"Cherry picking"From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Cherry picking is the act of pointing at individual cases or data that seem to confirm a particular position, while ignoring a significant portion of related cases or data that may contradict that position.
The term is based on the perceived process of harvesting fruit, such as cherries. The picker would be expected to only select the ripest and healthiest fruits. An observer who only sees the selected fruit may thus wrongly conclude that most, or even all, of the fruit is in such good condition."
The information NCRA put out as demonstrating overwhelming support for its policies and actions was cherry picked from the different forums. This attempt to bolster a weak position doesn't begin to give members full and adequate facts. In fact, in answer to two survey questions at ConcernedReporters.com, the percentage of support for the Association's position was less than 12 percent on each survey. Using the pie chart above, this is half of the slice left on the plate. In other words, 88 to 90 percent of the respondents to the survey said no to the NCRA initiative. Half-baked ideas usually receive half-baked support.The question was asked at the board meeting in February, "Does the NCRA board have the resolve to stand tough to this solution?" The questions that should be asked are: Number 1, does the NCRA board have the resolve to stand tough against the cherry pickers? And number 2, for what reason do they continually work to abandon the foundation of the Association?
Is this the act of a desperate group within NCRA? More than likely, yes. But as reckless as it is, don't you believe for one minute it is the last act of desperation. The cherry pickers have decided not to listen to the membership again -- and again and again. What logic is there to this effort? On the one hand, NCRA has been making noise in Florida and California against the replacement of steno reporters with Digital Audio Machine (DAM) operators. That's good. But to offset the positive, they want to train, certify and eventually, (although they deny it) offer professional membership to the very cherry- picked trainees who will replace the steno professional members who they are defending today.
It is time to recruit and employ leadership and staff who will not seek their own personal goals, but who will work for the membership, we who share the same skill set as Guardians of the Record.
If NCRA wanted to get the attention of all steno reporters, they have succeeded in doing that. It is time for all reporters to join in the fight against those who want to replace us. All professional members need to be the tip of the spear in the defense of their profession, not only against those outside the Association who want us to fail, but also the self-aggrandizing individuals on the inside who seek opportunity at the profession's expense.
The present NCRA president says they have been paring headquarters down. If so, it's a start. But expenses should be cut to the bone to reflect today's reality and it is a continuing, dedicated process. Would we rather cut down on services from our association or would we rather lose our jobs as we watch our association training our replacements? A rhetorical question, yes, but a question that should be asked again and again until the cherry pickers listen and finally understand.
In every controversy there are always winners and losers. In this high-stakes debate, it is the steno reporter who will be the loser. The winner? The button-pushing DAM operators, of course. Although their certification may start in the courthouse setting, do not think for a minute the freelance reporters get a pass. Get ready, they’re coming your way.
There is no need for any Board Member, headquarters staff or even the CEO to have pie on their face at the end of this debate. But people, you must understand, no means no. Take the final word of the membership for what it means . Let's move forward together as equals and make the Association that represents the Guardians of the Record a revitalized phoenix, stronger than before and ready to fight the good fight.
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13 comments:
The cherrypickers will NEVER listen to the membership and will not give up on this effort until NCRA completely implodes. How much more effort should be put in to a hopeless cause of getting the cherrypickers to stop? Don't we have better things to do for steno reporters?? It just isn't that hard to start an association - ask California reporters who did - twice.
And don't forget that while they say they are "helping" Florida and California, they showed up a little late to the party!
To Anonymous above,
When they did show up, did they piggyback on the CA association's letter the same way they did in FL recently, or did they actually write their own letter?
Maybe one of the CA associations would like to increase their membership base and become national.
I believe that walking away from NCRA is not the answer. I don't want to be fighting against NCRA on my turf, be it California, Texas, New York, or any other state. We need to fight this umbrella plan within NCRA so that they are not ever creating an issue for us at home. And make no mistake, method inclusiveness is currently part of the long-term plan.
Dear Anonymous No. 1.
You're right. It's not that hard to start an association. But I wouldn't point to any of the CA associations as an ideal for an NCRA substitute. If they can't even serve all the reporters in one state, how can they serve all the reporters nationwide.
Adam D. Miller,
Director, NCRA
FYI, there's a new litigation support group (Kathy Di, Reesa Parker and others) that is touting the UMBRELLA theory (www.MyLegal.com.) Why not let Mark Golden and the rest of the all-inclusive theory methods join that association today. Leave our steno association and our monies in the bank. Stop spending our dues as you wish.
