Overall, the members of the 40-year old Apple User Group are sensible, logical people who recognise that electing a divisive founder member to a Committee position would be detrimental to the running of the entire group.
This member, about 8 months ago claimed he was being victimised & bullied, threatening the then current Committee collectively & individually with legal action when they (volunteers with their own lives to lead) wouldn’t/couldn’t react quickly enough to his increasingly shrill & perplexing demands for justice.
He was insulting to the President who needs a walking frame to get about, calling him “spineless” for not acceding to or understanding his complaints.
At the time I had taken three months leave of absence to recover from a severe, life-threatening illness. This didn’t stop the bastard from telling me to stay out of the arguement on pain of legal action when all I did was, as per my moderator duties on the online forum, attempt a reconcilliation.
Privately, the Committee’s attitude towards arse-breath could be summed up by Kinky Friedman’s words “Fuck him & feed him Froot Loops,” although actual communications were far more diplomatic.
We held the AGM today to elect a new committee, he nominated for a position as Ordinary Member, one of four on the committee. There were five candidates, myself included.
Had he been elected the President, Secretary & Membership director (who all retained their positions from the previous committee would have resigned, throwing everything into complete chaos.
But, as mentioned at the start, the membership of the group are sensible folk & of the votes cast for the 5 candidates to 4 positions by at least 90 voters present, he scored 13 votes in total. And missed out on a committee position.
Thank fuck for that. He’s a corrosive influence, doesn’t understand that his baby, the group he co-founded 40 years previously, has been taken in a different direction by democratically-elected management committees.
He had the nerve to send the Secretary an email last year saying it was her duty to help him steer the group in the direction & manner he demanded.
We try to make every allowance for his Asperger’s Syndrome condition which accounts for his complete lack of social & people skills, but he’s just too mercurial in his nature. Fuck him.