Look Carefully - Sharpen Your Periferal Vision To Avoid Serious & False Reputational Damage

I get involved with a few organisations big & small. Either as a member/shareholder or asked to help advise on getting their governance, compliance or help get their efficiencies up to speed.

One group had problems with governance & compliance.. A standing committee that really was running the show & wasn't reporting to its board. 
It was a mess, the tail was wagging the dog & regular 4-6 hour meetings. Huge legal exposure & high on inefficiencies.

Enter Muggins me. I emailed the committee, I figured it would be better they got it togther discretely, no public mess, no one getting thrown under the bus. After all bad habits had formed over a long time, other people inherited these habits, added to them through inexperience & expediency...and yeah some Machivellean influeneces too

By the meeting minutes the committee decided to invite me to their meeting to set things out. TWICE. Between the two committee decisions was an AGM, there was no Action Statement so second time they decided they must have forgot their previous decision and repeated their decision. Decided but never enacted.

Instead months lare I was asked in passing if the CEO & I had set a date to attend. I had no idea what was being asked. It meant things were worse than I'd previously thought. I ended up attending, some of the members were very happy, impressed & filled with hope but certainly not all it seems.

Privately I was told that some were indignant that some upstart was interfering. 

Then for me came the real ground zero event. One lady on the committee told another that I was very aggressive & that there was no way she could ever work with me at all.

I was shocked when I was told months later. I approached her privately, politely during a break at a meeting. I explained that I didn't know what I've done to make her feel uncomfortable & apologised completely and unreservedly. I then assured her I was committed to ensuring she felt comfortable and ok. She accepted that thankfully.

Having never spoken to her I can only assume she'd felt the critical email to the standing committee was out of order.

I was able to continue to avoid her completely after that. All was good. The friend that had tipped me off secretly agreed to always be present if the aggreived lady was nearby. We thought all was ok, but no point taking any risk. All was good, because as it happened I was able to stay well away.

Fast forward to 6 or so months later and at an event of the organisation & amomgst a number of people that lady said to me  "We're all going out to dinner tonight, 10 of us so far. Would you care to join us?"

She was polite, genuine & very pleasant. Got to say I was seriously happy as all appeared repaired.
It was a relief & I thought good on her. 
I said I'd love to but that it was a family night & the wife and I were booked in for dinner elsewhere and thanked her. All good.

Privately told my lady friend it appeared resolved but asked if the arrangement could stand, could she still rush over if she approaches me, that I wished to avoid her at all costs just in case. She said no problem. We thought it wasn't necessary but it was still wise.

Next day my lady friend was speaking to the aggrieved lady & asked in general chat "so it's all resolved & good with you guys..." 

Then the shock came. The lady emotionally, publicly & loudly said "No it most certainly is not..." and said "It never ever will be"
She alleged that I had rung her repeatedly at 4am & had abused her.
My friend was gob smacked. Others were present and heard it.
This is completely untrue, never rung her let alone 4am, let alone abused her ever.

Now the next day out of the blue, the lady approached my friend and quietly & emotionally said she should never have said any of those things. My lady friend told me & said do nothing, avoid her like the plague to stay safe. 

Which I have done completely. I avoid her, never ever name her & talk about her except to the lady friend.
I discussed it off the record with the CEO so he was aware. Turns out he was there during her outburst.

After watching a Jordan Petersen video on the clinical studies, the data on men & women and how their anti social behaviour or aggressivness presents differently, well it resonated. Women generally aren't physically aggressive or physically threatening. Those that aren't physically abusive tend to use gossip, lies, innuendo & reputational destruction.

I spoke to a Clinical Psycologist friend & she confirmed it and she doesn't follow Jordan Peterson at all. 

She said follow the data with people, facts (facts not feelings), calmly stand your ground based on the facts (not feelings) but if serious reputational destruction is looking likely yes, don't hesitate, get the hell away from them. If they are emotional, irrational and vicious, time to run. They aren't necessarily evil people, it is just how their aggressive anti social behaviour presents itself when they cannot deal rationally with others. I said what about clearing my name. She said unless you're prepared to go through a complaint process in the organisation or a legal civil case drop it, walk away.

So yes, I left the organisation behind. An organisation I actually believed could do very good things for others & that there's still a bunch of really great like minded minded people there.

Life went on before I was born, it will go one perfectly after I'm dead. The cemetary is full of people who thought the world could not survive without them. The organisation can chose its own pathways.
Its their business now, not mine. My business is doing other things elsewhere now.

