Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Consensus [was balance]

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On Feb 25, 2010, at 12:46 AM, Rob Sandelin wrote:

> Unanimous agreement in a group bigger than a dozen is extraordinarily
> difficult. And what most groups call consensus is really unanimous
> agreement.

Gerard Endenburg, who developed sociocracy, calls unanimous agreement  
solidarity. There are times when solidarity is what is wanted/needed,  
for example, when making a commitment to an illegal political  
activity. The underground during WWII required solidarity or a less  
than committed member could endanger the lives of others.

At a lesser level, a group I was a member of needed everyone to commit  
to active participation in a very challenging fundraising activity to  
acquire a property. There was a drop-dead deadline. Without  
solidarity, the efforts of others would be wasted.

I think it is important to recognize solidarity as an option, and  
having it allows consensus to be freed of the necessity to serve both  
purposes.

Sharon
----
Sharon Villines
Nothing exists without order. Nothing comes into existence without  
chaos. Albert Einstein