I.
Strikes - A strike is charged to an individual
when he/she is invited to an event and does not attend. The reason for the absence is irrelevant.
II.
Maximum Number of Strikes – The maximum number
of strikes an individual may incur is three.
Once the 3rd strike is received, no further invites will be
granted for that particular event, as three strikes provide ample opportunity
to attend said event. This punishment is
otherwise known as the “death penalty” as there is no more severe form of
punishment that can be handed down. It
can be safely assumed that a 3-strike individual has not attended the event for
one of two general reasons. In either
case, the end result is the same.
a.
The individual has no desire to attend the
event.
b.
The individual always has conflicting plans that
precludes them from attending the event.
III.
Separation of Strikes – Each event is treated
independently with respect to strikes received.
For example, an individual may have three strikes for a particular
event. That will not prevent them from
receiving an invite for a different event.
Strikes are also never transferred.
If an individual has two strikes for Event A and then receives a strike
for Event B, they are still at two strikes for Event A. The reason(s) for not attending Event B may
be completely unrelated to Event A. For
example, the individual may have a continuous, conflicting engagement with
Event B; that engagement would not be the reason for missing Event A.
IV.
Exemption from Strikes – Once an individual
attends an event, he/she is no longer subject to the 3-strikes policy. It does
not matter if the person has none, one, or two against them. The person will have an eternal invite to the
invite. It does not matter if the person
subsequently declines three consecutive invites. Once the person has demonstrated the ability
and willingness to attend the event, there will always be the chance they can
and will do so in the future.
V.
Individuals vs. Couples – Couples are treated as
a single entity with respect to strikes.
It is assumed that the couple will attend or miss the event
together. When one member of a couple is
invited, the other member is invited by default. Only one member of the couple needs to have
less than three strikes against them in order for both individuals to
attend. For example, Person A may have
incurred three strikes as an individual.
Person B has one strike as an individual. If Person A and Person B subsequently develop
a relationship, the invite will go to Person A and Person B whenever
possible. If a relationship is
terminated, both individuals will return to their pre-relationship strike
counts. Using the previous example,
Person A would no longer receive an invite due to having three strikes. Person B would still receive an invite
because they have just one strike.
Person A did not attend the event as an individual so their presence may
have been entirely dependent on their relationship with Person B. They no longer
have the inherent privilege of being invited because of their relationship to
an individual in good standing with the event.
VI.
Strikes for Couples – Strikes incurred against a
couple do not have any impact on the strikes of each member of the couple. If a couple receives three strikes, the couple
will no longer receive any invites as long as the relationship ensues. As a member of a couple, the individual may
not have wanted to attend or could not attend due to the external factors of
the couple. For example, Person A may
have had no interest in the event.
Person B (in a relationship with Person A) may have wanted to attend the
event but chose not to at the wishes of their partner. If their relationship ends, Person B may now
have the freedom to attend.
VII. Exceptions
– The following are exceptions that supersede any previously stated portions of
the policy.
a.
A person with three strikes may receive an
invite provided they are proactive in demonstrating their desire to attend the
event. They must formally request an
invite to the event and provide verbal assurance that their interest is genuine
and they plan to attend. If the person
determines they are unable to attend, the host must be notified. This clause may be invoked because an
individual did not realize what they were missing when they received their
three strikes. The person may have
subsequently attended the event as part of a relationship. Although the relationship may have
terminated, this person still wishes to attend as an individual entity. Failure to notify will result in the complete
devaluation of their “word”. It is very
likely that any future requests will be completely ignored. Notifying the host of their inability to attend
does not wholly satisfy the requirements to earn subsequent invites. The process of requesting an invitation must
be repeated until a successful attendance is completed. The individual must actually follow through
with attending the event in order for their interest to be recognized as
genuine.
b.
A person who has earned exemption
from the strikes may no longer receive an invite to the event. Extreme circumstances may dictate that the
user is no longer welcome at the event.
This person will be assigned a persona non grata status. It will be up to the host’s discretion as to
when this status may be assigned to an individual. Anyone assigned persona non
grata status can be re-invited at any time.
However, the individual will be subject to the three-strike rule until
they attend the event again. The
individual needs to revalidate their commitment to the event.
c.
If a person accepts an invitation to an event (by
any means provided) and then subsequently foregoes the event without giving
notice to the event organizer, that shall be seen as a breach of common courtesy. The offending party may then be subject to
any punishment that is deemed fitting by the event organizer. This may be exclusion from future,
non-related events. The offending party,
however, should not be assessed an extra strike for the event in question since
their absence is still simply just one absence.
