Alan I am a dues paying, membership card carrying member of the NHRA. Like you Virgil I want what I was promised. In the bylaws of this organization it stipulates that members will have the opportunity vote on the Board of Directors for the NHRA. I'mk quite sure that you would want it too if was available to you.
The original bylaws may have said that and if you were a member prior to the proxy vote of the members, you had that right until the membership voted for a change. Whether the vote was swayed by stretching the truth or not, it was a vote of the membership and it is done.
If you joined after the vote, you were not promised an opportunity to vote on the board of directors. Either way it is done, and you have had your day.
Can you imagine the turmoil created by a popularity vote to elect individuals to run the organization every several years? The leader of any group has to make decisions that are going to upset many individuals but are for the survival of the group as a whole. Look around at all the groups that have failed once the dictatorship type leaders stepped aside. And most leaders step aside because they just get fed up with all the BS from the people they are trying to help that goes with the job.
I do not agree with many things the management team of NHRA does, and some individuals on the team do many things out of spite when they feel they have been wronged. But I must respect the overall accomplishments of the organization and I feel they provide the best venue and atmosphere to be overall successful and safe as a drag racer.
Many things they do that are considered self centered and egotistical have been done, for the most part, for the survival of NHRA itself. Could it be ran better, probably, but it could be much worse. Could it be more successful, most likely, but it could also fail quickly. Are their methods going to change, not likely, as they haven't changed from day one through the leadership of several.