Dear Adam:
I don't think I said creating an identical association to any of the existing CA associations would be the substitute for NCRA. But as in California, when the existing leadership continually did NOT listen to its membership, that creating a substitute or replacement or whatever name you want to give was just not that difficult and turned out to be a great thing for California!!!
In the latest issue of "The Transcript," the president of the New York State Court Reporters Association comes out against the NCRA board of directors' exploration of electronic reporting.
To view the New York president's article, go to http://www.nyscra.org/documents/Summer%202009.pdf and view his article on page 3.
Bill Parsons
Is Mark Golden's leadership technique a leadership technique leading to flawed results?
Mark Golden has a leadership technique he has the board use.
This leadership technique involves assigning board members to champion ideas, and those board members present all the good points they can on any idea.
Does such a leadership technique result in flawed results when there is no competent critical analysis of the report of the board members who champion ideas?
I wonder where this leadership idea of board members champioing ideas has been used before and if there is any applicability of such a leadership technique in the running of the affairs of NCRA in a professional competent manner.
Bill Parsons
Subject: Ideas for good governance of NCRA.
Is it time to change the NCRA bylaws to require all votes of the NCRA board of directors to be rollcall votes?
I have been very concerned when I read in forum post after forum post that once the NCRA board of directors makes a decision, all board members must support the decision.
It sounds to me like a rule from a military or police group to have to require NCRA board members to silence their concerns and follow the will of the whichever group of NCRA board members were able to garner the most votes.
I would suggest that, since it appears that it is an entrenched unchangeable policy that board members must follow the will of the majority and support the votes of the majority, that the NCRA bylaws be changed to have a roll call vote on every vote by the NCRA board of directors since the board members seem bound by some code to support whatever decision is made by a vote of the board.
Having a required rollcall vote would enable the average NCRA members to be able to assess the actions of board members and allow the members to give strong support to those board members who the members believe voted in the best interests of the members.
Bill Parsons
At the following link to the NCRA Source Book, it is stated that there are 20,000 NCRA members:
http://www.ncraonline.org/memberresources/Directories/
The NCRA PSL lists 20,000 members at:
http://ncraonline.org/NCRA/Advertising/PSL/
The NCRA nominating committee says there are 23,000 members.
In forum discussions the number of NCRA members has been listed at 18,000 members.
In order for NCRA members to be fully informed and for those members to have accurate information, NCRA should get all of its various sections to publish an accurate NCRA membership number.
A topic currently under discussion in a court reporter forum is the decline in NCRA membership.
One side says that the decline has nothing to do with member dissatisfaction with the policies and actions of the NCRA board of directors.
Another side says the decline is due to dissatisfaction with the policies
and actions of the NCRA board of directors.
It has reached a stage where it is, "Yes, it is because of that." "No, it is not because of that." "Yes, it is because of that." "No, it is not because of that."
One side says the decline in membership is a natural decline due to the decrease in the number of court reporters.
One side says the decline in membership is caused by member dissatisfaction with the policies and actions of the NCRA board of directors.
The lastest announced NCRA membership figure is 21,000 members.
Good leadership should put forth the number of members lost in each of the preceding 5 years.
Good leadership should have been contacting the lost members and doing exit surveys as to the reason the members are not renewing their NCRA membership.
Good leadership should not be two sides of an issue each saying, "I'm right." "No, I'm right."
Good leadership uses sound business principles such as exit surveys of lost members, and actual factual figures so the association is not run on opinions which may have no validity but merely be feelings of those expressing the opinions.
Also, the exit surveys should survey the effect of the current $260 annual dues charge. It could very well be that the loss of membership can also be accounted for by very high dues.
If the loss of membership is caused by the very high dues, good management would be looking for ways to save money and deliver the services in the most efficient way possible and guarding the members' dues money from unnecessary expenses and guarding the members' dues money from bad business practices which result in loss of revenue to NCRA.
With upcoming elections in NCRA, the NCRA membership is entitled to more specificity and details rather than each side giving their opinions which may or may not have merit.
The members need facts and figures and exit surveys of the lost members to determine the actual state of affairs unfiltered by anyone's opinions which may
The 2010 NCRA nominating committee has nominated Tori Pittman, a stenotypist court reporter who switched to becoming a stenomask reporter, as a 2010 NCRA board of directors members.
It would be interesting to know if there were other people who had expressed an interest in becoming board members and if the nominating committee on its own sought out and asked Tori Pittman to be a board of directors nominee.
Is the nominating committee trying to send the NCRA membership a message that stenomask court reporters are a good thing and should be welcomed and applauded?
Does the NCRA nominating committee have an agenda?
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