Thanks for this Phil
As you say, you aren't a member, but your points about my posting are still
worth responding to.
I am not in any way blaming the folk who have been taking part in the debate
for the fact that that debate is a bit one-sided: I am partially to blame
for hanging back so long, worried that an intervention from me might be
dismissed as "well he would say that, wouldn't he?". I suspect I'm not the
only one. In my opinion, the more that people know about the financial
position of CILIP, the likelier they are to support an increase. Without
access to that information, it would be natural to prefer not to pay more.
My email was an attempt to help people access that information.
Secondly, I did NOT criticise folk who can't be present for "the debate on
the day": less than 100 out of nearly 20,000 people can get the time
off/afford the travel to be physically present, and I specifically said of
the increased use of proxies, "this is a good thing (democracy in action!)".
I think this, plus the introduction of live blogging of the AGM and the
twitter hashtag #cilipagm is the beginning of a paradigm change. By next
year, I would hope that we will have found a way that allows remote
participation in (and voting during) the AGM without disenfranchising the
thousands of members who don't have web access during working hours. We're
not there yet, but it's a start.
Finally, I am saddened to be told my attempt to show there is another side
of the argument is "bordering on the offensive". People can only weigh the
arguments, if they are given them.
Bruce
********************************************************
Professor Bruce Royan, Trustee,
CILIP
(Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals)
41 Greenhill Gardens, Edinburgh, EH10 4BL, UK (44) 131 447 3151
********************************************************
-----Original Message-----
From: Phil Bradley [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 30 September 2009 19:32
To: Bruce Royan; [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: How to vote by proxy if you don't know anyone at the CILIP AGM
I shan't be voting one way or another for the simple reason that I'm
not eligible to, but I've been following the discussions with
interest. There are a couple of points in your post that I'd like to
address however.
The debate is already underway, and has been for sometime, and as you
point out, it's being discussed on the net, via Twitter, blogs and so
on. If this debate is one sided it's not really the fault of the
people taking part; those who are in favour of an increase have
exactly the same access to the same facilities and can comment on
blogs, argue at Twitter, or write their own. If (generic) you don't
agree with what's being said, then take part. It's really that
straightforward.
Secondly, why *should* people wait for 'the debate on the day'?
Indeed, why limit this debate to the people who can physically turn
up? We've already seen that people can, and do take part virtually (as
we've seen with the #cilip2 example), and I suppose that it could be
argued that if facilities are not present this merely disenfranchises
those who wish to take part but are not (for reasons of geography,
finance or disability) able to turn up. Web 2.0 resources and social
media are not just a theoretical or academic exercise - they are the
way that people work and engage with each other now. Not to use all
the available avenues for discussion seems nonsensical. To me this is
simply another example (of the many) that the use of social media is
only detrimental to the organisations and individuals who don't engage
with it.
Finally, the fact that you feel it necessary to ask people to weigh
the arguments for and against is deeply depressing. I have always
found CILIP members to be thoughtful, intelligent people and my
assumption would be that they ARE weighing the pros and cons - to
think otherwise is bordering on the offensive.
--
Phil Bradley: Internet Consultant, Trainer, Web designer and Author.
Visit http://www.philb.com for free information on Internet
introductions,
search engine articles, web design tips and a host of other free
information.
Weblogs: http://www.philbradley.typepad.com/
http://philbradley.typepad.com/i_want_to/
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