Copywrong. Huge oops! We forgot to include the copyright mark on the Lya Korda owls. All of Lya's owls that were created specially for Going Forward are under copyright and may be used only with permission.

On the Average. We may look like graybeards in our leadership (average age 53), and the average age of our members is 48, but the average age of new members joining is 32! For once, it's a good thing to be on the way down.

Fox in the Mensa House. Mensa joined forces with the Fox television network to norm a 60-question "intelligence test" that will be used as part of a show called Test the Nation. The show will air on June 9th according to our National Office, and will include our own supervisory psychologist as a guest. The show will feature a live, two-hour program during which a studio audience will take the "intelligence test" while home viewers take the same test at www.testonfox.com. Mensa expects a giant influx of inquiries from lending its name and efforts to this endeavor. A hensome reward if it all works out well. If not, then we're in for another Kimmel and Bits.

Wrong Number: If you have not yet voted, please do so. Every vote does count. On the international ballot (the blue one), the Zip Code on the envelope is incorrect. Please change it to 76006. The National Office is encouraging everyone to spread the word, and Going Forward is happy to help out in this.

Out of Vocus. According to PR Newswire, "The Smartest People Select Vocus Public Relations." Vocus is an online software company for corporate communications. Jim Blackmore, national's Marketing Director, says Vocus will give Mensa the "ability to create customized and targeted distribution and track all inbound press calls." Mensa will now be able to increase media coverage and measure the effectiveness of PR campaigns. The gush-and-blurb press release lets us know that our recruitment program is supercharged, but what remains unsaid (or perhaps unknown) is the goal for all this recruitment. Just numbers? Until we have an answer that fits with service to membership, this action might be a bit shortsighted, somewhat out of vocus.

Shakespeare Perverted. The Hearings Committee (HC) was set up in a manner to keep it completely independent of the AMC in terms of the HC's operation, with the AMC involved only if the HC levies a sanction of suspension or expulsion. In spite of this, at the March AMC meeting, the AMC voted to appoint a person to bring charges of acts inimical against individual members either independently or on behalf of an individual member who is allowed to remain anonymous to the defendant. In a splurge of semantic euphemisms, this position started out being called "Amicus" (friend, in Latin), then "Paladin" and finally "Advocate." No matter what it is called, an Advocate by any other name is an official prosecutor for Mensa. Because the Advocate is both appointed by the AMC and able to bring charges for anonymous accusers (which could include AMC members), the AMC has, under the mantle of legalities, cemented the Hearings Committee directly to the AMC.

Adding insult to injury, the AMC voted that the Advocate and any Assistant Advocates s/he may appoint would be reimbursed for their expenses in pursuing members to be charged with acts inimical. The defendant does not have this same expectation. Going Forward is curious how this payment plan guarantees every member a "fair and impartial hearing." Dave Remine, who brought the motion, said Mensa needs an advocate for the membership and that we cannot expect a member to invest time, energy and personal money to attempt to oust someone who is harming the society. And who defines "harming"? Voting against this motion were Dan Wilterding, Ike Kullman, Barbara Lytle, Betsy Burke, Elissa Rudolph and Judy Vasiliauskas. "That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet," and a prosecutor by any other name …

Front Page: Dick Hodgson has been named as the new communications director/managing editor of the Mensa Bulletin. Dick's background in publishing stretches way back to when he was eight years old and began working a linotype machine and writing a weekly column for family-owned newspapers in Illinois. You may reach Dick at DickH@americanmensa.org or BulletinEditor@americanmensa.org or via phone at 817-607-0060, extension 137. Welcome!

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