[nabs-l] a great article

[Heather Field]

Chris,
I can't imagine what could persuade you that the article you pasted is 
great. It's just a glorified list of things to do once you've established 
why you are in an organisation and what the organisation is trying to 
achieve. If one doesn't know the, why, of one's membership, and one doesn't 
know the, what the organisation does, then one will not be motivated to get 
involved.

A person who is well informed on the why and what of the ACB, a condition 
that doesn't develop by reading their literature incidentally, rarely 
discovers much consistency of philosophy or purpose, beyond opposing the 
NFB. Occasionally there is good colaboration on a state or local level, but 
that is not thanks to national policy, nor from diplomatic forays by either 
organisation. It occurs when mutual interests of local blind people can be 
best served by working together. In my experience, once immediate goals are 
achieved, while people remain friends, NFB people don't suddenly rush off 
and spend lots of time working with the ACB. After all, an organisation 
actually has to, "do", something if people are to do it with you.

I find myself wondering why, if you've got all this time to be poring 
through ACB literature and then editing and posting it on NFB lists, why you 
don't use it more constructively and get involved in physically making a 
difference with the NFB in your local area.

Chris, most of the people who frequent the NFB email lists have signed up 
because they're very committed members of the NFB and have made their 
decision based on the facts as they see them. You may find the occasional 
article which you think is useful. However, the fact remains that the two 
organisations differ on fundamental, philosophical and practical issues. 
You're not going to change anyone's mind on this list by posting to do 
lists. Those of us who work on the front lines of changing what it means to 
be blind have learned that it is not what one does, as demonstrated by the 
myriad different ways chapters and affiliates engage their communities to 
change what it means to be blind. It's why, one does these things. It is the 
why that colours every interaction with the public and one's fellow members. 
Someone who truly knows why will be involved. You can't hold them back. 
Telling people how, to get involved skips the, why should I question.

I'm not the moderator but I am letting you know that there are a bunch of 
people on this list who find your posting of ACB stuff just plain annoying. 
Like you, we could subscribe to the Forum if we wanted to read it. But, we 
don't subscribe because we don't want to read it Chris.

Do you imagine that those in charge of the liberal website Move on.org would 
post press releases from the T party and encourage subscribers to try to 
embrace the good bits of the ideology? We're mostly all too busy doing the 
real work of the NFB to bother reading the literature of the organisation 
who spends an inordinate amount of time and energy doing nothing more useful 
than trying to oppose us.
By the way, when you take a published article and add anything you are 
breaking copyright law.

Regards,
Heather Field

If there was a "philosophy", or "goals" or consistent national, state and 
local consistency to learn about in the organisation from which you lifted 
the article, then perhaps, and only perhaps, that may have been useful.

-----Original Message----- 
From: Chris Nusbaum
Sent: Thursday, September 01, 2011 3:02 PM
To: NABS list ; Blind Talk list ; Gary Legates
Subject: [nabs-l] a great article

Hi everyone,

As I try to learn more about both organizations, I have
subscribed to both the Braille Monitor and the Braille Forum.
The Monitor, as you know, is the Federation (NFB's)  publication
and the Forum is the Council (or ACB's) publication.  I found a
great article in July's Forum entitled "Fifteen Ways to Maximize
your ACB Membership," giving fifteen tips on how to take
advantage of all ACB (or any organization, for that matter) has
to offer.  I think this could also apply to the Federation and to
NABS or any other special-interest division, and is some good
advice.  To be accurate, I added "or NFB" in parentheses to some
parts of the article.  I have pasted the article below.  Any
thoughts on this? I promise I'm not trying to force the ACB down
your throats; in fact, I'm a Federationist in nature, but want to
learn about both.  Here is the article.

15 WAYS TO MAXIMIZE YOUR ACB (or NFB) MEMBERSHIP
  by Kenneth Semien Sr.
  All too often, people join organizations without taking
advantage of the opportunity to truly know intricate details of
its purpose,
mission, and operating practices.  This can very well result in a
lack of
participation and could ultimately result in a decision to
forfeit what
could have been the ideal vehicle to enhance your life, build
great
relationships and effectively share personal skills and abilities
that can
make an enormous difference.  In an effort to encourage you to
explore the
meaningful efforts of ACB, I have included the tips listed below
to assist
you in being all you can be and help you join with others whose
skills
complement yours.
  1.  Be inquisitive and don't hesitate to ask questions.
  2.  Become familiar with the history, mission, and purpose by
reviewing it often enough to be able to repeat it to others.  In
turn
someone may realize that this is the organization they have been
looking
for.
  3.  Make a personal commitment to identify ways to get
involved.
  4.  Find out who the officers are and become acquainted with
them and their roles and responsibilities, as well as members you
observe
actively participating in events and projects associated with our
organization.
  5.  Make your skills and abilities known to leaders of your
chapter, affiliate, or the president of our organization.
  6.  Make every effort to participate in chapter, state
affiliate
and national meetings, seminars, conferences and conventions.
  7.  Inquire about available committees you may be able to serve
on to assist the organization in achieving its goals and
objectives.  Seek
to join committees that allow you to utilize your skills and
abilities in
the most effective and efficient manner.
  8.  If you have access to the Internet, sign up for up-to-date
news and announcements from all levels of our organization.  Ask
a president
or member to tell you how to take advantage of this option.
  9.  Listen to or read publications/newsletters distributed by
our
organization on all levels.  This is one of the best ways to
learn about
useful resources, access inspirational stories, scholarships,
awards, and
upcoming projects and events.
  10.  Identify special-interest groups that meet your personal
needs.  These groups provide you the opportunity to network with
others
sharing common interests, such as your prior or current
occupation, hobbies,
health concerns and so much more.
  11.  Obtain your own copy of the constitution and bylaws to
learn
of the agreed-upon operating practices and procedures of our
organization.
  12.  Prepare for future involvement as an officer by becoming
familiar with officer titles and duties.
  13.  Participate in conference calls to build your knowledge,
such as membership focus calls, periodic Office Hours conference
calls with
the ACB president, committee calls, and special-interest group
calls.
  14.  Explore the web sites of your chapter, state affiliate and
our national organization.  You may locate information on the web
site that
you didn't think of inquiring about.
  15.  Pay your annual dues faithfully and encourage others to do
the same.
  The more you know and the more you become involved, the more
you
will begin to know that you have joined a phenomenal organization
that is
continuing to grow.  Have a great ACB (or NFB) adventure!

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
nuisance." -- Kenneth Jernigan (President of the National
Federation of the Blind, 1968-1986.)

  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!"


Sent from my BrailleNote

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