> My gut feeling is that this proposal stems from an over-reaction to a
> problem we had last semester when a DI couple who were _clearly_ not
> beginners, entered some competitions as "Beginners." As I was unable to
> attend the comps in question, I heard about it after-the-fact from a number
> of other members who felt they were cheated out of ribbons by this couple
> (who won all the beginner ribbons). Worse yet, they felt they couldn't
> complain to anyone about it, because one half of that couple was a DI
> officer at the time.
Well, everybody knows who this couple is, without naming names. Whether
or not the members in question were aware of it, they were the subject of
much scorn and derision in DI conversations I have overheard throughout
the year.
And scorn much deserved, since their conduct was, at best, cheesy, and,
at worst, downright dishonest.
(If either member of this couple would care to defend or explain their
abuse of the honor system, I challenge you to do so!)
All flames aside, I think Henry and Mark have many well-thought-out
points. I wish to add that I believe our comp is a popular one because
it runs on time, and is not overburdened with too many categories.
To use a cliche, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it!" I think our comp
works just fine, and _very_ serious consideration should be made before
making any alterations.
-- .oooO .oooO Scott "Two Left Feet" Weitzenhoffer ( ) ( ) email: two-left-feet@uiuc.edu \ ( \ ( www: http://www.physics.uiuc.edu/~weitzen \_) \_)"Isn't your pants zipper supposed to be in front?" -- Hobbes