[OSList] The Tyranny of Structurelessness

Anne A Hiha via OSList oslist at lists.openspacetech.org
Thu Oct 8 00:50:57 PDT 2015


Thanks Michael

It must be my settings because I don't have a 'List' option. This is what I get when I post to the list - that is exactly what I posted.

It is not a problem as long as I remember to add the OS address.

Kind regards 

Anne
To: oslist at lists.openspacetech.org
Date: Thu, 8 Oct 2015 13:47:42 +1300
Subject: Re: [OSList] The Tyranny of Structurelessness
From: oslist at lists.openspacetech.org




Hi all

On where the replies go.

I have noticed that my email automatively defaults to the postee's e-address. I have to cut and paste the open space address into the 'To' for it to be posted to this list. This situation may be the same for others. I tested my theory on this email with the 'reply' and 'reply all' functions with the same result that the reply would have gone direct to Daniel if I had proceded.

I don't know whether this issue is related to my email setup or OsList's.

Kind regards

Anne

To: oslist at lists.openspacetech.org
Date: Wed, 7 Oct 2015 19:53:01 -0400
Subject: Re: [OSList] The Tyranny of Structurelessness
From: oslist at lists.openspacetech.org


  
    
  
  
    mmp,

    

    Thanks for posting this under [The Tyranny of Structurelessness.]

    

    How interesting that subscribers feel more comfortable contacting
    you personally by email, rather than responding here. 

    

    Apparently you are more approachable for interactions and/or easier
    to interact with than OSLIST. I'm sure there is more than one
    specific reason "why" this might be true. 

    

    Daniel 

    

    On 10/7/15 5:16 PM, Michael M Pannwitz
      via OSList wrote:

    
    One of
      the structures, customs, ways of doing stuff, call it what you
      prefer  I have repeatedly noticed: A number of Members of the LIST
      I never see on the LIST send responses to stuff I put on the LIST.
      When I think  a message would be great for the whole LIST to see,
      I suggest it to the sender. Them Lurkers are definitely a "call it
      what you prefer" element of our organisation.
      

      

      Cheers from Berlin
      

      mmp
      

      

      

      

      On 07.10.2015 22:48, Michael Herman via OSList wrote:
      

      wasn't actually intended as personal
        feedback, daniel.  was meant to be
        

        a comment on the territory we all share, even when we might, any
        of us,
        

        feel in the moment like an outsider, that disorientation is
        actually a
        

        part of being included in the experience of open space.
        

        

        as for the essay, i guess i'm still a little unclear about the
        

        connection.  open space doesn't strike me as any sort of
        striving for
        

        structurelessness.  and i've seen both formal and informal
        structure
        

        arise in open space.  harrison's term in his "millennial
        organization"
        

        book and what i've seen happen is "appropriate levels of
        structure and
        

        control."
        

        

        the oslist doesn't seem structureless, either.  there are all
        kinds of
        

        limiting and supporting structures that make it possible.  and
        then
        

        there are the customs we've developed, like it's common and
        desired for
        

        people to reply to the whole list with answers to questions, and
        even
        

        personal stories and sidebars, rather than always taking that
        stuff to
        

        private emails.  much of the informal stuff was captured in
        chris
        

        corrigan's oslist faq's i mentioned earlier.  and these things
        change.
        

          the address changed.  the admin changed.  the archives moved
        but
        

        survived, thanks to harold.  now we allow attachments.  the
        archives
        

        were private and later became publicly searchable.  new people
        show up
        

        all the time, and join in.  the user's non-guide (ebook)
        captured one
        

        great moment in joining when julie smith showed up very new to
        all of
        

        this, asked some great questions, and sparked all kinds of
        conversation
        

        on many important dimensions of the practice.
        

        

        maybe your definition of structure will also define
        structureless.  i
        

        guess i don't know what ever could be structureless, in line
        wiht chris'
        

        story... except that everything's moving, it's all flow, as
        harrison
        

        says.  but maybe those two stories aren't at odds, either...
        some bits
        

        are just more dense or more slowly flowing than others, but it's
        all
        

        flow in the end.  is flow structureless?
        

