July 11, 2002: BMTG Membership Assault
Official BMTG response to allowing membership to undesirables:
"We have been contacted by outside undesirables strongly urging us to change our membership. We have been told that this change should take place before the next BMTG event (Festival, Road Trip, Street Heat, Wiffle Ball, online sporting contest, wagering, live sporting event, etc...) in order to avoid it becoming 'an issue.'
We want the American public to be aware of this action right from the beginning. We have advised the undesirables that we do not intend to participate in such backroom discussions. The inexcusable terrorist acts of 9/11 did not deter the Wiffle Ball event of 9/13. This act of 'civil' terrorism will be dealt with in the same way. It will be ignored and the games allowed to go on.
We take our membership very seriously. It is the very fabric of our group. Our members are people who enjoy each other's company, useless activities, and statistics. Our membership alone decides our membership -- not any outside group with its own agenda.
We are not unmindful of the good work undertaken by some undesirables such as global human rights, Social Security reform, reproductive health, education, spousal abuse, workplace equality and cookie baking, among others. We are therefore puzzled as to why they have targeted the BMTG.
The undesirables request incorporates a deadline tied to the next BMTG event and refers to sponsors of those recording the event for statistical purposes. These references make it abundantly clear that the BMTG is being threatened with a public smear campaign designed to use economic pressure to achieve a goal of the undesirables.
The BMTG and Street Heat -- while happily entwined -- are quite different. One is a private group. The other is a world class sports event of great public interest. It is insidious to attempt to use one to alter the other. The essence of a private group is privacy.
We expect such a campaign would attempt to depict the members of our club as insensitive bigots and coerce the sponsors of the BMTG to disassociate themselves under threat -- real or implied -- of boycotts and other economic pressures.
We might see 'celebrity' interviews and talk show guests discussing the 'morality' of private clubs. We could also anticipate op-ed articles and editorials.
There could be attempts at direct contact with board members of sponsoring corporations and inflammatory mailings to stockholders and investment institutions. We might see everything from picketing and boycotts to t-shirts and bumper stickers. We may see people such as Rosie O'Donnell, mouth perpetually agape, attempt to organize a BMTG ban. On the internet, there could be active chat rooms and e-mail messaging. These are all elements of such campaigns.
We certainly hope none of that happens. However, the message delivered to us was clearly coercive.
We will not be bullied, threatened or intimidated.
Obviously, the undesirables view themselves as agents of change and feel any organization that has stood the test of time and has strong roots in tradition - and does not fit their profile -- needs to be changed.
We do not intend to become a trophy in their display case.
There may well come a day when undesirables will be invited to join our membership but that timetable will be ours and not at the point of a bayonet.
We do not intend to be further distracted by this matter. We will not make additional comments or respond to the taunts and gripes artificially generated by a corporate campaign.
We shall continue our traditions and prepare the BMTG to host the upcoming Street Heat event as we have since 1998.
With all due respect, we hope the undesirables and their colleagues recognize the sanctity of our privacy and continue their good work in a more appropriate arena. Otherwise, they will be smashed to bits."