American Civil War Game Club (ACWGC)

Gentlemen of the ACWGC,

The ACWGC Cabinet is continuing to review the Club Rules as our Club matures and changes with the passage of time. The past year has seen a number of significant changes to the fabric of our Club - the closure of our old Department of Records for instance. But we have also opened a new Department of Records which, while different in some ways, contains more data than was ever available in the old Department of Records. Another significant change has been the drop in overall Club Membership numbers since the end of the pandemic and the surge in members which it brought on. Although the number of total members in the Club is smaller than it has ever been, we do continue to have an active gaming site with hundreds of games being recorded yearly in our Records. All of these changes have prompted us to review parts of Section 2 in the Club Rules over the last month.

The changes to Section 2 are vast but are mainly administrative. With the transition from one DoR to another, and the creation of Reserve Corps for non-gaming members on both sides of the Club, it was felt we needed to update some of the verbiage and the rules within Section 2. All of these proposed changes are simply meant to keep the Club better organized moving forward.

The proposed rewriting of Section 2 is pasted below. While there are some changes, many other parts were left untouched, overall you will find the spirit of Section 2 to be largely unchanged.

Section 2: Membership


2.1: Initial Enlistment


2.1.1: An individual becomes a member of the Club by choosing which military group (USA or CSA) to join and filling out one of the short Recruitment Forms on our Club website. Individuals may join only one side of the Club (USA or CSA) and no one may have multiple simultaneous enlistments. Joining under an innocuous pseudonym is acceptable. New members who “enlist” in the Club are enrolled as a Cadet in the Training Academy.



2.1.2: The Training Academy provides Club administrative information and game-play training to Cadets. Cadets are assigned an instructor to introduce them to Club forums and Club rules of conduct while playing a short game to ensure that they are familiar with Play-By-Email (PBEM).



2.1.3: Cadets are probationary members of the ACWGC until they have graduated and are commissioned, at which time they become full members. Cadets may not participate in club-sanctioned tournaments or other game competitions. Cadets have no voting privileges. Cadets do not have forum access and privileges upon enlistment; rather, these are granted during their training period.


2.1.4: Based on the recommendation of the Cadet’s instructor, the Academy Commandant will graduate Cadets upon completion of their training, promote them to Lieutenant and make them available for assignment within their respective military group (USA or CSA).



2.2: Mustering



2.2.1: Musters are a monthly accounting of all Club members. An officer’s response to the muster call/request, in part, determines his status according to the definitions below. CSA and USA will conduct musters monthly using procedures established by their respective GinC.



2.2.2: Club Members who do not muster for three consecutive months will be listed as Inactive in the Department of Records and dismissed from the ACWGC.



2.3: Current Membership Status



2.3: The status of ACWGC Members are limited to two specific categories within the Department of Records: Active or Inactive.



2.3.1: Active. Officers who respond to muster calls, as required by Club Rules, are considered Active.



2.3.2: Inactive. Members who fail to meet the mustering requirements, or Members that leave the Club, for any reason, are listed as Inactive in the Department of Records. An Inactive officer's rank, field army assignment, and OBD Point record are preserved within the Department of Records. An Inactive officer forfeits all voting privileges and his access to club forums. Inactive officers may seek reinstatement to the Club under Rule 2.5.4.



2.4: Reserve Corps



2.4.1: Each army in the ACWGC utilizes a Reserve Corps which is reserved for Members who have not participated in a game registered within the Department of Records for two consecutive calendar years. Members who do not participate in a registered game during a two-year period will be moved out of the formal army command structure and placed in the army’s Reserve Corps by their GinC. This process occurs each January for the preceding two calendar years.



2.4.1: Reserve Corps members will retain all the rights and privileges associated with full Membership in the ACWGC.



2.4.2: Members will remain in the Reserve Corps of their respective armies until they have been listed as a participant in a newly registered game within the Department of Records. When that occurs, they will be transferred back to the active ranks of their army by their GinC within 30 days. Their exact posting within that army will be at the Army Commanders’ discretion.



