6th August 2011, 10:30 PM
No, Wax, actually there aren't many. There are far too few. Everyone assumes that someone else will take the required steps and do the graft, but in the end very few people do. That is the same across archaeology and indeed across life.
I have argued that we all need to make it easier for busy archaeologists and archaeological supporters to 'do' something, by creating resources to make this easy, this has been done to a certain extent such as the TAF factsheet and the fantastic Rescue Fighting Back info site. Organisations are talking to each other to make sure energies are not duplicated. We need to build on this and build networks to defend archaeology, we're doing what we can at the DF and there will be an article and info in the next DF newsletter so that our members can see what they can do, and understand the issues at stake.
The IfA is probably not more 'vocal' as it doesn't have the time and resources to be more vocal. If each IfA member added their voice then we could make a big noise, so we have to facilitate this. The DF has been arguing that we need to make it easier to make noise about the cuts, and hopefully that will happen. But if noone can be bothered to do more than sign an e-petition and maybe a very small number who might sign a stock letter to their MP then what future have we? The wider media etc are just not that interested, getting someone onto Today was a serious coup, and only possible because that fool Melton made a good soundbite: the minutiae of developer funding and HER provision mean nothing to the general public.
PS, I had nothing to do with setting up the DF, it was set up by Chris Clarke, Paul Everill and Jez Taylor amongst others. The DF is in the IfA but not of the IfA.
I have argued that we all need to make it easier for busy archaeologists and archaeological supporters to 'do' something, by creating resources to make this easy, this has been done to a certain extent such as the TAF factsheet and the fantastic Rescue Fighting Back info site. Organisations are talking to each other to make sure energies are not duplicated. We need to build on this and build networks to defend archaeology, we're doing what we can at the DF and there will be an article and info in the next DF newsletter so that our members can see what they can do, and understand the issues at stake.
The IfA is probably not more 'vocal' as it doesn't have the time and resources to be more vocal. If each IfA member added their voice then we could make a big noise, so we have to facilitate this. The DF has been arguing that we need to make it easier to make noise about the cuts, and hopefully that will happen. But if noone can be bothered to do more than sign an e-petition and maybe a very small number who might sign a stock letter to their MP then what future have we? The wider media etc are just not that interested, getting someone onto Today was a serious coup, and only possible because that fool Melton made a good soundbite: the minutiae of developer funding and HER provision mean nothing to the general public.
PS, I had nothing to do with setting up the DF, it was set up by Chris Clarke, Paul Everill and Jez Taylor amongst others. The DF is in the IfA but not of the IfA.