Hello all. I’m new here. Heat shield engaged.
To quote the OP “Signing the pledge will counteract ongoing harm in a small but real way, so we should sign it as soon as possible.”
This seems to not be the case, as I observe folks who I don’t know going after each other., folks who I expect are well intentioned, engaged, intelligent and impassioned, and who I imagine are supportive of the interests generally facilitated by the existence of the Sudoroom. And yet here I see well meaning attempts to respond to this proposal using rhetoric and tactics that some may not realize could cause lasting harm to your own community, while doing very little to counter the tremendous atrocity sustained by the global powers that be.
I don’t think the potential for harm locally is being considered, and neither do I believe that threat as I see it is being deliberately enacted.
So I caution you: I have seen too many interest groups destroy themselves from the inside post Trump v1.0.
No views were changed, And no good whatsoever came from those dismemberments.
I personally don’t think a largely symbolic gesture of solidarity, if taken as divisive by any of your stakeholders, is worth the damage done, if engagements like I’ve observed continue. Not if it brings harm to the community you collectively steward.
And so, unless there is broad agreement that this fits within your mission, or you have principles that have been agreed upon previously about how to constructively engage with conflict, or at least an agreement to abstain from personal attacks, or chose to withdraw from the debate on this initiative if it becomes personal, then then I believe the initiative should be retracted or at least reconsidered.
Apart from illuminating the need to decide on how to make decisions, proposals
like this that may summon folks’ deeply held and potentially conflicting views on geopolitics and religion which, in my view, should not be allowed to harm this group’s ability to come together around your shared goals and interests.
That’s not to fault the OP or the proposal in any way. It’s only to make clear that perhaps the supportive structures for taking on a charged issue such as this are not yet fully in place.
I would caution against any imposed urgency on deciding this particular initiative until broadly accepted and more generalized community agreements can be made.
Take care yall,