VEDETTE - Your questions answered

What is the purpose of Vedette and how will it help us?

How do I become a member and what must I do?

Is there a membership fee to join?

What is your role in all of this?

Is this some sort of "secret" club, and will my personal details be safe?

Who decides what action to take?

Can I still remain involved with my own projects if I am a member of Vedette?

Will anyone be excluded from becoming a member?

Why did you use the name Vedette?

What is the purpose of Vedette and how will it help us?

The main purpose of Vedette is to bring as many people together as possible. Not just those looking for help in fighting the system, but the sites that supply the information as well. Everyone is doing a great job (in their own way), but we must combine our efforts if we are to have any chance of success.

This is not an easy task, and if we succeed it will be the first time in history that this has happened. From the very beginning the "people" have always been controlled by a minority (Kings, governments, dictators and so on). We spend most of our time complaining about the injustice, and occasionally take some action, but we never have the backing of sufficient numbers to make a difference. And as a result, we remain slaves to the system.

Sadly, many have a very selfish view on how to survive the system, often using other peoples misfortunes to move up the ladder. But what they seem to forget is that they too can be a victim of these tactics, and no one can climb higher than the "Elite" permit you to. By working together we are not just helping the majority, but ourselves as well.

Perhaps it is easiest to think of Vedette as a kind of "Union". Its purpose is not to take over the world, but to monitor and correct injustice when it occurs, by applying pressure to those who create it. That might be the government, a big corporation, or even a smaller company that is treating its employees badly, the power could be applied in many ways.

Any action taken would be in a non-violent manner, as there would be no point in replacing one bad system with another.

How do I become a member and what must I do?

At the moment, all you have to do is join our message board. You are very welcome to take part in the discussions and post information on events that worry you personally. If the response is good and the number of members increase to a high level, we will have to look at a more traditional method of registration. But, one step at a time.

Is there a membership fee to join?

No, not at the moment. However, as I have already mentioned, this will use up a lot of my time (not to mention the extra bandwidth costs) and it would certainly help with expenses if some members were to consider purchasing our "promotional" merchandise. You would also be helping to spread the word to others as well (which is what we need).

What is your role in all of this?

I see my role as bringing everyone together, a bit like completing the jigsaw. At the moment there is no real organization between all the various sites and the people that are working hard to achieve results. I want to contact all these different people and try to find a way to connect them. This does not mean giving up their individual efforts, but developing methods that will combine their talents and at the same time increase their potential. As the membership grows, the responsibility would have to be shared with many others. In time, my role may become less important, but that does not matter. Obtaining success and power for the people should be top of the list, regardless of who achieves it. This may sound strange, but I don't think about the benefits this could bring to myself (I'm not that sure if it would make too much difference to my own life), I do it because I feel it is the right thing to do, and something that must be done!

Is this some sort of "secret" club, and will my personal details be safe?

I don't think of it as some "secret" club (there are no special handshakes or initiation ceremonies!), but you will not be asked for any personal details, you can become a member using any name/email address you wish. I think it is important (at least while the membership is growing) to provide anonymity to those who want it. There are already enough organizations around that do that!

Maybe later we will require a few more details, but this will be optional!

Who decides what action to take?

Worthy causes will be discussed and if action is to be taken it will be put to the members (for a vote). If there is sufficient support, then action can begin. Everthing must be dealt with in a democratic way, otherwise we are no better than the system we are trying to control.

Can I still remain involved with my own projects if I am a member of Vedette?

Absolutely, being a Vedette is designed to be of additional help, not to replace what you are doing at the moment.

Will anyone be excluded from becoming a member?

The people we want to see as members are those who believe the present system is corrupt and needs changing. If a person doesn't agree with that, there is no reason for them to join. Constructive criticism is welcome, if it helps the members to be more successful, but a person who joins simply to attack us is not welcome, and will be banned very quickly.

Why did you use the name Vedette?

I wanted a name that best described the work we are trying to do. A Vedette is a French military term (formed from Latin videre, to see), migrated into English and other languages to refer to a mounted sentry or outpost, who has the function of bringing information, giving signals or warnings of danger, etc, to a main body of troops. In modern terms, the soldiers who man listening-posts are the equivalent of vedettes.

That is basically our function, to listen and inform other members of dangers, and act on them if necessary.