        

        is the tyranny of structurelessness just to say that
        everything's
        

        moving, and moving on, even the parts we really like, and that
        can make
        

        for some difficult experiences... that would also be nobody's
        fault, but
        

        just part of the shared condition?  uncomfortable in spots, to
        be sure,
        

        but nobody's and no system's "fault" or "responsibility?"
        

        

        as mentioned earlier, OS and the circle don't make people
        equal.  some
        

        will always be better, faster, stronger, more attractive, more
        connected
        

        than others.  is thta a problem to be solved?  i'm having some
        trouble
        

        connecting "elites," "movement," "authorization" and some other
        terms in
        

        the essay to my experience in open space and on the list.  the
        essay
        

        seems to want to fix a problem, but one that's not familiar to
        me, at
        

        least not as a sort of thing to be solved.
        

        

        why is this essay important for you?  how does it inform your
        

        understanding and practice of open space?  or your participation
        on the
        

        oslist?  are we a movement?  are you an elite?  is open space at
        risk of
        

        being taken over?  help me make the connection(s)?
        

        

        i notice that you said in your first message that you find this
        

        "extremely interesting" but you've yet to say why.
        

        

        

        

        

        

        

        --
        

        

        Michael Herman
        

        Michael Herman Associates
        

        http://MichaelHerman.com
        

        http://OpenSpaceWorld.org
        

        

        

        On Wed, Oct 7, 2015 at 2:25 PM, Daniel Mezick
        <dan at newtechusa.net
        

        <mailto:dan at newtechusa.net>> wrote:
        

        

            Yo Michael,
        

        

            The whole "story-context-is-missing" thing is really just a
        sidebar
        

            to the important (and much wider) issues around authority.
        

        

            These authority-issues are raised by the subject essay, "The
        Tyranny
        

            of Structurelessness." What a great essay!
        

        

            Story-context is a really, really important topic though,
        especially
        

            if "missing-context" does have at least the potential to
        evoke
        

            feelings of exclusion, in at least some members of the list.
        

        

            Regarding some of the things you are saying:
        

        

            You say, "Exclusion is the illusion. A little bit of errant
        and
        

            temporary mental structure."
        

        

            I say, my current belief is that my feelings are not
        illusion
        

            whatsoever, nor are they error. Rather they are real and
        valid,
        

            human emotions. They are emotions which, when experienced
        fully, are
        

            in fact an essential aspect of living well.
        

        

        

            You say, "...I notice the word tyranny again in the subject.
        Is it
        

            not some kind of tyranny we all attempt over and over again
        when we
        

            expect and insist that the world explain itself to/for us?"
        

        

            I say, my current belief is that inquiry is not simply
        important, it
        

            is in fact essential. Inquiry is good.
        

        

        

        

            In any event, and as always, I do appreciate your feedback.
        

        

        

        

            I am now keen to get back to the main topic !
        

        

            I wonder how we might, in the here and now, go about
        defining the
        

            term "structure," for purposes of further discussing issues
        raised
        

            by this essay with much more clarity.
        

        

            That's a question I'm keen to explore with you, and the
        other
        

            members of this list, inside this thread.
        

        

        

        

            Regards,
        

            Daniel
        

            http://www.Prime-OS.com
        

        

        

        

        

            On 10/6/15 11:56 AM, Michael Herman wrote:
        

            Yes and Daniel, there are the words
          of a story and the
          

              feeling/meaning of it. I considered writing a longer
          message in
          

              the telling of this story, but I wanted to transmit as
          much of the
          

              spirit/experience of it as I could.
          

          

              Ralph didn't offer any explanation of his observation that
          

              morning. He did just like I said, got up in a morning news
          circle,
          

              it was an OTgathering as I noted but that doesn't matter,
          it was
          

              open space and morning news. He said his piece and sat
          down. The
          

              experience for me, and others I have learned only later,
          was
          

              stunning and disorienting, for sure.
          

          

              I thought to honor and convey this experience through some
          measure
          

              of similar brevity in my retelling. Maybe this is what you
          picked
          

              up on. The disorienting magic of Ralph's moment.
          

          

              There are moments in open space of surprise and
          disconnect, maybe
          

              frustration or confusion or misunderstanding or
          disorientation and
          

              even disappointment that arise in open space. This we all
          know and
          

              have experienced. This, to me, is not so much a thing to
          be solved
          

              but the nature of the territory. It just is.
          

