Saturday, September 27, 2014

THE READING GROUP
     Among the many interest groups at Kendal is the Book Group, which has been selecting a book several months each year, and after reading it, gathering for a group discussion.  According to the convener, there are only two rules: comments must focus only on the book, and only one person speaks at a time.
     This month's book? Doris Kearns Goodwin's 2013 history/biography THE BULLY PULPIT: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism.
      In August, the reading period was extended into September because of the length of the book--752 pages plus 115 pages of notes.  Still, the Group had it largest attendance (23), apparently because of both the topics and the author.  Of those, over half had read the entire book (13) or listened  on 18 hours of recordings (2).  Others were still reading with most intending to finish, and a few had not read it, but came to listen.
     Virtually every reader had been fully engaged with the story of how Teddy Roosevelt, Will Taft, and the progressive journalists of their period, had engaged individually, together, and sometimes in direct opposition, in working to change the direction of the U.S. government, amidst a burst of industrialization, from a laissez faire idea to a functional, regulated system, toward which we continue to struggle.
      Some did sneak in personal reasons for their interest: a shared home town or alma mater, a commitment to a similar cause, a family tie or memory, or a professional interest.  But most comments were either evaluative of a particular action or individual, analytical regarding the author's "take" on one or more of her subjects, or personal insights drawn from the text.  A new member of the community could hardly help but observe the intellectual capacity, and the willingness, of members to engage in a truly complex but exceedingly well wrought book, with individual insights, observations, and questions.
       Rather obvious, of course, were the many vexing similarities of that historical period's issues to today's ongoing battles--a bitterly divided Congress, internally divisive political parties, policy bought by special interests, isolationism versus globalism, voter suppression, environmental concerns, etc.
      Of special interest to this group was the detail in which Goodwin explores the importance of the relationships between many players--fathers and sons, sons and mothers, husbands and wives, politician and journalist, journalist and publisher, even wives and wives.  The relationship theme caused some to believe that this richness was necessarily the product of a woman author, and most to decry the loss of letterwriting which would make such research unlikely if not impossible today.
    One reader likened the book to a love story and to The Bible--a collection of stories, each with its own meaning.  Another thought it was perhaps unfair in its evaluation of Taft, and of the value of different styles of leadership.  Some were surprised and disappointed by the older Roosevelt's behavior in his effort to retain power.  Others cited Goodwin's constant recognition of secondary players, local politicos, wives, aides, brother and sisters.
      Unfortunately, the one hour discussion was apparently insufficient for enough discussion of the roles played by the journalists, except for the opportunity they had for both thorough investigation and serious readership.  While true that tariff battles can seem boring, most of the major issues, and critical roles of Sam McClure, Ida Tarbell, Lincoln Steffens, Ray Baker, Jacob Riis and others could have received more discussion if there had been more time.  And no one mentioned Archie Butts....
meh 9/26/14






Saturday, September 13, 2014

Candidates and Candidacies

Next week the Kendal residents – in their collective identity as KAGRA (the Kendal at Granville Residents Association) – will hold our September gathering. This September event is a big thing. Our by-laws style it the "Annual Meeting." What that means is that while KAGRA meets on a regular, monthly basis to conduct the ongoing business of the association, the Annual Meeting is a special occasion. It is here that we choose council members for the coming operational year (October 1-September 30) and select the residents to serve on our standing committees. It is also here that we approve KAGRA's budget for the coming year.

What I want to comment on, however, is not the responsibilities of these offices or the procedures we use to fill them, but rather what we can glean about life at Kendal at Granville from reading the information that candidates post about themselves in their brief bios.

First off, it's useful to note that the slate of six candidates – three women and three men – encompasses the full range of Kendal residential terms: that is, one is a "founder" – one of the original residents at the newly-opened facility in 2005; three are persons who have joined the community in the fifteen months since its expansion; and two are mid-range residents, neither founders nor newbies. Clearly a newer generation of residential leadership is moving forward. And that's how it should be.

But what is more interesting are the career backgrounds they bring to their candidacies. One is a teacher of public speaking, argumentation, and persuasion. One worked on the country's guided missile program under Dr. Wernher von Braun. One taught in the Columbus school system for three decades. One spent thirty years as a chaplain and pastoral care educator at large hospitals.  One handled the book-keeping for a small business. Two served in the armed forces.

Then there is the range of their hobbies and interests. One is a devoté of duck hunting and fly fishing. One is a proponent of nature photography. One is an antiquer. Still other enthusiasms include travel (everyone likes this option), bridge, book clubs, Pilates, policy development, gardening, library work, and church activities. Moreover, in some fashion or another, all are fans of programs of lifelong learning.

I should probably add that the persons on this slate are not in any sense running against each other. KAGRA has a nominating committee, which recruits a slate of candidates large enough to fill every vacancy, but no more; and while there is an easy way for alternative candidacies to emerge, no one in my seven years at Kendal has used this route. So when the elections are over, we can be confident that all of the skills, backgrounds, and interests I've mentioned will be at play in guiding the new office-holders as they make decisions for the residents.

Finally I must draw attention to this description of a strength one candidate offers the community: "trying to bring common sense and good humor to all such things." KAGRA will  be in good hands. If only Kendal could place such people in Congress!