On Sat, 31 Dec 2005 20:43:43 -0500, Dave Smith
> replied:
>The Ranger wrote:
>> As a PTO president, I am always looking to involve other erstwhile
>> volunteers so that I don't have to do as much real work. For some
>> events that works the charm. At others, well... I'm the chairman
>> and several volunteers.
>
>.... snip........
>
>Too true. There are a lot of organizations run by individuals to the
>best of their ability. They rarely get help but they are always the
>target of petty sniping. I used be be involved in our union, not
>because I was a rabid unionist, but because I thought my sensible <?>
>approach would balance counteract some of the more rabid types. I
>used to hear all sorts of gripping about "the union" this and "the
>union that" to which I would respond that they were part of the
>union, but I don't recall ever seeing them at meetings or volunteering
>their time.
>
>When my son was on teams or in cubs my wife and I always made it known
>that we were willing to help out. It always turned out that we were
>the only people who were ever called because they knew we would come.
>Meanwhile, there are all sorts of other people harping and carrying
>on, but never offered to lift a finger. It seems that entertaining
>their kids is someone else's job.
>
That's one of the reasons I chaired the outreach program. I don't
like silence or complainers and used them in non-monetary-based
ways. If they said they couldn't fit the time to come to a
meeting, I found something they could do at home. If they
complained about a festival or committee, they often chaired the
next one. Some of our festivals have been run by these armchair
generals that were braying from their stalls...

"'No, I can't' is just trying to find the 'Yes, I will'."

The Ranger