Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
BLOCKThe word "block" has a number of meanings, including:Normal: In organizations that use a consensus process (think of Occupy) a person blocks to force discussion of proposals that they believe are contrary to organization's fundamental mission. GPCO: In the GPCO agreement seeking process, the word "BLOCK" has been perverted to mean "end discussion". In our process any council member can shut down agreement seeking and end discussion of any proposal. I posted my reasons for not agreeing with this proposal on April 14. And I cannot bring myself to stand aside and watch the party become more exclusive, more protective of its ideological purity, and more paranoid. The remaining option is to block.
I have a couple problems with this proposal to create a six-month waiting period for new Greens before voting in state party meetings.Image: If Council adopts this proposal the Green Party will become the only political party in Colorado to impose voting restrictions on members based on time in the party. This is a terrible image for a party that claims to be a grassroots democracy where everyone has a vote.Green Registrations: In the years since I affiliated with the Green Party on May Day 2013, GPCO's primary goal has been to grow the number of registered Greens in Colorado. Dave Bell was elected co-chair last fall on a platform of 50,000+ Green Party registrations in two years. (there are currently around 12,000 registered Greens in Colorado)How will future registration drives turn out when prospective party members are told, "We are a grassroots party; come join us; OH, but you won't get voting rights for six months"? As Art mentioned earlier, annual meetings are an opportunity to bring new people into the party; not turn them away. This is especially true of nominating meetings, where much of the attendance is from candidates' supporters.In my view, this proposal will damage GPCO's ability to attract new members and function as a grassroots democracy. I would ask the new chapters to consider carefully before taking the party down this path.
Two friendly amendments:1. In this text,
There are currently twelve (12) active voting chapters in the Green Party of Colorado. Adoption of this proposal requires an AGREE of at least 60% of all votes cast and also requires a minimum quorum of at least one response from seven (7) chapters.
change "seven ( 7 )" to "eight ( 8 ).2. In this text,
After the 2017 state meeting, amend Section 4.1.1 to read4.1.1. In order for official decisions to be made at a state meeting, a quorum of at least 60% of local chapters must be represented, with a minimum number of voting participants (registered in the Green Party of Colorado not less than 180 days) equal to twice the number of local chapters represented. Exceptions apply to persons who have: become eligible to vote via new citizenship; or have been released from parole and have been re-granted their right to vote; or have recently reached voting age and have subsequently registered with the Green Party within the 90 day window.
change "90" to "180".
. . . I'm happy to entertain your friendly amendment regarding the date. What is your suggestion?. . .
The Greater Boulder Green Party has always suggested the odd-year annual meeting be held as early in the election cycle as feasible. That is still our position.All other political parties in Colorado have already had their annual state party meetings and have elected officers. The Green Party is still figuring out a date.In early February the Greater Boulder Green Party proposed an annual meeting in May in the following letter to GPCO co-chairs. The goal of the proposal is for the Green Party of Colorado to plan and organize for the 2018 election cycle sooner (18 months before the 2018 general election), rather than later. The GBGP proposal, dated February 9, should have been presented to Council in February. The GBGP proposal should also have been presented to Council before proposal 004-17, dated April 7.
Dear GPCO Co-chairs, Andrea Merida and Dave Bell,Please begin the agreement-seeking process for the following proposal. . . .Sincerely,Harry Hempy, Co-chair, Greater Boulder Greens[hr]Set Date and Location of 2017 GPCO Annual MeetingThis is proposal 00?-17 to set a date and location for the 2017 GPCO Annual Meeting.Please read the proposal and keep comments on the topic of the proposal only. Please suggest any amendments or additions for discussion.Designate your vote by using the following terms: AGREE, BLOCK, or STAND ASIDE. Any blocks will require a vote of the council.A quorum of 60% requires at least one response from (7) chapters. Thereare currently 11 active voting chapters in the Green Party of Colorado:AdamsJeffersonArapahoe CountyDenverDouglasGreater BoulderMesaPikes PeakPlatte ValleyPoudre ValleySan MiguelThe floor is now open for one week of Agreement Seeking (??/??/17 to ??/??/17).1. Date Proposed: 02/09/172. Title: Set Date and Location of 2017 GPCO Annual MeetingSponsors: Harry Hempy, Judy Harrington, Kevin Alumbaugh, Scott Lupo, Susan Hall, Tom Hall, Carolyn Bninski3. Text: As a result of discussion of the History of GPCO Annual Meeting Dates and Locations at http://gpco.fullydefiant.com/forum/index.php?topic=308.0 Council hereby sets the date of 2017 GPCO Annual meeting to be May 6, 2017 and the location to be Grand Junction, Colorado.4. Background: From Dec. 3, 2016 to Jan 20, 2017 several members of GPCO discussed the location and date of the 2017 GPCO Annual Meeting. Conclusions from that discussion are as follows:
- Location: Preference is for a location with an active chapter. Grand Junction was suggested as a western slope location with a new chapter. Mesa Greens would be happy to host, per Andrew Hamilton.