          

              Ralph never did explain his statement, as far as I know.
          He had
          

              something to say and he said it. That was his only job.
          After
          

              that, each of us had to figure out for ourselves what, if
          

              anything, to do with his story, to decide if it was wisdom
          or
          

              wisecrack. The storyteller, I think, has only the
          responsibility
          

              for finding and sharing what's true for him/her.  The rest
          is up
          

              to us.
          

          

              Maybe this points to the learning and challenge that we
          all have
          

              in open space, namely learning to trust more and more that
          we
          

              already are always included in a flow that is bigger and
          deeper or
          

              whatever than we can see or understand or articulate
          sometimes.
          

              Exclusion is the illusion. A little bit of errant and
          temporary
          

              mental structure. Discomfort is not a problem (and can't
          be solved
          

              by anyone!); it's a trail marker.  Which is to say about
          exclusion
          

              and missing out, "welcome!"  The good news is, and the bad
          news
          

              is, you're in!  And, it's all still happening Now.
          

          

              As I scroll up to send tha now, I notice the word tyranny
          again in
          

              the subject. Is it not some kind of tyranny we all attempt
          over
          

              and over again when we expect and insist that the world
          explain
          

              itself to/for us?  Is this not something of our central
          challenge,
          

              something all of us work with?  The edge of open space is
          an end
          

              of comfortable, conventional understanding?  Or something?
          

          

          

          

          

          

          

          

          

          

          

              On Tuesday, October 6, 2015, Daniel Mezick via OSList
          

             
<<mailto:oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>oslist at lists.openspacetech.org

              <mailto:oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>> wrote:
          

          

                  Hi Harrison,
          

          

                  Thanks for the tips on how to search OSLIST and
          Google, etc. I
          

                  did do those things actually. However, that's a bit of
          an
          

                  effort, especially searching the OSLIST archives. I
          guess I
          

                  could eventually pick up OSLIST culture that way,
          little by
          

                  little. I suppose an earnest person with loads of time
          could
          

                  sift through OSLIST archives to figure this culture
          out. The
          

                  hard way.
          

          

                  However, like the SPIRIT book teaches, there is
          nothing like a
          

                  good story to convey culture. The kind of story with a
          

                  beginning, a middle and an end.
          

          

                  I notice that, when you are the one referring to a
          certain
          

                  OS-mythos story, you usually tend to include the short
          list of
          

                  pertinent details, the essential details that provide
          the
          

                  essential context, so the reader can follow along, and
          engage.
          

          

                  And I'm always grateful for that, as it helps me to
          follow
          

                  along, and get what you are referring to, and more
          fully
          

                  understand the story, and feel oddly included in the
          story.
          

          

          

                  Earlier, I express how not having the context tends to
          (for
          

                  me) arouse feelings of: exclusion, cluelessness, and a
          general
          

                  lack of membership in whatever
          "historic-OS-mythos-episode" is
          

                  being referred to. Sort of an "out group" feeling. You
          know?
          

                  Sometimes, I wonder what the poster might be thinking
          by
          

                  posting random fragments of a "you had to be there"
          kind of
          

                  story. Other times, I wonder if other readers are also
          feeling
          

                  these feelings. Or if it is "just me."
          

          

                  And so: I am very grateful for your stories, in part
          because
          

                  you include the pertinent details, and in so doing,
          make me
          

                  (for one) feel included.
          

          

                  So thanks for including the context in your stories.
          It makes
          

                  them fun, and easy to follow. OSLIST culture certainly
          has
          

                  it's quirks, and for me, your stories make this
          culture easier
          

                  to figure out, and navigate, and enjoy.
          

          

          

                  Getting back to the Tyranny of Structurelessness:
          

          

                  Do you think these 3 assertions by the author are
          actually
          

                  true? Do these ideas have legs?
          

          

                    * /This hegemony can be so easily established
          because the
          

                      idea of "structurelessness" does not prevent the
          formation
          

                      of informal structures, only formal ones./
          

                    * /For everyone to have the opportunity to be
          involved in a
          

                      given group and to participate in its activities,
          the
          

                      structure must be explicit, not implicit. /
          

                    * /It is this informal structure, particularly in
          

                      Unstructured groups, which forms the basis for
          elites./
          

          

          

                  Daniel
          

          

                  On 10/6/15 10:04 AM, Harrison Owen wrote:
          

          
            

                    Dan, Google can often help.
            

