Posted by Willful on December 3, 2010, at 13:48:07
In reply to Re: A solution in search of a problem » Willful, posted by jane d on December 3, 2010, at 6:46:25
Hi, Jane.
Thanks for answering. I felt, though, that your answers mostly consisted of disagreeing with my categorizations like "not worth discussing" or "weeks of discussion" -- when my point was elsewhere, ie, the question of whether there was or is a serious or needing-to-be-addressed problem here at babble about self-governance and imposition and length of blocks.
I had thought the transition from civility buddies to a counsel of Elders was made pretty explicitly in the suggestion of the need for a larger voice for posters in the blocks-- which therefore would be more acceptable, and perhaps more consistently applied (because the elders would be here more consistently) and also shorter. The civility buddy idea contemplated the same rules and general methods for imposing blocks, which would be Bob and Bob's formula, both of which have been claimed to be the source of conflict and people's leaving. The counsel of Elders was a completely different take on how to handle blocks.
I may have gotten the wrong idea, but initially, and for quite a while, there was general acceptance -- or at least not overt disagreement--- about the value of the Elders idea. Then, as Bob seemed surprisingly agreeable, after all this energy had been expended on convincing him, etc-- a sudden voicing of all these doubts, disagreements and poking holes in the premises of the idea itself.
I found myself somehow disappointed that we put all this possibly unnecessary energy and emotion into this idea-- which, by the way, I have no particular stake in-- only, when it became a real possibility, to pull the rug out from under it. I may have misread the overall response. But this was my impression.
So I was questioning why this sudden backing away-- from something that would of course be a major change and might not work out--but which seemed quite a creative and interesting idea? After all, it has been my observation that there is a ~lot~ of unhappiness with the blocking system and experience here. And I would love to see it addressed and to see people less focussed on injustice and hurtfulness of babble and getting more a sense of support and connection here.
Whether there are, in fact, too many or inconsistent blocks, I can't say for a fact. It isa fact that at times I've walked on eggshells when posting here-- and it's also my impression that PBCs and blocks are inconsistently and not quickly enough applied. But whether these issues need to be addressed is of course another thing.
But I am agnostic about the Counsel of Elders idea, for many reasons. I didn't contribute to the development of the idea because I wouldn't want to be on the counsel and I wasn't sure it would work. But I don't want to see it sabotaged at this point-- or made to seem as the subject line say, a solution in search of a problem. Clearly there was a problem. I just don't think there is any question about that.. I would be interested in whether a counsel improved things. I do think blocks need to be shorter.
I don't remember anyone leaving because Bob wasn't strict enough-- but I also am not convinced that the blocks explain why this place is (or may be) moribund.
Willful
poster:Willful
thread:964630
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20101201/msgs/972328.html