Generous Cookout Suprise / Question for Forum

[Rkolter]

Someone who wishes to be anonymous has offered to donate "around $600" US dollars to buy someone round trip air tickets to the St. Louis Comic Cookout. After communicating with this person, I'm fairly certain it's not a really bad joke. The money's available and the offer is serious.

The only requests made of me were:

1) I not release the name of the donor, and ask that people not try to figure out who the donor is. They'd like to do the anonymous good deed thing. This is really nice thing to do for a random person, so I think it'd be nice if we honored this request.

2) Whoever gets the tickets should really want to come to the cookout, but due purely to a lack of finances, cannot go.

The donor has asked me to handle deciding who gets the tickets. I'm asking you folks:

(1) Who is in a situation where they would be delighted to come (and would come), but simply can't afford to.

and

(2) How should I go about choosing one person from the many?

Notes:

"About $600" means that $600 is a soft target and there is some amount of wiggle room. However, most international tickets are probably out of the price range.

Please submit your name, and/or offer advice on how I should select a lucky recipient.

[Rianeva]

Pull names from a hat? This is really awesome of the donor, by the way.

(I can't go, but that's because of school, not just money.)

[Warren]

Hat! Hat!

[Spriteville, USA]

Popularity Contest!

I think that there should be some restrictions on the pool of people that can go. Honestly, trying to not be an elitist jerk, but if a person signs up tomorow I don't know how I'd feel if they happened to win the trip. Well actually I'd be pissed if they won.

I want to stay unbiased about that but I know I really can't. Just from my view I'd much rather see someone who is already active in the community to be invited over someone who just arrived.

[Nutcracker]

Stupid antisocial inactive me.

[DJMayhem]

Still wish i could go, but can't.

I'm pretty amazed that someone paid that much money

[Dotty]

Popularity Contest!

I think that there should be some restrictions on the pool of people that can go. Honestly, trying to not be an elitist jerk, but if a person signs up tomorow I don't know how I'd feel if they happened to win the trip. Well actually I'd be pissed if they won.

I want to stay unbiased about that but I know I really can't. Just from my view I'd much rather see someone who is already active in the community to be invited over someone who just arrived.

I know! Someone who updates their comic!

*glares at Sprite >_>*

To be fair though, comics have nothing to do with the people, it's the people that you want at the cookout, so logically, if it's all elitist bums going to the cookout, it should probably be populated by elitist bums.

I'd also suggest you rename it from comicgen cookout to elitist bum cookout, and change america to elitist bum land...but my crazy ideas never seem to fly these days.

(Tdodel Translator: I can see where you're coming from.)

[Rkolter]

Popularity Contest!

I think that there should be some restrictions on the pool of people that can go. Honestly, trying to not be an elitist jerk, but if a person signs up tomorow I don't know how I'd feel if they happened to win the trip. Well actually I'd be pissed if they won.

I want to stay unbiased about that but I know I really can't. Just from my view I'd much rather see someone who is already active in the community to be invited over someone who just arrived.

I know! Someone who updates their comic!

*glares at Sprite >_>*

To be fair though, comics have nothing to do with the people, it's the people that you want at the cookout, so logically, if it's all elitist bums going to the cookout, it should probably be populated by elitist bums.

I'd also suggest you rename it from comicgen cookout to elitist bum cookout, and change america to elitist bum land...but my crazy ideas never seem to fly these days.

(Tdodel Translator: I can see where you're coming from.)

The simple fact is that I do have the final say on who goes unless the donor changes his mind, and I'll look awfully suspiciously at any account created in December of January.

This is a solution waiting for a problem though, as it has not yet been encountered, and I'd be surprised to see it happen frequently.

[Orion]

I do feel that a random choosing might be the best way to do it. I can certainly see feelings getting hurt if it comes down to "we'd rather see xxxxx at the cookout than xxxxx" I'm sure no one would take it too personally but still a popularity contest should probably be avoided. The only exception I could think of would be someone who everyone, even the other potential recipients, knows must attend if there's the slightest possibility. The only person that springs immediately to mind would be someone like kisai though.

