Just a Discussion Group

I have included in this post some correspondence that is perhaps overdue and I have changed the title and intro of this blog accordingly. I may have to send out new invites to join and or post so let me know if you are having difficulty.

Dear John,

I think it's time to be clear that there is no Huronia Historical Association.

Instead what is taking place is that you are acting without consulting with anyone else. Without asking for consensus you are representing yourself as the leader of an association. And I recall, yes, you saying what is an association. That seems a little disingenuous. For me an association is a formal or semi-formal group of people who have agreed to act together under some sort of agreed upon rules. That has not happened. Maybe an organizing meeting should take place, maybe not.


You are moving forward and taking action. That is perfectly fine as an individual and in whatever agreements you are making with the Wendat or whoever. Obviously you are going ahead with those actions. Far be it for me to stop you.

But and it is a large but, iit seems to me that there has been no attempt to have a meeting to form the HHA. There has been little success in attracting members. There is no association. You are waging a personal campaign.

It seems to me that you also have been using what I consider somewhat inflammatory rhetoric in some of your postings and perhaps in some of your meetings with government officials. Rhetoric that may be justified but is more confrontational than partnership building and to affect the goals that you drafted for the proposed HHA, partnership building will be needed. I think this choice of language is a serious mistake. I am volunteering that opinion realizing that I was never asked for it Of course, as an individual you can say pretty much what you want, but in representing an association and thus speaking for its members, I would think that the language chosen should be authorized, reviewed, voted on, or in some way or other vetted. That will all take effort and time and active participation by members. Perhaps that is not a way in which you would want to move forward.

Adding all this up in my head, I have come to the opinion that the HHA does not really exist but in whatever form it does exist, it is not for me. So in no way do I consider myself a member of the about to form Huronia Historical Association and I will no longer be participating in the blog.

Good luck with your efforts and your personal campaign of action.

Finally let me add and close with this: I have learned a few things about the local history of this area and about some valuable information resources, bibliography items, etc. from my participation in the blog and that I appreciate and will likely pursue in a leisurely way along with my other interests.

Thanks

Bill Gibson

Thanks Bill for your insight. I agree with you almost 100% that this is not an association in the formal sense, only an association of a few individuals that may share some common interests and or objectives.
Perhaps the time will come when an association involving the Jesuits, the Wendat Confederacy, the historical community, interested archeologists and others will evolve and pick up on a mandate similar to the one proposed in the blog. Until then, this will remain just a discussion form for those interested in Historic Huronia. I will change the blog accordingly and at least end up with a record of my own actions and interest in moving forward some objectives that I have a keen interest in. It has not been my intent to implicate contributors to or “members” of the blog as supports of my personal opinions or actions and do understand your concern over guilt by “association”
Take Care;
JR