[Businessmtg] Re: Motion out of order

[Steve Rankin]

Hi ASPers,

What I recalled being discussed when the KBDM process came up was that when
the discussion seemed to have run its course, the chair would say something
to that effect and ask for a motion.  

How long will it take to get to that point?  Who knows.  How will we know?
It will be clear.  Not because every single member said something, and not
because so many days went by since we started the discussion or since
someone said something last.  Instead the situation will be clear that we
have a consensus, or at the very least we have a LOT of clarity & no new
info is forthcoming.  Yeah, it's vague and that's also the beauty of it.
It's like life with no pat answers.  But, recovery is all about living life
on life's terms, not following the dots.  

I've found that it is paramount that time NOT be a factor in our discussion
& information gathering/dissemination phase.  This is important to keep in
mind because Al-Anons seem to have a tendency to want a quick fix to their
problems.  This is even more important to remember in this meeting because
we only meet every other month.  

Which opens up another can of worms--we opened this topic on January 26th &
our new format is to meet on alternating months.  Oh boy.  :-(

Personally, I'm 100% for having the business meeting open ONLY on
alternating months for several reasons.  

One, it gives everyone a chance to cool off, have a life, etc.  

Two, perpetual business meetings do not exist any where else in Al-Anon, so
why here?  

Three, the breaks serve as reminders for all of us that time is not a factor
in our decisions because every other month we take a break from it all.

Fourth, the breaks give the Chair an opportunity to make adjustments to the
agenda, if needed.  It's simply dumb to think that we can set an agenda in
January and follow it rigidly till every item has been resolved without an
opportunity for new items to be considered or for a reshuffling of the
existing items.  Another point for all of us to remember is that the Chair
controls the agenda.  The rest of us have the right to submit items for the
agenda, but the decision to set the order of the agenda belongs to the
chair.  Concept 3 talks about the right of decision making effective
leadership.  Dawn is our leader, and IMHO she's doing a damn fine job of it.

Soooooo, it is my suggestion that Dawn close the meeting & reopen the
meeting in March.  

Love and SERENITY,
Steve