Salzman, Jeff wrote:
>
> >
> >there is no one to carry on the tradition. I shudder to think about the
> >eventual fate of all of our collections. Do we need a national repository
> >for all of this stuff?
By all the gods that never were, don't let the government ever get
involved. They don't care about preserving what they were left by their
own predecessors (the Bill of Rights is an ugly example), they sure as
hell don't give a damn about any other legacy.
> How about a collector's organization which can act as a willed
> beneficiary for collectors. A board of directors can act in the best
> interest of the collection should a member (or non-member?) die and
> bequeath(sp?) his/her computer collection to the organization. Some
> items can be kept for a museum piece while others can bid for a chance
> to purchase the remaining items. This could fund the organization. The
> organization can also conduct interviews with bidders to determine if
> they are serving the best interest of the computer collection if they
> get the desired item. A clause can be put in to require the item to be
An inspection of how the bidder's _own_ collection is being maintained
might be a clue as to worthiness. As long as it's all done by private
individuals, not government agents. And _no_ government coercion or
other involvement -- get them involved, they'll fuck anything up.
--
Ward Griffiths <mailto:gram_at_cnct.com> <http://www.cnct.com/home/gram/>
When I was crossing the border into Canada, they asked me if I had any
firearms with me. I said "Well, what do you need?" -- Steven Wright
Received on Wed Oct 07 1998 - 22:10:09 BST