                   
<https://www.google.com/#q=ralph+copleman>https://www.google.com/#q=ralph+copleman

            

            

                    ho
            

            

                    *From:*OSList
            [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org]
            

                    *On Behalf Of *Daniel Mezick via OSList
            

                    *Sent:* Monday, October 05, 2015 4:51 PM
            

                    *To:* Harrison Owen; World wide Open Space
            Technology email list
            

                    *Subject:* Re: [OSList] The Tyranny of
            Structurelessness
            

            

                    Howdy Harrison,
            

            

                    Thanks for describing the context of the Ralph
            Copleman
            

                    story- I'm very thankful for that info.
            

            

                    I notice that, lots of times here, there are
            references made
            

                    to notable OST episodes, and situations from times
            past...
            

            

                    ...the "OST-mythos" as it were.
            

            

                    These mythical stories often have me wondering what
            I missed,
            

                    and what I might now be missing. (Being clueless as
            I am.)
            

            

                    I'm sure these story-fragment postings are not
            posted with
            

                    intent to exclude anyone, or to be discourteous, or
            unkind.
            

                    More like: some good old basic camaraderie is taking
            place
            

                    between some old friends.
            

            

                    Still: Do these "inside-story-fragments" on OSLIST
            tend to
            

                    evoke feelings of exclusion in readers who were
            /not/ there
            

                    at the time?
            

            

                    Not sure.
            

            

                    <CONFESSION>
            

            

                    As for me, personally, I sometimes find myself
            experiencing
            

                    curiously odd feelings of exclusion, when a
            told-fragment of
            

                    an old OST-mythos story lacks explicit context. So I
            can
            

                    follow the story, you know? The terms "outsider" or
            

                    "clueless" or  "not in the story" describe these
            feelings
            

                    fairly well. "Not invited?"
            

            

                    I sometimes wonder if some of the hundreds of
            /other/ members
            

                    of OSLIST ever feel this way...or if it is "just
            me."
            

            

                    </CONFESSION>
            

            

                    Daniel
            

            

            

            

                    On 10/4/15 2:59 PM, Harrison Owen via OSList wrote:
            

            

                        “Everythingis moving.†  .... Michael -- I
            remember
            

                        that moment verywell. And Dan, I’m not sure
            the
            

                        context, etc, would helpvery much. But just for
            the
            

                        record the odd phrase popped out at one of the
            

                        International Symposia on Organization
            Transformation
            

                        which happened to be taking place at a small
            college
            

                        south of Seattle. I have no idea why Ralph said
            what he
            

                        did, and I’m not sure Ralph did either. But
            then againa
            

                        lot of marvelous stuff seems to burst out with
            no obvious
            

                        logic train. Indeed it may be that the lack of
            logic
            

                        train enables the thought?
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Whatever the genesis, the phrase wandered about
            my head
            

                        for some time, quite unattached, and it also
            happened
            

                        that I was working my way slowly through one of
            the
            

                        masterpieces of 20^th century western philosophy
            when a
            

                        fuzzy connection began to form. The work was
            that of
            

                        Alfred North Whitehead, and the title:
            “Process and
            

                        Reality.†I’ve been through thebook probably
            4-5
            

                        times, and I am frank to confess that I don’t
            think I
            

                        really understandit. But then again
            I’veheard  a
            

                        number of people with much greater credentials,
            tenure,
            

                        etc – say the same thing. But I did get that
            ithad
            

                        something to do with, “Everything is moving.â€
            Andthe
            

                        more I thought and read, the more I felt that
            the good
            

                        philosopher had made a small mistake on his
            title. It
            

                        shouldn’t be “Process/and/ Reality,†but
            

                        rather“Process*is* Reality.â€
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Now, Anna Caroline we come to “structure,†or
            perhaps
            

                        Ishould say the fallacy of Structure? Yes I know
            –
            

                        we’ve all been taught that structure is the
            precursor,
            

                        the “determinator†of everything. My face
            looks as it
            

                        doesbecause of my bone structure. My life
            proceeds the
            

                        way it does because of my social structure. My
            business
            

                        works as it does because of the organizational
            structure.
            

