[Blindtlk] a great article

Tue Sep 6 13:35:57 UTC 2011

Chris,

I think you make some great points. Although I did my exploring in my younger days, and feel that I know all that I care to know about the ACB, I also believe in making informed choices. Actually, maybe I should take the reference to my younger days back. Curiosity, or nosiness,  took me to the ACB website a few months ago, and the majority of what I found there was a Hodge podge of negative references to the NFB. If you go onto our website, unless you go into some of the  back literature, you won't find us repeatedly slapping the ACB in the face. We have better things, much more important things,  to do with our time. The reason, though that we often don't work well together is not necessarily the history, but the differences in philosophy.

Anyway, be that as it may, I'm sure, if we are honest, we would all reference things that the organization has done that we don't agree with or necessarily feel comfortable with. We are just like any other family. Am I proud of everything my husband says and does? HECK no! And... I'm sure he would say the same about me. Are you happy with everything your parents say and do? Probably not. But, because of who they are and what they represent, because of what they mean to you, you love them, and, when all is said and done, you would support and defend them if needed.

As you'll likely recall, a while back there was some discussion on this list about the blind driver challenge and whether investing in the design of a car that the blind could drive was the best way to go. (That may have been before you subscribed, I'm not sure.) Anyway, at that time I supported and defended, and tried to explain the decision to those who didn't understand. The fact is, that had the decision been mine alone, I would likely not have chosen to spend our money in that way. I completely understand what the point was, what the organization was trying to accomplish. We wanted to look to the future, to imagine, to offer one more example of the fact that blindness doesn't have to define us. I understand that, and that is great. I just think that there are a lot of present-day blindness causes that could have used that money. Not that we are neglecting any of those causes, but we could have done much more with them. But then, forward thinking is an important thing too.

My point is that I did not completely agree with the project, but I supported the concept, the idea. Some times in anything you love you have to take the good and accept that you won't always agree. With a 70% unemployment rate in the blindness community, I am thankful, beyond belief, that I have a job. Does that mean I am always eager and excited to get up at 6:00 every morning?  Not even. Does that mean I am always content with the way things are done in the office? No. I am thankful that I have a family, and love them very much. Does that mean they don't ever get on my nerves? Not at all.

Sorry for rambling, but  I hope you know what I mean? In essence I am saying you are right. Informed choice is important, and in the end, no organization is going to make everyone happy all of the time. You just have to decide what works for you and take the good with the bad.

Diane Graves
Civil Rights Specialist
Indiana Civil Rights Commission
Alternative Dispute Resolutions Unit
317-232-2647

"It is service that measures success."
George Washington Carver

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-----Original Message-----
From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of chris nusbaum
Sent: Friday, September 02, 2011 8:47 PM
To: Blind Talk Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] a great article

Hi everyone,

This reminds me of the saying used in the radio and TV world: if you
don't like what you hear on one station, change the station!
Similarly, if you don't like what you see in one organization, change
your affiliation (or lack thereof) in that organization. Now, I have
come out many times on this list in favor of a nonpartisan approach to
general blindness matters; that the NFB and ACB's civil war in the
1950's and 1960's shouldn't dictate our thoughts and beliefs today. I
have learned to take what I like about an organization and leave alone
what I don't. The NFB philosophy about blindness dictates most of its
policies and beliefs. I happen to like this philosophy, and believe
that the Council doesn't have that kind of philosophy about blindness.
Therefore, I have decided to be a Federationist in philosophy, meaning
that I believe in the Federation's philosophy on blindness, and like
most of the things the Federation does to better our lives. However, I
will simply not accept the argument that because I'm a Federationist,
I should like everything the Federation does and what its officers do
and say, and consequently not like the ACB. I've come under attack for
this view on other lists, one owned by the NFB and one owned by the
ACB. But understand something about me: I'm not one to change my
beliefs just because someone strongly disagrees with them. I posted an
article from the Forum to the NABS-L NFB list, in which the President
of the ACB, Mitch Pomerantz called Dr. TenBroek and Dr. Jernigan
"tyrants," saying that they believed that "a strong, centralized
organization lead by an all-powerfull President, was needed to
accomplish the goals of the Federation." Read the President's Message
in the June Braille Forum for more of what Mr. Pomerantz said on the
NFB's early leaders and the ACB split. You can find this on the
Braille Forum page on www.acb.org. In response to a post on that list
saying that I "was trying to convert us all to the ACB," I told
everyone, frankly, that "I have chosen to be a Federationist. However,
I have also chosen to be an informed one." For this reason, I am
working with a few other Federationists along with two ACB mentors to
create a bipartisan listserv, on which members can talk about
blindness related topics/issues/experiences without affiliation with
either the NFB or the ACB. I really wish I didn't have to do this,
that the members of listservs owned and operated by the organizations
could let go of the differences that plagued their respective
organizations fifty years ago, and talk about blindness without all
the petty arguments over the NFB or ACB. The unfortunate reality,
though, is while some of us can, some of us can't, and that some who
can't are often the leaders of the organizations in question. But back
to the issue at hand, I don't think we can possibly like everything an
organization does or says, and must weigh the pros against the cons.
Only then can we decide which organization has more pros for us
individually than cons, and we join that organization. For some
people, the cons of the Federation outweigh the pros of it, and they
join the Council. For others, it's the other way around. I don't think
we can like everything about any person or group in any situation in
life. We choose to vote for a person, but might not like some of the
things that person does when he/she is in a political or
organizational office. We like a sports team and/or player, but might
think some of the things they do are stupid. In conclusion,
everything, in my opinion, has pros and cons, and it is our job as
individuals to decide which outweighs which. We can't become zombies,
just going along with everything a certain person, group, or
organization does. Rather, we must think for ourselves, taking what we
like about an organization, deciding if that outweighs what we don't
like about the same organization, and either leaving the rest alone.
And, if we feel strongly about changing something, we must exercise
our right to freedom of speech, and advocate for change. It doesn't
get anybody anywhere to be angry about something. Instead, we need to
let our voice be heard and try to change it!

