Apparently I Are A Ninja

[davidschroth]

In a totally fanciful post at streets.mn, someone named John Edwards wrote the following:

"There were quite a few people at last week’s meeting who were eager to suggest amendments. Unfortunately, the first person called on by Board Chair Erica Christ was a Robert’s Rules ninja, and the new bylaws were adopted without a single amendment having the chance to be heard. One older woman explained her support of the new restrictions by alluding to an unspecified neighborhood that had its bank account drained by some unspecified people."

I am the person in question, and I was (and am) totally unaware that I am a Robert's Rules ninja. (Personally, I'd assume that one would have had to have read Robert's Rules to qualify as a Robert's Rules ninja.

And what deep ninja arts did I employ to frustrate the righteous?

Well, I employed those obscure techniques know as Making A Motion, as well as the even more obscure technique of Voting On Motions.

At the end of a tedious hour of going over the proposed changes to the by-laws, I raised my hand after the chair said the meeting had reached the end of going over the proposed changes. When the chair recognized me, I made the motion that we approve the proposed changes as written. This received an immediate second, and prompted a bit of squabbling from the non-ninjas at the meeting. After a short while, someone else made a motion to call the question, which was also seconded.

So now we were facing two votes, and the people who wanted to amend the proposed changes to the by-laws needed to defeat only one of the motions in order to propose their amendments. And the task in front of them was even easier than that - my motion required a vote of two-thirds in favor to pass - all they had to do was persuade one-third plus 1 of the voters in attendance to vote against my motion.

Which they failed to do. Twice.

And now I are a Robert's Rules ninja.

Comments

[don-fitch.livejournal.com]

Sounds to me as though Mr. Edwards is _much_ more the Writer/Talker type than the Thinker type. They tend, in my observation, to be the ones who are most Particular about getting Rules & Technicalities all set up Just Right. Pains in the neck, but most Groups manage to survive them.

[davidschroth.livejournal.com]

What is additionally annoying about Mr. Edwards is that he lives in a different neighborhood, and does not meet the membership qualifications for our neighborhood organization.

The by-laws still aren't perfect, but the changes addressed the most egregious flaws of the previous by-laws by changing the voting eligibility rules so that they are now one person/one vote (eliminating the loopholes that allowed a business owner in the neighborhood as many votes as they had businesses.

[netmouse.livejournal.com]

Congratulations!
The only thing I remember from studying Robert's Rules in high school is that a Motion to Adjourn has precident over everything else, meaning only that if someone makes such a motion it must be voted on before you can do anything else, assuming someone seconds the motion.

As high schoolers we were of course perfectly happy to approve of the motion and thus cancel the rest of the class that hour...

[gerisullivan.livejournal.com]

May you use this power only for good.

[davidschroth.livejournal.com]

I think we both know actual Robert's Rules ninjas - and it's clear that I don't qualify.

[dreamshark.livejournal.com]

Following Robert's Rules is the worst - except for the alternative. May your ninja skills continue to grow.