- Date: Strong preference is for May. Snow was a concern for March and April.
- Term of Office: Andrea Merida's claim that she is entitled to a 24-month term as co-chair was discussed, without a resolution. This question will be the subject of a vote at the annual meeting.
You can read the full conversation in the topic History of GPCO Annual Meeting Dates and Locations at http://gpco.fullydefiant.com/forum/index.php?topic=308.0 Dave Bell is completing the term of Bill Bartlett.5. Goals/Justification: The purpose of the odd-year annual meeting is to adopt plans and elect officers for the 2018 election cycle. Republicans, Democrats, and Libertarians are all having their annual meetings in March.The goal of this proposal is for the Green Party of Colorado to plan and organize for the 2018 election cycle sooner (18 months before the 2018 general election), rather than later.This proposal complies with bylaws section 4.2.3 on Council responsibilities. 6. Alternatives to the proposal:May 13 or May 20 would be acceptable alternative dates.Holding a two-day meeting, say from noon Saturday to afternoon Sunday, would be an acceptable alternative.
How do GPCO co-chairs justify ignoring proposals from Council members and chapters, for months at a time, and then jumping their own proposals to the top of the list?
Ok. I agree with the sponsors that amending this proposal with a statement about proxies would be inappropriate. But I disagree with the statement, "If GBGP wants proxies, they can have them".The suggestion about proxies on April 11 -
If you are not able to attend, I would suggest that GBGP adopt some sort of proxy arrangement and ratify it in your bylaws, so that your voice can be heard.
- has taken the discussion off subject.Clarifying question: Who made this statement? Council Facilitator? Forum Moderator? A Co-chair? Someone with a personal opinion?There is no basis in state bylaws for proxies.
I just received this email message:A topic you are watching has been unlocked by Andrea Mérida Cuéllar.View the topic at: http://gpco.fullydefiant.com/forum/index.php?topic=306.new;topicseen#newUnsubscribe to this topic by using this link: http://gpco.fullydefiant.com/forum/index.php?action=notify;topic=306.0Regards,The GPCO Forum Team.When and why was this topic licked?
. . . I would suggest that GBGP adopt some sort of proxy arrangement and ratify it in your bylaws . . . .
It would be disastrous to allow each chapter to make up their own proxy rules for state meetings. The Greater Boulder Green Party, or any chapter, could show up at annual meeting with hundreds of proxies from Greens living in the chapter's boundaries.GPCO Bylaws are silent on the subject of using proxies at annual meetings. Maybe we need a bylaws change to explicitly disallow proxy voting at state level general membership meetings. But for now for proposal 004-17, I offer this friendly amendment:Add the following note to the tentative agenda: Members may attend the 2017 annual meeting in person or remotely. There will be no voting by proxy.
There is a calculation error in the introductory material of this proposal. With 12 chapters, adoption of this proposal requires a vote from eight chapters; not seven chapters.I would ask the facilitator to update/amend the proposal accordingly.
I would ask the sponsors to temporarily withdraw proposal 004-17 and resubmit when agreement seeking/voting has been completed on proposal 003-17.Our Procedures and guidelines discourage simultaneous votes on proposals. The complexity caused from running simultaneous proposals can be confusing to Council members and lead to mistakes.We don't want to repeat the debacle Council had in September, 2016.Proposal 003-16 was in agreement seeking when proposals 004-16 and 005-16 were submitted. Bob Kinsey mistakenly blocked ColoradoCare when he intended to block Bill's recall. Here is the sequence of events:8/31: Proposal 003-16 to endorse ColoradoCare Amendment 69, sponsored by Bill Bartlett and Susan Hall, began agreement seeking.9/1: Adams County Greens adopted bylaws to separate from the Adams/Jefferson chapter.9/5 to 9/8: Proposal 004-16 to recognize Adams County, sponsored by Andrea Merida, was submitted and agreed to.9/22: Proposal 005-16 to recall Bill Bartlett, sponsored by Poudre Valley and Arapahoe chapters, was submitted.9/23: Bob Kinsey blocked proposal 003-16 (ColoradoCare) by accident. He had intended to block proposal 005-16. It took until October 20 to discover the mistake and realize GPCO had agreed to endorse ColoradoCare!We should also wait to consider 004-17 until 003-17 is done because the length of the waiting period for new members (003-17) will affect how soon the annual meeting can be held (004-17).By the way, it would be good to state a policy on sequencing proposals through agreement seeking. First-come-first-served?
I am delighted that March for Science Denver has decided to have a Meet Your Representatives table to discuss the importance of science and scientific backed policies in politics. This was a result of our queries about speaking and tabling opportunities at the march and, I would assume, similar queries from Democratic electeds who, also, signed the March for Science support statement. And delighted that Greens will be participating visibly and on an equal footing with Democrats. It is not clear, yet, whether there will be any Republican, Libertarian or American Constitution party representatives willing to speak up for science. This is an opportunity for thousands of Coloradans to see the Green Party at work. This call for participation was just sent to all chapter co-chairs. Responses are requested by Friday, April 14.