Chris

On 9/2/11, Constance Canode <satin-bear at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> Chris did a good thing.  The article was fine.  I am not critical of
> the person who posted the article, but I am critical of Brian.  If
> you find our organization to be such a bitter taste, why not go elsewhere.
> Oh my, and I said I was keeping my mouth shut...well, that is it for now.
> At 07:27 AM 9/2/2011, you wrote:
>>Hello folks.  Perhaps I can help put an end to this thread.  I do not think
>>the person being criticized was Chris for posting the article.  I think, in
>>fact, that several people congratulated him on finding something that was
>> of
>>value in any organization.  I think the criticism comes from the continual
>>suggestion by Bryan Schulz that he has been martyred as a result of asking
>>the tough questions which NFB is not willing to entertain.  Let me provide
>>you with the sad facts and you make your own decision.
>>
>>Bryan is alluding to, and has many times on this list, an incident in 2010.
>>Our convention registration was handled by an older member in the beginning
>>stages of Alzheimer's disease. When we got to the convention we found that
>>some who paid didn't have needed tickets. Door prize tickets ended up
>>missing on Sunday that were present on Saturday. In all, after accounting
>>for convention registrations we think we had, it looks like we are short
>>about $500 to $700 for the 2010 convention. Bryan asked a question about
>>registration income during the reading of our treasurer's report, we
>>appointed several folks to look into the shortfall, and concluded that
>> there
>>is nothing that can be done. The member who has lost our money has been
>> with
>>us more than 35 years. He is a longtime chapter officer and state board
>>member. He has been present during some of these discussions and often is
>>unaware we are talking about him and his handling of registrations. We, the
>>board, decided there was nothing to be done to recover the missing money.
>> We
>>can make the member feel like the south end of a north bound pig, but the
>>money isn't coming back. What we did was to remove from chapter
>>responsibility the taking of registration money and have it come directly
>> to
>>the affiliate treasurer. This is something that is consistent with what
>>we've been doing for some time--centralizing convention activities which
>>once were predominantly the responsibility of the host chapter and bringing
>>them under the control of the affiliate.
>>
>>Bryan's question earned him no ill will in the affiliate and prompted some
>>needed change in our procedures, but he prefers to believe it is the reason
>>for people's anger towards him. Often anger comes from the gruffness and
>>cynicism that is displayed in his messages, though he is genuinely a good
>>and caring fellow. He sees many things as black and white and seems to
>>believe we should have taken action to retrieve money we simply believe is
>>irretrievable both because we believe the person who lost it hasn't a clue
>>where it is and because he has little enough to live on as it is. We
>> believe
>>it is true that you can't get blood out of a turnip. We also believe love
>>and loyalty are worth something and that forgiveness is part of what family
>>members do for one another.
>>
>>Now you don't have to guess when Bryan makes ambiguous remarks suggesting
>>there is something evil and sinister and that he has been martyred for
>>daring to find the truth.
>>
>>
>>
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>
>
>
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-- 
Chris Nusbaum

"The real problem of blindness is not the loss of eyesight. The real
problem is the misunderstanding and lack of education that exists. If
a blind person has the proper training and opportunity, blindness can
be reduced to a mere physical nuissence." -- Kenneth Jernigan

Visit the I C.A.N. Foundation online at: www.icanfoundation.info for
information on our foundation and how it helps blind and visually
impaired children in MD say "I can!"

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