2.5: Membership Changes



2.5.1. Transfers. Officers of the rank of Colonel or above may request a transfer from one military group to another through their AC. The AC will refer the transfer request to the GinC, who may approve or disapprove the request. GinCs who approve transfer requests will coordinate with their counterpart to complete the action. Receiving GinCs may refuse a transfer request. Transferring officers will lose all but 15 Officer Battle Dossier (OBD) points and be reduced to the rank of Lieutenant upon their transfer.



2.5.2: Resignation. Any officer may resign from the club at any time for any reason by notifying their army commander. Officers do not have to state their reasons for resignation. The GinC is the approving authority for resignations, although approval is automatic. The club will maintain all records and OBD points of resigned officers.



2.5.3: Expulsion. An officer may be expelled from the club by a unanimous Cabinet vote for actions and/or speech deemed by the Cabinet to have been detrimental or abusive to any other member of the club or disruptive to the good order and functioning of the club. Expelled members will be removed from the Club for a period of one year. They may reapply for membership at the end of that time under Rule 2.5.4.2.



2.5.4: Reinstatement. Officers who are Inactive may request to be reactivated.


2.5.4.1: Officers desiring reinstatement will apply via email to the GinC of the last military group in which the officer served. If the officer requesting reinstatement wishes to join the other military group, he will so state in his request. Except as below, the GinC will approve requests for reinstatement. The GinC will reinstate the returning member at the rank he last held and with the OBD points he had amassed at the time of his departure.


2.5.4.2: Members who were expelled from the club may request reinstatement after one year. Such requests are made via email to their military group Cabinet member and GinC, who will forward that request to the full Cabinet for deliberation and action. Reinstatement requires unanimous cabinet approval. A member who is reinstated will return at the rank of Lieutenant with 15 OBD points.



2.5.5: Alternate Classifications. A GinC has the authority to classify the status of members within his own military group in alternate methods not specifically outlined above. The GinC will notate any alternate methods clearly in his General Orders.



2.6: Personal Grievances.



2.6.1: If a member has a grievance against another member, including alleged failure to honor agreed upon house rules, he will attempt to resolve the matter between or among the members involved in a private and respectful manner. If this effort fails, the officers involved may seek assistance from their chain of command. If this also fails, the GinC(s) may bring the matter to the attention of the Club President for resolution. The Club President may, at his discretion, involve the Cabinet in resolving the grievance.


2.6.2: At all times, these discussions will be private, and the grievances will not be discussed or alluded to outside of the process outlined above. At no time will the specific details of the grievance, the resolution process, or the outcome be made public unless the Cabinet votes to expel the member under Rule 2.5.3. In this case, the Cabinet may decide to publish the outcome of the proceedings.



There will now be a two-week period of open discussion for members wishing to make any comments on this thread. At the end of the two-weeks there will be a Clubwide vote on the MDT to determine whether the proposed changes are passed and made permanent.

The Cabinet will continue to review the Club Rules moving forward. Whether or not any additional changes are sought largely depends on the feedback we get from our Membership and the health and activity level of the ACWGC. If anyone has any ideas or comments you are free to email any of the Cabinet Members with them at your convenience.

We thank you for your time and for your continued Membership and participation in the ACWGC.

Discussion Period: June 19 - July 2
Voting: July 3 - July 9

SALUTE

Written on behalf of the Cabinet and posted at the order of the President.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012

It would be helpful if the 'new' and 'changed" parts could be highlighted in some manner so that's it's easier to see what is the intention of the proposed changes.

From what I see from a quick read of them it is essentially:
Stronger muster rules;
Introduction of Reserve Corps; and
Clarifying 'active' and 'inactive'.
I consider the creation of the Reserve Corps to be in conflict with the spirit of the current Club Rules. In particular Rule 1.1.2 [my emphasis in bold]:
1.1.2 The ACWGC acknowledges that members’ personal schedules, outside obligations, and preferences will dictate the number and pace of individual games played. Therefore, the Club imposes no minimum gaming frequency or number of games as a membership requirement.

