At almost the same time, another emergency (which ultimately turned out to be a case of mistaken identity) was reported. The Ops staff on duty shut down the Bridge, an event which is absolutely unprecedented in Minicon's history. All who approached the Bridge, including concom reporting for shifts, were turned away with the terse explanation that a "medical emergency" was being dealt with and no further help was needed. About 45 minutes later the Bridge reopened. The people who were working the Bridge at 4:15 had no information about what had happened.
When questioned about the reason for the closing of the Bridge, the head of Ops stated, "There were 2 emergencies going on and Operations felt it was necessary to clear the Bridge in order to deal with both of them at once. We apologize to anyone who was inconvenienced and have been working on improving our communications so that the Bridge can remain open at all times."
According to the Ops head, neither of the situations turned out to be as serious as they seemed at first. Although police were called, their presence turned out to be unnecessary and both situations were resolved peacefully.
In retrospect, it was anticlimactic, a tempest in a teapot. Inexperienced personnel over-reacted in a crisis situation. Nobody was hurt, no harm was done. It was never the intent of Ops that experienced concom be shut out of the "situation" or that con members be cut off from the services of the bridge for nearly an hour.
But is it just a fluke? I'm not so sure. By its very nature, Ops requires that a large team composed of experienced old hands and green volunteers work together smoothly. Minicon has traditionally had an atmosphere of team spirit and open communication that made this work better than it had any right to, year after year. But in the last few years something has been happening to this spirit. When the Minicon Log disappeared into an ill-conceived computerized system (best described as Write Once, Read Never) a big link in the communication chain was lost. An odd turn in recruitment philosophy has resulted in a steadily increasing proportion of young people in threatening looking costumes who seem to be unnecessarily impressed with their own importance and overly fond of Us vs. Them fantasy games. I'm sorry, but I don't want `Demons' and `Angels' taking my 911 calls. I want a competent team of human beings who thinks of all of Minicon as "Us."
And the Bridge should NEVER be closed. Never. Under certain circumstances it is appropriate to clear the decks of bystanders, but any team that thinks that they can only deal with an emergency by closing themselves off from the rest of the con has the wrong idea of what Minicon is.
-- Sharon Kahn
There is, of course, a catch. I'm talking Minicon members here, not Minicon attendees. Members are those who actualize Minicon. It isn't just the people who formally volunteer at Minicon...in the Consuite...on the Bridge...in Dark Star. (Although that's a really fine way to support Minicon.) And it isn't just the people who hosted parties last night, or are hosting them again tonight for the amusement of anyone who wanders in wearing a badge. (See you there!)
Being a member of Minicon is a matter of attitude. It's adding your own personal touch to the convention in such a way that your own good time adds to the good time of the rest of the Con-goers. There are no age requirements if Minicon30 has at least one member who is a two-month-old baby who's contributing to the convention in her own new-found way. From appearances, she's having a good measure of fun in the process.
Minicon needs more members and that means you. As with all good science fiction conventions, together we continue to make ours a stellar one. Lend your talents during the coming year to the virtual reality of Minicon31.
-- Geri Sullivan
Our heartfelt thanks go out to those who met the challenge in the wee morning hours when the regular `fix-it' folks were soundly sleeping. Thanks.
Solution to Last Year's Amalgamated Spleen Puzzle
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Andrew, I never did get your last name! I do want to pursue our relationship. If you can't catch me in the Fanzine Room, leave a message for room 576.
-- sharon
The Bozo Bus Tribune