                        And of course, meetings happen the way they do
            because of
            

                        meeting structure, which apparently is the prime
            domain
            

                        of “facilitators.†And even if we hadn’t
            

                        been“taught†all this, the primacy of
            structure would
            

                        appearto be blatantly obvious – as plain as
            the nose on
            

                        yourface.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Unfortunately, it does seem to turn out that
            sometimes
            

                        the blatantly obvious is not necessarily so. For
            example
            

                        just looking at things it is pretty clear that
            the world
            

                        is flat, or at the least bumpy flat. And any
            fool can see
            

                        that we are the center of it all – Sun, moon,
            and stars
            

                        whiz around us. But when we think about it, as
            we have
            

                        been doing for the last 500-600 years, the
            obvious
            

                        isn’t so obvious.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        It is reasonable to ask what would start to make
            us think
            

                        differently – to the point that we begin to
            question
            

                        theobvious, and even come to see things in a
            different
            

                        way? Taking a leap, I will suggest that it all
            begins
            

                        with the perception of anomaly. Things just
            don’t make
            

                        sense. Our eyes tell us one thing... but???? And
            then we
            

                        start making up stories to explain the
            apparently
            

                        unexplainable. We imagine different ways of
            looking at
            

                        things so that the nonsensical makes sense. Some
            of those
            

                        stories get pretty strange, but if they actually
            work –
            

                        that is to say, helpus to see in new and useful
            ways –
            

                        that’s great!
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        There is, of course, a proper term for the
            activity I
            

                        have been describing. It is called Theory
            Building. And
            

                        for whatever it is worth, “theory†comes from
            the
            

                        Greek “/theoreinâ//€ /– to see. In a word,
            theories
            

                        are ways of looking atthings – likely stories
            you might
            

                        say.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Now, at long last (too long?) we come to the odd
            story I
            

                        was starting to tell, to the effect that
            Structure is
            

                        only a figment of our imagination, a flash frame
            of a
            

                        moment gone by. Interesting, and helpful under
            some
            

                        circumstances... but always partial and in a
            sense
            

                        illusory. What’s“really†happening is all
            flow.
            

                        Everything is moving –That’s Ralph’s
            story, and I
            

                        guess it is mine too.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        So how did I get to such a weird condition? It
            was all
            

                        about anomaly – more particularly, the anomaly
            of Open
            

                        Space.Everything that I had ever learned told me
            that it
            

                        could not work. Unfortunately it did (work) –
            and not
            

                        just once, butevery time, hundreds of thousands
            of times.
            

                        Something was definitely weird. It seemed to me
            that I
            

                        had to re-consider all those things I thought I
            had
            

                        learned, beginning with the basics... such
            things as
            

                        Structure.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Common sense would say that Open Space works
            because we
            

                        somehow created a structure that enabled it to
            work.
            

                        That’s theway things get done, or so I had
            been taught.
            

                        But that’snot the way things happened in Open
            Space.
            

                        Structure emerged along the way and only
            momentarily.
            

                        Worse yet it (structure) seemed to have little
            to do with
            

                        the obvious power, connections, creativity....
            all of
            

                        which created structures, and passed them by.
            And
            

                        actually it always seemed to me that the
            “structuresâ€
            

                        I “saw†existed only because Iwanted to see
            them –
            

                        or perhaps that I “should†seethem. But they
            were only
            

                        momentary wisps, figments – neverto be
            mistaken for
            

                        what was really going on. Or so I’vebeen
            thinking.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Harrison
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        *From:*OSList
            

                        [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org]
            *On
            

                        Behalf Of *Michael Herman via OSList
            

                        *Sent:* Saturday, October 03, 2015 6:31 PM
            

                        *To:* JL Walker; World wide Open Space
            Technology email list
            

                        *Subject:* Re: [OSList] The Tyranny of
            Structurelessness
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        you remind me, harrison, of one morning news
            session
            

                        years ago, somewhere, probably OT... where ralph
            copleman
            

                        walked to the center of the circle and
            announced, all
            

                        serious and mischievous at the same time, "it's
            all
            

                        moving!" Â
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        then put the stick down and went back to his
            seat.Â
            

            

            

                        Â
            

                        --
            

            