Two changes do seem very odd to me.
1. The removal of the current Rule 2.1.3.1:
2.1.3.1: Fraudulent Enlistment is an enlistment by a former member while expelled, or by an individual already a member, or by a former member under an alias for the purpose of concealing past unacceptable disruptive behavior. A dismissed Cadet may seek reenlistment after one year by contacting the Academy Commandant after one year.
2. The introduction of Rule 2.5.5:
2.5.5: Alternate Classifications. A GinC has the authority to classify the status of members within his own military group in alternate methods not specifically outlined above. The GinC will notate any alternate methods clearly in his General Orders.

Change 1. Removing that current Rule would seem to encourage fraudulent behaviour. Why remove it?
Change 2. I don't understand the purpose of this at all. It appears to provide GinC's with dictatorial powers to create entirely new types of Members, or non-Members, at a whim without reference to the Membership or Cabinet. As General Orders can already be changed by GinCs as they "see fit" those orders provide no protection from a rogue GinC from interfering with the Membership and Members enjoyment of the Club.

_________________
Paul Swanson
Lieutenant-General
First Division
First Corps
Army of Northern Virginia

Hi Paul,

Fraudulent enlistments are something which can be handled under the expulsion 2.5.3 rules easily enough. Therefore the deleted rule seemed to be redundant.

With the addition of rule 2.5.5 - the only purpose of this rule is to allow GinC's to classify members within their group as being on Leaves of Absence or MIA, or whatever other organizational label they wish to use. In the past some GinC's have liberally used LoA's and others have not used them at all. Rather than the Cabinet telling the GinC's what organizational options they must use we opted to give the GinC's the ability to use the ones they think make the most sense to them and their vision of how to run their organization.

With the Reserve Corps being created, these were already created by both sides this year and so the Cabinet voted to approve them and add them to the official rules. The NWC has used Reserve Corps for a long while without issue. The NWC also uses the designations of Active and Inactive in their most general sense the same way we are proposing. It's all just organizational nuances which help keep the files in order a little better.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012

"Fraudulent enlistments are something which can be handled under the expulsion 2.5.3 rules easily enough."

Noted and agreed. Thank-you for the explanation.

"With the addition of rule 2.5.5 - the only purpose of this rule is to allow GinC's to classify members within their group as being on Leaves of Absence or MIA, or whatever other organizational label they wish to use."

If the first part of this explanation was the only purpose then that would be fine with me and that is what the rule should say. The second part (in bold) is the problematic part. That is what can give GinCs "dictatorial powers to create entirely new types of Members, or non-Members, at a whim without reference to the Membership or Cabinet".
That is a not a good idea in my view. It is a dangerous development that ignores the Membership and the primary governing body, the Cabinet.

Reserve Corps
I remain opposed to the Reserve Corps as it is in conflict with the spirit of Club Rule 1.1.2.
Cabinet cannot vote "to approve them and add them to the official rules". Such changes can only be made by the Club Members - see Rule 10.2.

Although the NWC (Napoleonic Wargaming Club?) does have designations of Active and Inactive they also have an expanded view of what comprises a Member being Active. It is not a strict requirement based upon gaming frequency. As they say:
"Our members have a wide variety of interests in the Napoleonic period, and our Active membership reflects this. Active membership can be achieved in a variety of ways".
Their rules then go on to describe the various ways in which their members may be considered Active.

_________________
Paul Swanson
Lieutenant-General
First Division
First Corps
Army of Northern Virginia

Having read and reviewed the changes proposed under Section 2: Membership I wish to state I am, generally, in agreement with the proposed changes.