Be aware, whether you're a man or a woman, heighten & sharpen your periferal vision, stick to facts not feelings and avoid those irrational people who may be keen to do you mischeif. Especially if they use the anti social tactic of gossip lies & reputational damage.  Stay Safe.

As it turns out there is a bit of a positive. I have gone into full "life recalibration mode" and now pulled away from a number of organisations. Including ones I feel 100% safe & welcome in. It's time to recalibrate.

Funny how such a negative & what could have been a potentially destructive life wrecking incident can actually help prioritise life's pathways. Still not happy, it was still a vile & annoying dog act, but that's life and I've moved on. I will always avoid being anywhere the person, I will never even speak her name. Staying the hell away.

So my advice, review your life goals & direction regularly & thoroughly. Avoid damaging people at every opportunity. If you see a person falsely attacking another, behind their back or in front of them calmly ask them to stop. Then stay right away from them, lest they go after you..

So with that in mind, go to this video & start at 2:20 & watch onwards. Stay aware & protect yourself so you don't have to defend yourself. As is explained in the Karate Kid, best way not to get hit is not to be there.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHEDF4l43SY


LATE EDIT - Ummm oops, this post came up in conversation with a friend "Hey didn't you also have a colleague complain to a mate of yours about you that was dodgey"

And yes, that is true. Its probably the only other effort of lies, gossip & reputational damage I've copped that I know of. This particular lady apparently said I was a bit a bastard because I had refused to put her on a mailing list to do with the let's say "club" I was secretary of.
My friend was pretty shocked & rang me within minutes of it being said, as he drove off.

I told my mate ignore it, that I thought it was pretty funny. That I hadn't refused her access to anything, she'd never actually asked, not by phone, email, text, smoke signal, United Nations Resolution nothing. As she was a member of another related & nearby "club" and not ours I would have been ok with it but I'd have to ask our members if it was ok.

She never asked, she was never denied, she was "lies gossip & reputational damage"

She did not know that the guy she spilled this to was a mate of 30 something years, I attended his wedding & his recent 30th wedding anniversary bash.
So he knew me pretty well. Hence he was so greatly shocked. He also knew it was BS, he also said he was aware of her doing this before to both men & women who called out things.

He offered to turn around & confront her. I said no, ignore it. People who know me will ignore it or ring like you did. People who know her will think here she goes again. People who don't know will catch up at some point. I don't think she displays corporate psycopathy or sociopath traits. I think she has incredibly lofty aspirations of being the most sort after sage in the room but has trouble finishing tasks but adept at coming in when others have nearly finished tasks to try & take over. I was told of this when I first heard of her & since then have never been formally introduced to her because I avoided her. Didn't think she was a troublesome threat, just didn't want to be linked to her in any way. So have spoken to her once, try to avoid speaking about her. 

So its almost like a stranger was trying to lie to damage my standing with a very close & well known mate.

I mean, that is pretty damn funny. I'll have to flick the link to this particular blog to that old mate. 
Always a good day when you can make someone laugh & he will cackle or chortle :-) 

What Is Conversion Therapy AND Should It Be Banned?

Conversion Therapy is a bizarre coupling of opposing words.
A conversion is something a person does to and for themselves.
A therapy is something others do to you, such as a medical procedure or process.
It is supposedly a form of treatement that is supposed to change a person from non Hetrosexual to Hetrosexual.

On one hand I'm told Conversion Therapy includes torture, electrocution, chemical intervention, coercion, elevated application of abusive guilt & shaming language.  When I asked who exactly decides they want torture, electrocution, chemical intervention & elevated verbal abuse to change their sexual preference I'm then told in practice its something else. More subtle and evil.
Yes, established as evil and then different definition. THIS is the old bait & switch...

So which is it? Torture, electrocution, chemical & verbal abuse or something else and why would someone decide they need those unethical & illegal acts to achieve a particular goal they want?

Do I oppose these evil acts that are already illegal? Yes
Do I think that it's so bad it must be made illegal under an additional Act of Parliament? Well Yes & No.
I haven't found where it exists and if it is the evil of torture etc its already illegal.

Where some of the juridictions are going foul is in the drafting of legislation that will effectively make it a criminal offence for a parent to even speak to their child about their "gender identity" or their sexual preference UNLESS it is affirming the child's thoughts.

