No, that is not what it means. It means each church controls their own destiny. Of course, there are guidelines each must stand for before becoming Southern Baptist. That is why there are state conventions and a national convention. Some churches are stripped of the name.
Desert Rhino insists that there's no higher authority than the individual congregation, to define what "Baptist" means.
MamaB tells me that there are guidelines, and that the state and national conventions can strip a church of the name "Baptist".
I'm not sure how the convention could make it stick ... the loathsome toads at Westboro seem to get away with calling themselves "Baptist".
Oh, well ... I'm sure Baptists will manage to sort it out.