I do however wish to highlight the following sub-section of Section 2, specifically Sub-Section 2.3: Current Membership Status: and in particular Sub-Section 2.3.2: Inactive Members: I suggest it is both confusing and, I propose, incorrect, in it's wording and stands to be amended. I quote the relevant Sub Section hereunder for ease of reference:


"2.3.2: Inactive. Members who fail to meet the mustering requirements, or Members that leave the Club, for any reason, are listed as Inactive in the Department of Records. An Inactive officer's rank, field army assignment, and OBD Point record are preserved within the Department of Records. An Inactive officer forfeits all voting privileges and his access to club forums. Inactive officers may seek reinstatement to the Club under Rule 2.5.4."


I propose, and suggest that there are only Two Types of members within the ACWGC, Active & Inactive. 'Active' members may be considered those who are actively gaming and hence assigned to a Line Corps within their respective army. 'Inactive; members may be, I propose, considered as those who are Not actively gaming within the ACWGC, as set out in the Section 2, and hence assigned to the Reserve Corps of their respective armies.

I therefore propose and suggest that members who, "fail to meet the mustering requirements or members that leave the Club" should be listed in the Department of Records as 'DISCHARGED' My reasoning behind this proposal being that such members either failed to fulfil the requirements of the Club or otherwise decided they no longer wished to be involved with it, the Club, and hence, to all intents and purpose, should no longer be considered as members of the Club. [size=150][b]They opted OUT and therefore are Not simply Inactive, But Gone from the Club, at their desire, in Effect !

I feel most strongly upon this matter, as I suggest it takes no regard for those members who continue to muster, monthly, as required, whilst perhaps not being actively involved in gaming within the Club, for whatever reason. Members, who on the other hand, have continuously failed to muster, for 3 consecutive months, or otherwise decided to leave the Club, have decided they do not wish to be part of the Club and therefore should not be considered as members of it, in any shape or form.

_________________
Karl McEntegart
General
2nd Brigade
2nd (Gator Alley) Division
Army of Tennessee





Make my enemy brave and strong, so that if defeated, I will not be ashamed.

I fully support the proposed changes. They go hand-in-hand with the club's new direction.

_________________
General Richard Whipkey
Commanding Officer
Army of the Potomac

Got my vote. I like the changes lately. Keep it up.

_________________
BG Thomas "Tex" McSwain
Kansas Raiders

1. There will no longer be a Leave of Absence or a Hospital category unless the GinC creates such a category (under 2.5.5) and even if it is created, if that absence lasts longer than 3 months then that member is moved to the Inactive List?
2. I too consider the wording and location of 2.5.5 a bit dangerous. Maybe it should be a subcategory of 2.3.1 instead and made a little more definitive as to the intent.
3. Category 2.4 Reserve Corps has two 2.4.1 subcategories.
4. In the past, problems often haven't been the rules of the club but their implementation. Some GinC and AC complied, and some didn't. Is there anything in place to spot a GinC/AC not changing the status of members to Inactive? It's a difficult situation because those GinC and AC don't get paid much and sometimes they need help.

_________________
Gen Ned Simms
2/XVI Corps/AotT
Blood 'n Guts hisself, a land lovin' pirate. Show me some arty tubes and we'll charge 'em.
VMI Class of '00

What is the "new direction"?
The changes were issued saying that they were "mainly administrative". In other words, 'nothing to see here', a phrase applied when there is actually a lot to see but someone doesn't want you to see it.
Yet, as Karl pointed out in regard to 2.3.2, Members of long and good standing are soon to be disenfranchised:
"An Inactive officer forfeits all voting privileges".
Not only that, they will be silenced:
"An Inactive officer forfeits ... his access to club forums."
How do they get back such basic Member rights? They have to grovel and request to get back what they have always had until now:
"Inactive officers may seek reinstatement to the Club under Rule 2.5.4."

When such a rule is combined with the proposed 2.5.5 you have a situation where a GinC can invent new types of Members, or non-Members, at a whim without reference to the Membership or Cabinet.
What restrictions or penalties will be imposed upon those who find themselves under an Alternate Classification? What Member rights could they lose? It's impossible to say, as the General Orders (for both sides of the Club) permit a GinC to change them in any way they desire ("see fit").