                        Michael Herman
            

                        Michael Herman Associates
            

                        http://MichaelHerman.com
            

                        http://OpenSpaceWorld.org
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        On Sat, Oct 3, 2015 at 1:47 PM, JL Walker via
            OSList
            

                        <oslist at lists.openspacetech.org
            

                       
            <mailto:oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>> wrote:
            

            

                        I was thinking that maybe the antidote to the
            eventual
            

                        tyranny of structurelessness is to open space,
            again and
            

                        again, until true democracy can emerge.
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Juan Luis
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        *De:*OSList
            

                        [mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org
            

                       
            <mailto:oslist-bounces at lists.openspacetech.org>] *En
            

                        nombre de *Rosa Zubizarreta via OSList
            

                        *Enviado el:* sábado, 03 de octubre de 2015
            12:19
            

                        *Para:* Daniel Mezick; World wide Open Space
            Technology
            

                        email list
            

                        *Asunto:* Re: [OSList] The Tyranny of
            Structurelessness
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        Hi Daniel,
            

            

                        Yes, this is a key piece... I see it as very
            similar in
            

                        some ways to what Ken Wilber wrote later,
            

            

                        about the "shadow side of the green meme". (Each
            meme has
            

                        its own shadow, as well as its own gift...)
            

            

                        So, I love "green". I love circles, I love
            non-hierarchy,
            

                        etc.
            

                        And, part of the "shadow side of the green meme"
            is how
            

                        ideologically anti-structure it can become...
            

            

                        to the point where some people may not even
            agree that
            

                        OST does, in fact, offer a very simple and
            effective
            

                        structure.
            

            

                        By way contrast, think of a situation where
            group of
            

                        people (who don't know about OST, and/or, who
            are having
            

                        a power struggle around "which process to use",
            

                        and/or.... ) might easily spending a whole
            weekend
            

                        arguing /about /"how to self-organize
            ourselves"... with
            

                        a great deal more pain and frustration and a
            great deal
            

                        less value.
            

            

                        whereas, instead, IF someone knows about OST,
            and, a
            

                        clear invitation has been extended, and, there
            is enough
            

                        trust/suspension of disbelief so that
            participants are
            

                        willing to enter into that format,
            

            

                        then, we end up with a very simple and elegant
            structure
            

                        that allows people to self-organize
            beautifully....
            

            

                        at least that's how i see it! :-)
            

            

                        with all best wishes,
            

            

                        Rosa
            

            

                        Â
            

            

            

                        */Rosa Zubizarreta/*
            

            

                        /Developing Participatory and Co-intelligent
            Leadership
            

                        Author of *From Conflict to Creative
            Collaboration*
            

                        <http://www.conflict2creativity.com>/
            

            

                        /For more resources and learning opportunities,
            visit
            

                       
            *<http://www.DiaPraxis.com>www.DiaPraxis.com
            

                        <http://www.DiaPraxis.com>*/
            

            

                        Â
            

            

                        On Sat, Oct 3, 2015 at 9:26 AM, Daniel Mezick
            via OSList
            

                        <oslist at lists.openspacetech.org
            

                       
            <mailto:oslist at lists.openspacetech.org>> wrote:
            

            

                        THE TYRANNY of STRUCTURELESSNESS
            

                        by Jo Freeman aka Joreen
            

            

                        I find this essay extremely interesting. I hope
            you do, too.
            

            

            

            

                        Here is a pertinent quote, from the essay:
            

                        ".../the idea of "structurelessness" does not
            prevent the
            

                        formation of informal structures, only formal
            ones."
            

            

                        /
            

                        Circa 1970. Context: the women's movement. Quick
            summary
            

                        of the main points: from the essay...
            

