Cohousing-L Mailing List: tv....

[Jose Marquez (marchpower]

Hello Fellow Cohousers!

Well, I'm wondering what you all have done about TV issues.  Yes, I know
it's a big one.  Sigh.  Anyway, in our community I believe there is a wide
range of feelings, and one person who blocks consensus to have a TV.  This
individual has blocked having a TV in a locked room of the Common House to
only be used on pre-scheduled times.

So...our core values included "Honoring/Seeking Diversity" and as each
member joined the community they were asked what their "Bottom Lines" were.
This way, I think, we could determine if a diverse believe or desire was
unworkable in our community by not accepting a member based upon a bottom
line.  The individual against the TV (blocking consensus alone) DID NOT list
this as a bottom line.  To me, this means that some compromise should be
acceptable since our diverse group includes folks who like TV.  Also, our
homes are all a bit smaller than we are paying for because we're also paying
for a big Common House....so to have a Superbowl Party (for example) in
one's home is difficult.  So there is the perception that refusing an
activity in the Common House that people CANNOT do in their actual units
(since the Common House is all of our's) is also inappropriate when everyone
else wants to allow it.

So, in a consensus process....supposedly it is not proper procedure to block
when you're the only one blocking.....and all that.  But, what do you do
when it does happen that way?

~March