[nabs-l] a great article

David Dodge daviddod at buffalo.edu
Fri Sep 2 06:15:24 UTC 2011


Heather and Chris,
A few things. First, Chris saying that the article he posted is a great
article is his opinion and anyone that dislikes the article has every right
to that opinion also. I don't think we should shun anyone for their personal
opinion on anything.

Personally, I like making connections between organizations and seeing how
they are alike and different. I do not feel as though Chris put this out
there to try and change anyone's core philosophy. Instead, I think he meant
it has some basic introductory information that some people on this list
will find useful and others wont.

Heather, I'm going to call out something specific that you said and hope you
will not be offended by my doing so. It's just its something I see a lot of
people do on a variety of listservs that I have an issue with. I don't think
we should ever try to quantify a listserv. "most people" on a certain
listserv "people on this listserv do or don't want to hear".

What we have to remember is we actually don't know the full extent of the
listserv. For instance, I have given this listserv to a number of friends
and colleagues of mine whom are not very active within NFB but love this for
the information they get. Another important thing to remember is the
responses we see are not necessarily indicative of the large whole on a
listserv. I am part of some listservs that I have never responded to and
part of some that I respond to more than I have on this one. I'll stop
rambling, I just don't like quantifying a sample that I am unsure about.

I don't feel like I've done myself justice in this response but hopefully it
gave someone, somewhere, something to think about. Haha. Have a wonderful
weekend, everyone.

David
----------------------------------
David Dodge
Doctoral Degree Granting Institutions Rep.
State University of New York Student Assembly
English Major
University at Buffalo
306 Clemens Hall
Buffalo, NY 14260
daviddod at buffalo.edu


On Thu, Sep 1, 2011 at 5:09 PM, Heather Field <missheather at comcast.net>wrote:

> 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.orgwould 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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