_________________
Paul Swanson
Lieutenant-General
First Division
First Corps
Army of Northern Virginia

Offering 6 months until being made Inactive & Discharged would be generous I think. It'd allow someone who might be busy or ill enough time to get word out or reply to a muster call. Especially since we're not officially looking at a hospital or LoA status if the rules are adopted.

I think 6 months offers flexibility without creating an undue admin burden. Hope you all will consider it.

_________________
General Scott Ludwig
Ludwig's Light Division
Isgro's Corps
Army of Northern Virginia (ANV)

Hi Scott,

Right now both the CSA and USA use a three month period of non-mustering as grounds for Discharging a member. In the past both sides have been allowed to choose their own period of non-mustering and that has resulted in irregularities where one side might allow six months and the other three months. Or, in some cases, maybe a side didn't really have a policy and it was left to the individual AC's to take care of. The goal here is to just get everyone on the same page with expectations as far as mustering goes.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012

I agree with what General McEntegart previously mentioned.

_________________
Capt Fred Harvey
2nd/1/I Brigade
Army of Tennessee

Hi Ned,

Excellent catches as always.

1. A member on LoA will be allowed to remain an Active member so long as he reports back to his GinC as the prearranged end of the LoA. If he fails to return I suspect the GinC would reach out to him and attempt to establish contact before discharging him.

2. Fair enough. The intent here is to allow the GinCs to code people internally as being on a LoA or maybe being deployed overseas for an extended period. In both cases a member could retain their active status in the Club even if they are unable to muster regularly for a few months.

3. Thanks, will fix.

4. If you recall, the old DOR had two categories for members - Active and Inactive. We are just carrying that over into the new DOR for organizational reasons. The Club has always relied on the GinC's to oversee their side of the club properly and, overall, I think they've done a good job. Guys like Joe Meyer, Cameron McOmish, and others set the bar high. I, and a few others around the Club, frequently went through the old DOR just to double-check OOBs and such. If issues were ever found (i.e. "this guy isn't listed as part of an army") the GinC's were emailed and the issues was taken care of quickly. I expect that to continue as always.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012

Hi Karl,

The difference between Inactive and Discharged is very small.

Technically:
Inactive refers to a status where someone is not currently active or employed, while discharged refers to a formal release or separation from active military service.

Remember, the Club has used the terms Active and Inactive within the DOR for 20 years without issue or confusion. Below is a screenshot of the old DOR asking to define a member as either Active or Inactive.



Whether a member left due to personal reasons, death, or simply vanished, they were all made "Inactive" in the old (and new) DOR. Inactive Members have the ability to return (assuming they did not pass away) by simply emailing their chain of command at any time. Only members who were expelled from the Club are subject to more stringent rules regarding readmission.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012

Hi Paul,

One of the chief reasons that people join and maintain membership in the ACWGC is to utilize our Opponent Finder. The Opponent Finder is available to only Active Members within the ACWGC. Another thing which is done on the forums is voting, and also simply making posts, all of these things are the reserved rights of only Active Members within the ACWGC.

I know you wouldn't argue any of those points as being incorrect. Maybe there is some confusion over the definition of an "Inactive" officer. Remember, an Inactive officer is someone who is no longer a part of the ACWGC. Examples would include members who have resigned from the Club, members who have been discharged due to no longer mustering or maintaining contact, and members who have passed away. In all of these cases, maintaining their forum account would be unnecessary.

Personal Example:
When I was not an Active Member in the ACWGC for a number of years my MDT was deactivated and closed. When I returned I had to ask for a new account to be setup. I wasn't surprised by it because I knew that that's the way it was supposed to be.

_________________
Gen. Blake Strickler
Confederate General-in-Chief
El Presidente 2010 - 2012