Göran, Cees, Doug, Marcus, and Michael:

Don't give up.  You are doing the right thing, a much needed thing.

As is true of others on this list, I'm sure, I manage a department of 
programmers at my current employer.  One thing that you learn through 
years as a manager (and if you have a knack for it, you learn it 
quickly), is that:

   * A human collective does not automatically unify its direction and 
mission.  A human collective does automatically respond to a leader.

And its the managers job (in business) to either supply that function 
or find someone who will.  Funny, one of the things you notice when you 
first become a manager is that each person on that team has their own 
direction, their own world-view.  They are not being contrary, they are 
just individuals.  If left to their own devices (which a new manager 
might be inclined to do, to avoid conflict or the perception of 
heavy-handedness), some consensus will emerge, but other issues will 
boil over into disagreements that never resolve, lingering over time.  
Once a leader does step in, what the leader actually does is enter the 
world-view of each member of the team, have a dialog with that person 
in their own language about the possibility of a common vision.  Many 
times those conversations introduce new ideas that influence the common 
vision.  At that point, world-views start to merge, and a team forms.  
A strong team.

Watching our processes play out on squeak-dev and elsewhere in the 
Squeakverse, it is clear that our collective has not had enough 
leadership.  I can see that from my years as a manager; not so much 
because of my time in business, but because of what I have learned 
about human behavior--especially humans in a collective.  Disagreements 
have started to fester in the Squeakverse, and the collective is 
weakening.

So, Göran/Cees/Doug/Marcus/Michael: although I do not have experience 
with the leadership qualities of all of you, I do have experience with 
enough of you to believe in the strength and wisdom all of you bring to 
the table.  Go do it; go save the thing we all love.  I for one will 
help.