Just let that sink in, you cannot do or say anything about your child's orientation or identity no matter what it is or if it goes against your values as an adult parent. You must affirm the child's view or be charged & potentially recieve a criminal record. It even in some jurisdictions has the potential to see the child of any age removed from the parent's care.

Again...just let that sink in. The State will determine the things you say whilst parenting & prosecute you if you breach.

Its also travelling down another dangerous path and I suspect it's really the main intent. It will outlaw religious faiths in their own places of worship commenting on same sex matters or quoting their own holy texts relating to that issue. 

Again...just let that sink in. The State will be banning parts of the Torah, The Bible, The Quran, The Hadiths, The Vinaya etc... closed upon fear of criminal prosecution.

So where has "Conversion Therapy" actually happened?
We're still trying to find out.

The Albany Pride group protested about the evening held at the Albany Baptist Church which they said was promoting Conversion Therapy. They enlisted & got the support of local Labor MP Rebecca Stephens MLA who said she opposed it completely. Seems fair, dig deeper its odd.

As it turns out, the evening was 2 guest speaker talking about their journey from a life in the LBGTQI+ world to a life as practising Christians away from LBGTQI+ practices & life.
They did not undergo torture, electrocution, chemical intervention or guilt/shaming verbal abuse or any kind of conversion therapy. They were not forced into any intervention or "therapy"

What they sought & got was pastoral care & support. Which they said they were grateful for & was completely 100% no pressure and solely from their seeking.

Not long after the Australian Christian Lobby was denied access to a venue in Perth & Albany. Again they were accused of promoting Conversion Therapy & yet, again it is totally untrue.

Here's the thing, I don't care if your gay or straight or indentify as LBGTQI or any of the plus letters. Your choice. I may or may not agree, but each to their own.

If you are a devout Jew, Christian, Muslim, Buddist or anything else follower...
Your choice. I may or may not agree, but each to their own.

It is odd that religious faiths are being restricted in their freedom of faith, worship & speech is being penalised for torture & abuse they are not committing at all. They will be state regulated by what they can say from their respective pulpits or the like in their own places of worship. That parents will be breaking the law by guiding their children, (y'know parenting their own children) until the child is an adult and legally allowed to make their own decisions. 

It is already not possible for any parent to allow illegal acts like torture, electrocution or chemical treatment to their kids. It is not allowed, it is abuse.

The Summary...

UNDER THE ACTIVIST DEFINITIONS, THERE IS NO CONVERSION THERAPY IN AUSTRALIA. NONE, WE'RE STILL TRYING TO FIND IT.

WE CANNOT FIND ANY RELIGIOUS GROUPS ANYWHERE IN AUSTRALIA WHERE ANYONE WILLINGLY OR AGAINST THEIR WILL UNDERGOES CONVERSION THERAPY. IF YOU KNOW OF ANY, DO NOT WAIT FOR LEGISLATION TO ACT.

ACT NOW!

Question - So what do you do if you do find someone who is in Conversion Therapy or a person/s conducting Conversion Therapy?

Answer - CALL THE POLICE AND CALL STRAIGHT AWAY because any "therapy" that includes torture, electrocution, chemical intervention, coercion, elevated abusive guilt & shaming language isn't therapy.  IT IS ABUSE, IT IS ILLEGAL ALREADY. CALL THE POLICE.

Question - What if someone wants to introduce legislation to ban Conversion Therapy?

Answer - Walk past them, ignore them, vote against it because there is no reason to pass an Act on abusive treatement that is already illegal under the criminal code. My guess is the legislation will include provisions to halt religious groups delivering parts of their faith that cover Homosexuality. The plan is likely to commit over reach by the State & dominate the freedom to worship and dictate what can & cannot be in sermons or religious teachings.

And do remember to go easy on anyone pushing for legislation to outlaw Conversion Therapy. 

There will be people who have been duped, well meaning, kind & generous people who thinks its happening and that the abuse isn't already outlawed.

The WA Liberal Party Beginning in Reboot Mode?

 Reflecting on WA Journalist Gary Adshead's report on the turmoil within the WA Liberal Party (*Link below) there's some things within apparent & some things that aren't. Gary has yet again laid open the cracked egg & nothing is left unseen.

Firstly, the WALiberals knew they had a problem, they installed some respected people to engage in a review & no punches were held. The very damning WhatsApp exchanges from the so called group called "The Clan" weren't very central initially because they hadn't been established as authentic. Once they were the review committee did not hold back.

What followed was a signed letter from past & some still present lumminaries of WA Liberal life.