March for Science - April 22 - Call for Green ScientistsTo Chapters of the Green Party of Colorado:The March for Science in Denver Civic Center Park will have a "Meet Your Representatives" table to encourage representatives to meet with the public and discuss the importance of science and scientific backed policies in politics.There will be representatives from the Green Party and the Democratic party. March organizers are trying to get elected Republicans and Libertarians to participate as well.We need to staff the table with Greens that have recognized scientific credentials from 10:00am to 2:00 pm on April 22. It would be ideal to have four scientist volunteers, each taking an hour at the "Meet Your Representatives" table.This is an opportunity for Greens to be visible, side by side with Colorado's elected officials. I believe the Green Party will stack up just fine.Please reply to this note by 4/14 to nominate Greens from your chapter who are willing to take an hour to represent the Green Party with a science-based message (ecological wisdom, sustainability, the precautionary principle, population pressure and exponential growth, etc, etc).Science, not silence,Harry Hempy, Scott Lupo and Véronique Bellamy
An announcement of the March for Science was sent to chapters today. For people attending the march in Denver: The march in Denver will start and end at Denver Civic Center Park. Events include the march, teach-ins and speakers, beginning at 10:00 am. Colorado Greens will assemble just to the west of the Greek Auditorium on the south side of the park. Look for the big Green Party banner. Bring your signs and banners!
To Chapters of the Green Party of Colorado:The Green Party of Colorado has joined with March for Science (https://www.marchforscience.com/) to support a nationwide March for Science event on Earth Day, April 22, 2017. Marches will be held in Washington, D.C., around the country and around the world.In Colorado, March for Science events are planned in Aspen, Avon, Breckenridge, Carbondale, Colorado Springs, Denver, Estes Park, Fort Collins, Grand Junction and Gunnison. Detailed information about the events in each city is at https://www.marchforscience.com/satellite-marches/?state=ColoradoThe party's statement of support for the Denver march is at http://marchforsciencedenver.org/blog/march-for-science-denver-supporter-statementPlease announce the March for Science at your next chapter meeting and plan to participate in a city near you.Denver: The march in Denver will start and end at Denver Civic Center Park. Events include the march, teach-ins and speakers, beginning at 10:00 am.Colorado Greens will assemble just to the west of the Greek Auditorium on the south side of the park. Look for the big Green Party banner. Bring your signs and banners!Science, not silence,Harry Hempy, Scott Lupo and Véronique Bellamy March for Science – Denver: Mission Statement: The March for Science champions publicly funded and publicly communicated science as a pillar of human freedom and prosperity. We unite as a diverse, nonpartisan group to call for science that upholds the common good and for policymakers to enact evidence-based policies in the public interest. Diversity: Scientists have voiced concern over many issues - gag orders for government science agencies, funding freezes and reversing science based policies. We recognize that these changes will differently and disproportionately affect minority scientists, science advocates and the global communities impacted by these changes in American policies. Addressing these issues is imperative in understanding how recent developments will affect all people. We must work to make science available to everyone and encourage individuals of all backgrounds to pursue science careers. A diverse group of scientists produces increasingly diverse research, which broadens, strengthens and enriches scientific inquiry, and therefore, our understanding of the world.
We had planned to order tee-shirts with a Green Party for Science design for sale (donations) to Greens around the state to have for the march. Proceeds from the shirts would have been added to the state coffers. This will not happen because, per Veronique's discussion with Andrea on March 27, the state coffers are not sufficient to front the money to order any shirts.Scott and I have signed up as volunteers with March for Science Denver to assist during the day and clean up the park after the march.
On the chapters page on the website (http://coloradogreenparty.org/chapters/) the link to the Adams County chapter does not work.
Andrea, I will address this angry and profane letter at the May 13 GBGP chapter meeting and recommend the chapter take appropriate disciplinary action, including possible revocation of the member's right of participation, guided by bylaws section 3.3 on due process.
3.3 The right of participation of an individual in the Green Party of Colorado can be revoked by a Green local using its own criteria or by a 75% vote of the members at a Green Party of Colorado state meeting. Revocation of the rights of participation must be based on failure of the individual to adhere to the purpose and methods of the Green Party of Colorado. Any individual must be informed of the potential revocation of their rights of participation at least three weeks prior to the vote and have a chance to speak in his or her defense at the meeting when the vote is held.
Your complaint claims:
Sally Hempy has a track record of being abusive with members of this party.
Do you have any evidence of this track record, other than the incident with you, acting as forum administrator, on April 13, 2015?Due to my conflict of interest in this matter (I am Sally's husband) I will not be the facilitator for the proceedings and will not participate in the discussion other than to correct factual errors. Likewise, I will not participate in a vote on the matter if there is one.Please supply complete documentation of the your charges against Sally to GBGP at harryhempy@gmail.com by April 21, 2017. GBGP will notify Sally of the charges on April 22, three weeks before the meeting.