            

                        ï‚·/During the years in which the women's
            liberation
            

                        movement has been taking shape, a great emphasis
            has been
            

                        placed on what are called leaderless,
            structureless
            

                        groups as the main -- if not sole --
            organizational form
            

                        of the movement. /
            

            

                        ï‚·/The idea of "structurelessness," however,
            has moved
            

                        from a healthy counter to those tendencies, to
            becoming a
            

                        goddess in its own right./
            

            

                        ï‚·/Contrary to what we would like to believe,
            there is
            

                        no such thing as a structureless group. /
            

            

                        ï‚·/This means that to strive for a
            structureless group
            

                        is as useful, and as deceptive, as to aim at an
            

                        "objective" news story, "value-free" social
            science, or a
            

                        "free" economy. A "laissez faire" group is about
            as
            

                        realistic as a "laissez faire" society; the idea
            becomes
            

                        a smokescreen for the strong or the lucky to
            establish
            

                        unquestioned hegemony over others. /
            

            

                        ï‚·/This hegemony can be so easily established
            because
            

                        the idea of "structurelessness" does not prevent
            the
            

                        formation of informal structures, only formal
            ones. /
            

            

                        ï‚·/For everyone to have the opportunity to be
            involved
            

                        in a given group and to participate in its
            activities,
            

                        the structure must be explicit, not implicit. /
            

            

                        ï‚·/It is this informal structure, particularly
            in
            

                        Unstructured groups, which forms the basis for
            elites./
            

            

            

            

                        Just in case you have not yet encountered the
            full text
            

                        of this essay, here it is:
            

            

                        THE TYRANNY of STRUCTURELESSNESS
            

                        by Jo Freeman aka Joreen
            

                        http://www.jofreeman.com/joreen/tyranny.htm
            

            

            

            

                        Regards,
            

                        Daniel
            

                        http://www.OpenSpaceAgility.com/about
            

                        http://www.DanielMezick.com
            

                        203 915 7248 <tel:203%20915%207248>
            

            

            

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                        Â
            

            

            

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                        Â
            

            

            

            

            

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                    --
            

            

                    Daniel Mezick, President
            

            

                    New Technology Solutions Inc.
            

            

                    (203) 915 7248 <tel:%28203%29%20915%207248>
            (cell)
            

            

                    Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
            

                    <http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter
            

                    <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.Â
            

            

                    Examine my new book:Â The Culture Game
            

                   
            <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>:
            Tools
            

                    for the Agile Manager.
            

            

                    Explore Agile Team Training
            

                   
            <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/>
            and
            

                    Coaching.
            <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>
            

            

                    Explore the Agile Boston
            

                   
            <http://newtechusa.net/user-groups/ma/>Community.Â
            

            

          
          

                  --
          

          

                  Daniel Mezick, President
          

          

                  New Technology Solutions Inc.
          

          

                  (203) 915 7248 <tel:%28203%29%20915%207248>
          (cell)
          

          

                  Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
          

                  <http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter
          

                  <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.
          

          

                  Examine my new book:The Culture Game
          

                 
          <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>:
          Tools
          

                  for the Agile Manager.
          

          

                  Explore Agile Team Training
          

                 
          <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/>
          and
          

                  Coaching.
          <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>
          

          

                  Explore the Agile Boston
          

                 
          <http://newtechusa.net//user-groups/ma/>Community.
          

          

          

          

              --
          

          

              --
          

          

              Michael Herman
          

              Michael Herman Associates
          

              http://MichaelHerman.com
          

              http://OpenSpaceWorld.org
          

          

          

        
        

            --
        

        

            Daniel Mezick, President
        

        

            New Technology Solutions Inc.
        

        

            (203) 915 7248 <tel:%28203%29%20915%207248> (cell)
        

        

            Bio <http://newtechusa.net/dan-mezick/>. Blog
        

            <http://newtechusa.net/blog/>. Twitter
        

            <http://twitter.com/#%21/danmezick/>.
        

        

            Examine my new book:The Culture Game
        

            <http://newtechusa.net/about/the-culture-game-book/>:
        Tools for the
        

            Agile Manager.
        

        

            Explore Agile Team Training
        

            <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-training/>
        and Coaching.
        

            <http://newtechusa.net/services/agile-scrum-coaching/>
        

        

            Explore the Agile Boston
        

            <http://newtechusa.net//user-groups/ma/>Community.
        

        

        

        

        

        _______________________________________________
        

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    -- 

      
      
      
      
      
      
      Daniel Mezick, President
      New Technology Solutions Inc.
      (203) 915 7248 (cell)
      Bio. Blog. Twitter. 
      Examine my new book:  The Culture Game : Tools for the Agile Manager.
      Explore Agile Team Training and Coaching.
      Explore the Agile
            Boston Community. 
    
  


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