Friendly Advice for Our Board's President

read- your- statement- very- slowly

Every now and then I like to take some time to look over the posted meeting minutes from our POA Board and its various committees. I’m still suspicious about why one month’s minutes never post to the website before the following month’s meeting is already completed. I am not by nature a suspicious person, but naturally suspicious people (not me) might think that’s a subtle way to keep interested parties from knowing what might happen before it’s already happened. And a really suspicious person (certainly not me) might find it odd that the minutes often include appropriately detailed information on, for instance, the search for Yellow-legged hornets and Bingo Night (where the theme this year is Superhero Bingo) but on items that seem to be intimately related to Board activities we get, David Barnum gave a presentation on his Technology Ad Hoc Committee’s research (August 2024 Board minutes). In our post entitled Irony Is Alive and Well in HHP we found that on June 17th the Communications Committee discussed an issue we think is crucial — dedicated email addresses for Board members. That entire discussion was “detailed” in the minutes as, After input from Mr. Kristian it was determined that the existing communication flow through the board@hhppoa.org email was sufficient. Shouldn’t we know the substance of Mr. Kristian’s “input?” Wouldn’t we like to know the general outlines of Mr. Barnum’s technology research? Yes and yes, and that leads me on a winding path to my subject, duly recorded in the Board minutes of August 27, 2024.

“Minutes are the official written record of what transpires during a meeting. Minutes serve the important function of being the permanent written record of the subjects discussed, conclusions reached, actions taken and assignments given. Minutes also inform those absent from the meeting about what took place. Minutes are often consulted for purposes of verification and are frequently examined by auditors. Because minutes are of a permanent and legal nature, they are prima facie evidence of what transpired at a meeting and are accorded evidentiary weight by courts”

In his introductory remarks at the POA Board’s August meeting the minutes recorded the following under the section President Remarks: (Chairman Carlton Dallas) noted that he wanted the community to know how well the organization is run.

Read your remark slowly Mr. President. You are expressing a desire — you want the community to know something. And that “something” is something that you, presumably, know yourself. Yet, the statement implies your rcognition that the “community” does not know this “something.” Now, ask yourself why that would be the case.

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