COMensarations
Monday, July 17, 2006
Temper Tantrums In Denver Mensa
Mario resigns! So what else is new?
In a fit of pique Mario de Benedittis has resigned his position as Local Secretary of the Denver Chapter of Mensa.
Why? Well. Just because he feels like it. And he feels like it because he’s Mario de Benedittis. That’s why.
What caused this sudden decision? Because someone wanted to throw a big party and didn’t ask his permission. Yes. that ‘someone’ is American Mensa Limited. And the party is the 2008 Annual Gathering. And, for some strange reason—yet to be fully understood—Mario seems to have been left out of the ‘decision process’.
There’s a LOT that isn’t known on how this all came about. I trust we’ll find out in due time. We’ve got a couple of years before this thing is to take place. That is IF it takes place. But I feel there is no need for people to go jumping out of 15th story windows over it.....yet.
In the meantime, it’s ALL ABOUT MARIO!
Here’s my fisking of a letter he sent me after I suggested he calm down.....
It’s called leadership.
As I commented in an e-mail to you, ‘bull pucky’. Leadership is the farthest thing from your mind, Mario. You’re just behaving badly as a result of an apparent lack of good communications between you and, as we in the mililtary would say ‘echeolons above God’, when referring to the Puzzle Palace [Pentagoon], i.e., national HQ.
In my private letter to you about your resignation announcement, I counselled you to take a ‘chill pill’ and talk the matter out with the ExComm.
But no....you had to ‘public’. Not only that, but the ‘public’ was in your own personal little ‘echo-chamber’ up at Yahoo. Where you banned me from posting.
To respond in ANY manner, other than how I did would be irresponsible to the membership of Denver Mensa.
Again...’bull pucky’. Leadership requires one to respond to challenges such as this one. Not to run away. Again, you fail to grasp what leadership is about. It includes not only managing things when they are going well, but coping with them when they are NOT going all that well.
REAL leaders, like REAL men, don’t ‘run away’. Especially over something like THIS.
(As an aside, I thought that you would would be happy. On numerous occasion in the past, you have called for my resignation. Be careful of what you pray for.)
And once again....’bull pucky’. I defy you to show me where I called for your resignation. Indeed, if you’ll review the 10 comments on http://www.comensarations.info I doubt if you’ll find any comment attributable to me tha calls for you to resign.
Yes, I expressed my concern about your leadership. In fact I even prophesied you’d do exactly this sort of stunt when things didn’t go your way.
Some believe that power flows from the top down. My position is that power flows from the grass roots up.
If you REALLY believed as you say, you wouldn’t be ‘kick/ban/killing’ people from your personal listserv up on Yahoo.
No, Mario. You do not believe as you claim, that power flows from the people. Otherwise you’d be operating something other than an echo-chamber on your personal listserv. And, as further evidence, in this particular matter, I don’t recall seeing ‘the people’, i.e., the membership of Denver Mensa, calling for your resignation.
Instead of the people calling for your resignation and you, if you believed as you claim, resigning, I see you arbitrarily NOT even asking the people what should be done. You just ‘resign’. Proof positive that you do not practice what you claim.
“… that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; ...”—Quotation by Thomas Jefferson [Emphasis added by Mario]
Nice quote, that. If you only you actually believed and practiced it.
My position is that it is Denver’s decision as to whether or not it will host an AG. It appears that some collection of jackasses, somewhere, without the knowledge or consent af any Denver ExComm Officer, made a decision at to what Denver would do. In Management 101, they teach you that responsibility is dependent upon control. If one does not have control of a situation, then one is not responsible for a situation. Anyone who would assumes responsibility, without having control, is a fool.
This IS an interesting situation. One definitely calling for the ExComm to demonstrate REAL leaderhip. It needs to be investigated, analyzed and dealt with.
But THAT isn’t going to happen if they all act like petunlant pre-teens and go home sulking, now. IS IT?
