Theos-Talk Archives (September 2003 Message tt00184)

Dallas,

I think that the ULT is a fine organization that does good work. The many people who volunteer their time and energy make a true difference in the world. I myself am an associate.

There is one comment that you made though that I do disagree with.

You wrote:
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You see, it (U L T) is only the exterior embodiment of idealism. It
looks and operates as an "organization" does,. But, strangely, it is not
an "organization" in the accepted sense, -- no "boss" or "bosses." Or
better still, every volunteer assumes whatever "hat" is needed to get
things done. The coordination is by a cooperative consultation. It has
no "leaders," and no "minorities" or "majorities" or voting. But there
is a lot of substantial work just to keep the publishing and the
discussions and the promulgation going. 
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I have attended meetings in the NY, Philadelphia, San Diego (and very very rarely in LA a few years ago) lodges - and there is one thing that is distinctly obvious - that is that there are "bosses" - they are called "senior students". No matter what you call them they are still "in charge" of the conversations. These "senior students" are the leaders - whether they themselves use the term or not.

Please do not get me wrong. SOMEONE has to be in charge and guide the conversations - teach new students - etc. The fact that the senior students ARE leaders is not bad at all. Many times new people would look quizically around when people would say that there are no leaders - and they would point out the obvious fact that, "You say that there are no leaders but X, Y and Z are the ones who always moderate the conversations, pay the bills, sell the books, etc.". 

While I applaud the ideal of impersonality and the ULT - I also think that the obvious contradiction of having "senior students" run everything and yet saying that there are no leaders confuses new people.

It might be better to say, "Yes, such and such usually runs this and that but we STRIVE to be as impersonal as possible. They do it because someone has to and it needs to get done. We try to focus on the teachings and not the personality presenting the teachings."

Better to get rid of the "there are no leaders" line and replace it with "we strive to focus on the teachings and not personalities".

Just some thoughts...

-Ed Griffin








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"What makes a good artist, a good sculptor, a good musician? Practice. What makes a man a good linguist, a good stenographer? Practice. What makes a man a good man? Practice. Nothing else...-Henry Drummond





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