www.motherwelltimes.co.uk/news/toy-giveaway-in-forgewood-1-4313793

Bloody hell, Buddiecat's pram was bigger than I thought this week.

[HSS]

[Lord Pityme]

57 minutes ago, HSS said:

Street stuff is a fantastic diversionary intervention for young people, and makes the club a few bob along the way too!

[beyond our ken]

On 12/6/2016 at 3:49 PM, Stuart Dickson said:

Yeah. If you follow their monthly updates there hasn't been a thing about community activities. There's a fundraising dinner for the youth academy, and the millennium event for members but absolutely nothing at all in six months about the community. We were all promised fresh eyes, new ideas and a different approach yet so far all I can see is the board of directors limiting itself to talking to the same people the last board talked to and ignoring everyone else. I can't see how any of that is fresh, new or different. It's even to the extent that my suggestion as to how to spend some of the SMiSA cash on a community activity was left off the ballot last time round with no explanation. 

Where are the meeting agenda's published? Where's the opportunity to add a discussion point to the agenda? And where are the minutes of each meeting? I've got to say this is the strangest membership club I've ever been a member of. How are members supposed to know what committee members are performing and what ones are being carried if we can't see the minutes of meetings? How can we be sure we're electing decent representatives to our committee?  Oh and when this post gets ignored as usual, I'm sure I'll be told that I should e-mail someone so they too can ignore me.  

Shocked to the core that I agree with you.   Apparently there are meetings on a Monday that are not widely publicised, they rarely issue minutes as well.  These guys take money for this but don't see the need to be open.

 

 

[TsuMirren]

I was doing a wee bit of research last night and it turns out that AFC Wimbledon only recently started issuing edited minutes. Clyde don't appear to, but it may be in their members only area. I don't really see the need for the minutes as updates via email or the site should cover what's going on.

With regards Stuart's points, there are and have been community activities going on that will hopefully be announced soon enough. If you want something on the agenda then contact SMISA and ask or even, seeing as I did recently put my hand up for handling online engagement, send me a PM here and I'll raise the point at our next meeting. I'd also say that the disabled platform is a community activity, so there was one on the ballot.

[whydowebother]

I was doing a wee bit of research last night and it turns out that AFC Wimbledon only recently started issuing edited minutes. Clyde don't appear to, but it may be in their members only area. I don't really see the need for the minutes as updates via email or the site should cover what's going on.

With regards Stuart's points, there are and have been community activities going on that will hopefully be announced soon enough. If you want something on the agenda then contact SMISA and ask or even, seeing as I did recently put my hand up for handling online engagement, send me a PM here and I'll raise the point at our next meeting. I'd also say that the disabled platform is a community activity, so there was one on the ballot.

I can help you out with the AFC. Wimbledon details of you require ?

The assistant manager Neil Cox is a good friend of mine and has been for years, shall I request text updates ?

On the subject of our minutes of meetings ? They should be 'pinned' on a site to be viewed after each meeting so we at least know what's being discussed ?

[Stuart Dickson]

1 hour ago, TsuMirren said:

I was doing a wee bit of research last night and it turns out that AFC Wimbledon only recently started issuing edited minutes. Clyde don't appear to, but it may be in their members only area. I don't really see the need for the minutes as updates via email or the site should cover what's going on.

With regards Stuart's points, there are and have been community activities going on that will hopefully be announced soon enough. If you want something on the agenda then contact SMISA and ask or even, seeing as I did recently put my hand up for handling online engagement, send me a PM here and I'll raise the point at our next meeting. I'd also say that the disabled platform is a community activity, so there was one on the ballot.

Clyde do. I get an e-mail sent with the minutes of meetings fairly regularly if not every month.

I've got to say though I am more than bemused as to why anyone would defend the fact that SMiSA aren't issuing minutes of their meetings by trying to find other iSA's that don't issue minutes. Surely at SMiSA there should be a desire to get things done right and issuing the minutes of meetings to members is quite simply best practice. It keeps members informed of what is going on, it allows members to raise points for the next agenda, and it provides proof to the membership that their views are being taken seriously. It also keeps things nice and open.

On a slightly different note, Div and a few others ITK, including Tony Fitzpatrick, have alluded recently to some big and exciting things going on inside the club with details to be released soon. Now I'd never claim to be in the know normally but last night I was at a meeting where someone a lot closer to the club than me was in attendance and he shared with me some news that did indeed sound exciting. However he also shared with me some news which has worried me to the core about the state of the club, the different factions within it, and a lack of leadership and teamwork that seems to be what is required to get everyone pulling in the same direction. Now I fully appreciate that this was a short conversation with someone who is absolutely a stranger to me but the idea of some people around and within the club looking to push forward their own agenda's is not new. As a member of SMiSA I'd like to be absolutely sure that I'm not helping to fund one of those factions to act in a divisive manner. Publishing the minutes is essential to me now. Hopefully the SMiSA committee will address this matter as soon as possible. 

 

[TsuMirren]

Okay, I'll ask about the minutes. Without knowing more about factions though I'll say that I've not heard or discussed anything potentially divisive at the meetings (well, within reason).

[David Mc]

So SMISA haven't discussed Stuart?   

[HSS]

15 minutes ago, TsuMirren said:

Okay, I'll ask about the minutes. Without knowing more about factions though I'll say that I've not heard or discussed anything potentially divisive at the meetings (well, within reason).

Are you the main man at SMiSA these days Kenny?