[RITSlist] RITS

Tue May 15 09:36:26 CDT 2007

I think we are in agreement that Brian Ehni's response about it being a private matter is closer to the truth: that the RITS list is NOT an official arm or part of the society's operations. I belonged to the organization and a local chapter when I lived in SoCal but since moving to Florida will no longer be modeling the RI even as an exchange partner (which is what I was doing). I still correspond with Dick Hutchins and a few others mostly on non RI topics but I do try to keep in touch.

Being a member does not give YOU the right to take public pot shots at the organization. I did not enter into the society's situation other than point out that fact.

Jerry Glow
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Arkrail at aol.com 
  To: jerryglow at comcast.net ; ritslist at simpson.edu 
  Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2007 10:00 AM
  Subject: Re: [RITSlist] RITS

  Jerry,

  With all due respect, I think the first part of your message is right -- if you are no longer a member of RITS, you probably should not engage in society matters.  

  I do not have the specifics which led the board to this decision, but I am a longtime RITS member and will stand by my comments.  I am well aware of a significant undercurrent of turmoil that has existed within the RITS leadership for the last few years, a lot of which was (and probably still is) little more than personality clashes.  My point was that unless these people have done something criminal, any "damage to the society" is in the eye of the beholder.  Everyone involved has an interest in the Rock Island, and it irritates me greatly to see that we as an organization have fallen into this situation of infighting among ourselves.

  I also agree with comments of others that this is probably not the proper forum for discussion of an internal RITS issue, because this list does include non-RITS members who could probably care less -- they are just interested in the ROCK ISLAND, not RITS personalities -- IMAGINE THAT!!  It was, however, one of the surviving RITS officers who posted the message to which I was responding, so the RITS leadership, not me, made the decision to raise this issue in this forum.

  Like other RITS members, I await a detailed explanation and justification for these actions in the mail -- hopefully sooner rather than later.

  Bill Pollard

  In a message dated 5/15/2007 6:15:13 AM Central Daylight Time, jerryglow at comcast.net writes:
    I am no longer a member of RITS and should probably not engage in society matters, but it seems to me the board did just what they are supposed to do in protecting the interests of the group under the bylaws of the society. In fact, I would think them derelict in their duties if they did not do so. Your comments seem way out of line unless you are privy to the details of the dismissal.

    Jerry Glow
      ----- Original Message ----- 
      From: Arkrail at aol.com 
      To: ritslist at simpson.edu 
      Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2007 3:09 AM
      Subject: Re: [RITSlist] RITS

      What kind of alleged misconduct would warrant this unprecedented response by the board, if the action indeed reflects the opinion of the entire board as specified in the bylaws?  Does this organization have a death wish?  We don't have enough members as it is -- what benefit will be achieved when the leadership of this organization takes action which will unquestionably divide and bitterly polarize those members who remain?  This same sort of bad blood recently developed with the Illinois Central Historical Society, and it has plagued other rail history groups in the past -- it wasn't good for them, and it could very well be fatal for RITS, given RITS already tenuous existence.  

      As a RITS member dating back to the beginning of this organization, I am extremely disappointed in the leadership of the organization -- ALL sides, ALL factions -- since it appears that dissention and intolerance has become the order of the day.  It is disheartening that all of us, who ALL have a great interest in the Rock Island, apparently can no longer co-exist enough to work together to advance our primary goal which should be to preserve Rock Island history, and to recreate segments of that history in model form.  Is it no longer possible to have an honest difference of opinion and still work together in a professional manner?  

      Bill Pollard

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