Some might have been viewing this as the beginning of the end of the WA Liberal Party.

I am not one of those people. Thankfully I think quite the opposite.

If viewed in broad terms the review committee results could be applied generally to every political party in this country & most likely overseas as well. A mix of top down management, or rather top down control. The lack of proper checks & balances are now out in the sunlight. This is what happens or at least is accelerated unchecked when the shadowy practices of behind the Speaker's Chair and all the other dark knifery from a Parliamentary wing of a party drifts into the Organisational side of the party.
If you have the ability, show me the political party in this country where the line between Parliamentary players & the Organisation has genuine and proper arm's length distance. When they morph its process, the integrity & the lay members who suffer.

Find me the party that does not have this issue to some extent...I'll wait.

On the vulgar level of pure politics, this presents a double stacked problem for the WA Labor Party. Firstly a rebuild in the Liberals as the tide turns on WA Labor is a serious threat to political control of both houses of Parliament. Not immediate, but looming & slowly building. The other is it holds up a stark mirror through a magnifying glass at the workings of the very factional & very cut throat  WALabor Party.
You can expect greater sledges & slurs in Parliament from the Government towards the Liberal Party over the report to try & demoralise the opposing troops. However, the contagian has been identified, all is laid bare in the sunlight of the very public square & the recovery vaccine is rolling out.

That vaccine is good corporate governance, accountibility, transperancy which will eventually result in the longer term to the rise of people with Statesmanship traits, not Machiavellian.

There are really one a two problems the WA Liberals face going forwards.

1) Patience & persistence. These fixes will be slow but they will be big. Their lay members can take heart. I expect due to the size & nature of the pendulum swing the wrong way the reboot will be slow but unstoppable. The repair that results will give rise to a new successful era in the party. But it'll be slow, glacier slow in the beginning

2) Some of the members of "the clan" are actually some of their most effective parliamentary performers. I don't mean fairly good bit players in Parliament, I mean serious participants punching vastly above their weight. Collier & Goiran are high level legislators & political brawlers that each out performer many token red bench warmers on the Government side. They are methodical weapons. Whilst there is the signed letter calling for some to consider their positions, for now that's not resign from the party. Think it might be better if some get on board & stick to solely to their electorate & parliamentary duties. Stick in their own lane. If all members of the clan can do that, perform greatly on their own ground and not be tempted to slide into over reach the party will reach good and lasting reform & recalibration of their party much earlier, much easier.

They need everyone to get on board the bus with little or none going under the bus.

Where the WA Liberals will be exactly in one, two or six years I can't say or comfortably predict except I expect it will be far better off than it is now. I expect this letter signed by well known WA Liberal lumminaries to go down as a milestone moment in their earth moving shift to success.

If you're a member of the WA Liberal Party, seize the moment to rip Victory out of the mouth of defeat.
If you're a political disinterested member of WA Society, take heart. WA needs tension between 2 or more sides in Parliament and a new & improved WA Liberals 2.0 will benefit everyone in WA.

Those that fear the Reboot are the Machiavellian types of all party stripes. Both Liberal knife bearers and Labor. I think if the Liberal blade carriers still have enough conservative reserves in their DNA they will get on board the bus & rebuild for the sake of their party & the for the sake of WA. Those that should fear this recovery most are the players in the WA Labor Party machine. Not for losing government, although that will happen at some point, the pendulum always swings. It's the structure of WA Labor that will also be in the sunlight as the WA Liberals reboot. Labor has rules on its MPs, you cannot stay in the party if you cross the floor, you must do as the Party Room says. Lay memebrs are loyal, hard working and largely duped for their lay members do not control the party. Their power brokers & union leaders jostle for position and some openly rejoice in the internal fight.
Those of poor memory only need to look back at a WA State Conference of the WA Labor Party to recall how well over half the room walked out of the room as Mark McGowan started his address to their gathering.

Yes, I think that although it may not feel this way now, this point in political history will be a watershed moment, a pivotal turning point for the WA Liberals even if it doesn't feel like it. WA Labor will know that & as they have so many players wilfully infected with the anti-Statesmanship contagian they are probably more nervous than "The Clan".

I expect the clan if they're wise will disband and either get on the bus or stay at the stop because for now the Liberal bus is moving forward.

The report into WA Liberals rot is extensive and thorough. I think its a good thing for everyone in WA.


* Liberal review authors call for reform after ‘The Clan’ WhatsApp messages declared valid (watoday.com.au)