In response to some of your comments.

Let me say that I have been involved in the I-A Community politics for 27 
years,so that I understand your antecdotal negative experiences. 
However, In life, any thing worthwhile project is going to have a number of 
obstacles, and we can find a hundred REASONS for FAILING.We just have 
to focus on HOW to SUCCEED. They did it. Certainly we can!!!!

I appreciate your evaluating the sites so carefully, but the purpose in citing 
them was not merely as a sample plan, but as some EVIDENCE of the 
CONCEPT that much smaller Communities have HUGE  Numbers of 
INTERNET Members, and are using them to great advantage, both for 
information and activism.

If the Asian Community can get almost 2 million to ONE of their Sites,
and the Italian Community is three times as large, that could translate into  
 
6 Million I-As. If ONLY 1% of that membership responded to a request for 
activism that could mean 60,000 Emails!!!!!!!!

I've been studying this PORTAL Concept for 4 years, and can't begin to get 
into the details of 40 Three Ring Binders.

It's best for us to focus on the CONCEPT, and encourage our Major I-A 
ORGANIZATIONS to see the Benefits, and try to catch up with other 
Communities! 
 
Regards,
Richard Annotico