Theos-Talk Archives (April 2008 Message tt00139)

It is the practice in TS in America that your address info is kept
confidential and used only for official purposes and also used by affiliated
organizations' fund raising, such as TOS.

However, I was surprised when I received a form letter from Betty Bland,
President of TS in America. It was in plain paper and not in official TSA
letter head and the address apparently the home address of Betty. The
implication is that the letter is from her in her personal capacity. The
letter was mailed to my address as it is the membership info at Olcott.
Obviously, Betty used the official mailing list addresses to mail this
"personal" letter which is against all prior practice of the mailing list
not being accessible to members of TS. Whatever rules apply to ordinary
members like me should also apply to the President and in this case it was
violated. So one wonders about the double standard adopted to further a
political campaign issue, which is a very sorry state of affairs.

Secondly, you may note the letter is addressed as "Dear Friend"; I am not
her "friend" and I am  her "Brother", since we all believe in Universal
Brotherhood. In this context, I am reminded of the passage in Light of Asia,
wherein when a man meets Lord Buddha, touches his feet and addresses him as
"my Lord or God", Buddha takes him by his hand  and says you are my
"Brother".

With the help of Internet, I want share the above. Here is the full text of
Betty's letter.

mkr

PS: It may be noted that no mention is made of Algeo's apparent plans to run
the Presidency remotely from his home in the USA, so that he can have the
cake and as well as eat it. He did it when he was first elected to the
Presidency when he lived in Georgia for the first couple of months and only
later he moved to Olcott.

===================================================

Betty Bland
210 West Geneva Road
Wheaton IL 60187

April 11,2008

Dear friend,

I would like to discuss with you the current international elections of the
Theosophical
Society. As you know, or will know shortly when your ballot arrives, there
are two
candidates running for international president. The two candidates are the
incumbent,
Radha Burnier who has served in office for the past 28 years, and Dr. John
Algeo who is
currently international vice president and has served the Theosophical
Society in many
capacities during that same time period.

This letter is quite unusual and tradition-breaking, in that I am
communicating directly
with you about elections, since we Theosophists try to be non-political,
recognizing that
many capable persons may offer themselves for service. However, in this
circumstance I
think it is important to inform you of a difficult issue. I want to make
perfectly clear that
this is not about personalities but about what is best for the Society.

Radha seems to be recovering physically from the stroke she suffered over a
year ago,
but, given her age, she still has periods of low energy and her memory is
inconsistent.
While I have deep respect for the wonderful service she has given to the
Society and feel
that she can continue to be useful as a wise elder, it is for the good of
the whole that the
leadership pass smoothly to John Algeo, who currently serves as the
international Vice-
president.

John Algeo has the experience and capabilities to pick up the reins for the
best transition
and movement of the Society into the future. When I was in India this past
January, I saw
clearly with my own eyes the importance of making this transition now. If
you would
like further information about John Algeo's vision for the future, please
see his website at
www.ialgeo.com.

I hope you seriously consider this information when casting your vote.

With concern and sincerity,


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