Right now I guess we should focus on figuring out the list of people who would be considered eligible. I figure that everyone on the 'yes' and probably the 'maybe' list has already concluded they'll have the cash necessary for the trip so they're probably out of the running. I think in order for anyone to be eligible they must qualify as a solid 'yes' for everything (other than cash). If they can't be sure that they'll be free at the time of the cookout then the money should probably go to someone who can.

Another note: considering the amount of time until the cookout and the generosity of the donor I was thinking it might not be a bad thing to try and scrape up some cash to donate for those who we'd love to see but can't afford to fly down/stay in a hotel/etc. obviously 600$ is crazy-generous but something like a cookout donation jar would probably be nice.

[Vorticus]

"About $600" means that $600 is a soft target and there is some amount of wiggle room. However, most international tickets are probably out of the price range.

Darn, that means no Mcduffies or Cookie. I've got no suggestions on who to bring, but the random idea sounds good.

[Rocknjosie]

$600 could fly two people domestic, if you time it right

(would like to go if possible)

[Warren]

It'd fly two, but car rental/hotel would still need picked up by the lucky recipient. (Unless you crashed at the Kolter's).

[Orion]

It'd fly two, but car rental/hotel would still need picked up by the lucky recipient. (Unless you crashed at the Kolter's).

The car rental at least probably wouldn't be necessary. with over a dozen people (and several arriving early) I'm sure someone is willing to do an airport run or two.

[Ekolter]

Orion right about the airport rides. I'm more than happy to assit in picking up and dropping off people.

Hotels shouldn't be too much of a problem. I don't know if some heard but I've been scouting out places to reserve a block of rooms cheaply at. I get a 20% discount from my school's alumni assocation on a few hotels. With that I hope to get rooms for under $50 a night.

[Rkolter]

Until I hear otherwise, please assume the donor meant to send one individual, since the word 'one' was specifically used.

I bet the donor wouldn't mind sending a couple, but if you want to talk sending two different people, then we'd really need two drawings, hope there's enough money left, etcetera... that's getting way further than what was originally offered to me to put forth.

Also, there was no mention of cars, hotel, etcetera... The money will be spent on the tickets, and the tickets given to the person selected - that person will never actually see any of the cash.

Whomever gets these tickets will likely need crash space, and we will find a way to accomodate. Nor will they be stuck at the airport.

[Dutch!]

Why would we 'internationals' want to go to America in the first place?

Leave me out (not that I was ever in). School starts Tuesday.

Well...that's my official excuse anyway. It's nicer than saying 'I'd rather sit on an echidna'...

Cheers.

[Phact0rri]

well international flights are going to be well over $600/us dollars. I think they are in the $1100-1300/US dollars range, if I'm not mistaken. and by international I mean living on another continent.

Airline tickets are really expensive right now.

[Faub]

I would say that if McDuffies or Cookie were willing to float the rest of the bill, the $600 would go a long way to getting one of them here. The money doesn't have to pay the whole thing, just enough to get the person here.

This feels like Groucho Marx reading off a legal agreement: "The party of the first part shall donate $600 to the party of the second part wherein the party of the second part feels it is necessary for the part of the first part to donate said curreny." I'm just waiting for Chico to say "Nah that's a never gonna work." and Groucho rips the item off the paper.

[Dotty]

Be careful about bringing people to the states though....a LOT of people are having a hard enough time getting in from Canada as it is...as I'm sure faub can attest to.

[Orion]

yeah, we would definitely want to work any problems out with customs/passports/etc. before buying any tickets.

That said, I think that if the cash makes it possible for one of our foriegn friends to come in and visit (and see the wonderful lands of america, causing them to realize the pitiful drabness of their own country) then I would definitely suggest that as a good use for it. This could represent one of the few chances we'd get to see an RPin, or a Mr. Bob, or a Mcduffies out of their natural habitat.