Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Re: Problems with Voting [was Something faster and easier than> consensus?]

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On 8/09/2003 4:44 PM, "Becky Schaller" <bschaller [at] theriver.com> wrote:

> Hi Sharon, I'm not sure I totally agree with your conclusion that consensus
> is the best option for building stronger communities.  In fact, I've seen it
> work in such a way that it has been destructive to personal relationships.

But in these situations, would a vote have made a difference? Were people
"together" before the consensus discussion in ways that a vote would have
kept them together?

Making choices is hard. Resolving differences is hard. Consensus doesn¹t
make it easier in the short run but in the long run, it has the possibility
of doing so, and doing many other things as well.

But some form of parliamentary procedure (Roberts is just one of them) works
best in situations where the participants are not interested or not capable
of working together toward a solution that is satisfactory to everyone.

Parliamentary procedure does not require a vote on all issues. The chair can
suggest a solution and hearing no objections, go forward. This is in fact
the preferred result of discussion. Votes are only necessary when called
for, by the chair or a member of the assembly.

Sharon
-- 
Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org

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