It is the decision of the Denver ExComm, acting on behalf of the Denver membership, as to whether or not it will host an Annual Gathering.
Yes. It IS. So. Why don’t you act like a man and DO something about it? Lead the ExComm in the query as to how this all came about.
It is my decision as to whether or not I will serve as Local Secretary. I choose not to.
Very ‘adult’ of you.
P. S. Chuck, does your criticism of me imply that, if Denver does host the 2008 AG, you would get off your fat ass and help? This question goes for everyone else, irrespective of their ass size, too.
I’d be VERY happy to help with doing an AG for American Mensa in Denver in 2008. As best I can from my location. As a first item, I offer the web-site/blog http://www.comensarations.info as a means of communication and discussion of planning and promotion of the event.
That is IF the ExComm decides to go for it.
Next entry: A Sleepy Little Colorado Town Previous entry: [Jurist] Doctor Heal Thyself-
I truly hope that the people who are wailing and gnashing their teeth about the 2008 AG will calm down (take deep breaths) and think about how exciting this could all be. I’m excited. I intend to do what I can to help. I believe this will be a great opportunity for Denver Mensa. I intend to look for and relish all the really great parts of this experience. I also know that anyone who expects it to be a disaster will experience and relish in all the bad parts. Wake up and smell the roses, folks. The doom and dispair group is compeltely out of control…
on 07/17 at 08:40 PM -
Hi Lattina!
I think the volume of mail plus a few negative comments is making the wrong impression. I don’t think the attempts to put a lid on it are going to be for the best. I participate in national discussions as well, and this situation seems to be the result of a recent change in policy, and not being handled too well. I agree that a Denver AG sounds like a great thing, but there are some problems in Mensa, and they need to be addressed also. One point that I have raised is that the people involved are clearly not skilled in diplomacy, and are not reaching out. I agree with Chuck that it’s not hard to tweak Mario, but I thought that Tony’s email was pretty raw, and I got a subsequent response from Russ Bakke that was also not very appropriate in my view. I am trying to stay positive, suggesting better relations and that “we’re all Mensans”, I know National has a reputation for forgetting that.
Sadly, there are those who are also raising the point that the local group usually gets a cut of the profits, and that does make the fairly clear-cut exclusion of our group in participation look like it could be related to the question of who profits. Russ’ email to me also seemed to address that indirectly, saying we would benefit even though our participation was not needed, because we would likely gain more members.
So, there are a lot of people from the top down making this potentially great situation kind of messy. I think we should be enthusiastic, but realistic in addressing the problems, so that the stuff “bubbling below the surface” as someone put it, doesn’t erupt in some unexpected way.
I love it here in Denver, and I really want my Mensa friends from all over the country to enjoy an AG here in 2008, I’m with you on that!
on 07/17 at 11:17 PM -
TO: Lattina
RE: Getting ‘Excited’!I’m intrigued by the prospect too. I think it would be a fine time. To be had by ‘all’.
But I’m concerned for how the ExComm will manage this, in light of Mario’s behavior.
Where are Barbara’s DareDevils when we REALLY need em?
TO: Dave Maddox
RE: Tony’s Mail“...I thought that Tony’s email was pretty raw, and I got a subsequent response from Russ Bakke that was also not very appropriate in my view.”—Dave Maddox
Could have been. I don’t recall seeing it. Was it on Mario’s listserv? Could you forward it to me in comment here? And throw in Russ Bakke’s comment too, if you would be so kind.
RE: Getting ‘Messy’
“So, there are a lot of people from the top down making this potentially great situation kind of messy.”—Dave Maddox
Could be. As someone said, there are two kinds of people in Denver Mensa. Those who promote activities and those who impede such activities. Three guesses as to which stance Mario is taking at this point.
But, ultimately, I’m interested in hearing what we find out about how this tempest developed in our particular teapot.
Regards,
Chuck(le)
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