Some Facts About
FACILITATED & OPEN HOUSE MEETINGS
At facilitated meetings planners, government agencies,
educational change-agents, etc., bring in facilitators who are trained with information put out by
such institutions as The Rand Corporation, to use the ‘Delphi Technique’ or other
Hegelian principles designed to manipulate an audience to compromise their values and rights.
By using psychological manipulation a facilitator can lead a targeted group toward a
predetermined outcome while giving the illusion of taking public input.
The first thing to notice at a public meeting is whether or not
absolutes and specific parameters have already been set such as: “Wolves throughout the
West are here to stay” therefore “These are the management plans from
which to choose”. Posters and/or maps may have previously been designed,
limiting the audience’s choices.
The facilitator will often divide people into small break-out
groups which diffuse or eliminate opposing views, or use other unethical ‘collaborative
processes’ for achieving ‘consensus’. The pre-selected leader of each
group, using a clip board or such, will solicit comments from each participant.
Feelings or opinions are often encouraged instead of focusing on facts, laws and
absolutes. Facilitation deprives the people of an important forum for open public dialogue
where all attendees can hear each other’s arguments and respond.
At Open House meetings people come and go over a period of
several hours, visit with one or more of the hosts, most likely one at a time, and then leave.
These types of meetings are frequently being used to avoid having differing, even
opposing, points of view heard by a public audience. By denying diverse voices a fair
hearing, the hosts have again preempted the opportunity of those people to hear each
others’ arguments and respond.
Almost all government agencies employ such tactics, and when
selecting members for boards and meetings they may actually require specific criteria such as
“collaborativeness” or “Nominees should have demonstrated a commitment
to collaborative resource decision making”. (BLM)
If meetings such as these are scheduled in your area, contact
the sponsor and demand open public meetings, or distribute a copy of this handout
to each person attending a facilitated meeting.
Compiled by The Alternative View, 406-285-3119,
mothrlod@avicom.net
