THE AFTERMATHRON BENNETT:Whilst realising only too well that charges may be levelled at me that I'm shooting off my typewriter from a distance of some 200 miles as compared with the worthies who were present at the Convention and who actually made the decision, it does appear, to me, that to break away from the umbrella of the BSFA is to jeopardise the chances of entire success of future Conventions. It would appear that no longer will a Convention Committee be allowed to employ the use of BSFA head notepaper. Whilst this would appear superficially to be a minor point in the argument, I know from experience the tremendous weight of authority carried by the use of such paper in the approach to any hotel, speaker, publisher, etc. Anyone who has actually organised a convention will, I am sure, agree with me that the main concern is the financial responsibility. It's a constant worry whether or not the Convention will be able to meet its obligations - and please don't come back with the suggestion that proper planning can take care of this end. The unforeseen can and does happen. Older fans can remember a con "being stuck" for a sudden and unexpected £100, for example, and there are numerous other instances of similar occurrences, though admittedly smaller amounts have been involved each time. One reader in particular will undoubtedly feel strongly on this point. One convention, some ten years ago, left him some £30 out of pocket, a sum which has never been recovered. Having myself organised a Convention which summarily suffered a loss, I can but emphasise the relief felt at the taking over the debt incurred by the BSFA. Can future conventions afford to be without this "umbrella?" Furthermore, is this rather drastic "divorce" at all fair on Tony Walsh and the other members of his 1967 Committee, Tony having contracted into the Convention organising at the Birmingham Convention last year at a time when this BSFA backing was still in existence? One can but hope that the general membership of the Association reconsiders its decision in the near future, perhaps in the pages of VECTOR.
KEN SLATER:
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