...In the end, I felt like some of the changes went too far, some not far enough. ...
George,
That would be a fair summary of my feelings about the new bylaws, too. Isn't that the way things typically work in a group setting when there's honest give and take? Unless one voice controls the group, you end up with a compromise and nobody is left perfectly happy. That's the case with the new bylaws. No member of the committee got everything he or she wanted. Every member of the committee was voted down at least once (including the representative from the Board, Dale). Every member contributed and idea or three that made it into the final draft. In short, it worked pretty much like the committees most of us have worked on in the past.
You mentioned the departure of a committee member. Perhaps it's time to set the record straight. No one was kicked off the committee. Three members departed of their own accord for one reason or another. If my memory serves correctly, one departed without any explanation. (Our work was delayed for a few days while we tried in vain to contact him to obtain his views on some point he'd expressed a particular interest in. I hope he's doing well, but I honestly don't know if he's alive.)
Another quit because he didn't feel the rest of the committee was giving his views enough weight. I reached out to him to ask him to reconsider as did others. I thought he had some great ideas and wish that he'd stuck around. As I told my wife at the time, it was like we were all discussing the dry rot in the foundation and he wanted to discuss whether to have carpet or hardwood floors -- an important issue to be sure; it just wasn't what the rest of us were working on at the time.
The last member quit over what I believe was a misunderstanding. She posted something on another forum that was read (misread, in my opinion) as an intent to violate the commitment of confidentiality we'd made to each other. An accusation was made, words were exchanged, and offense was taken. In the end, she decided she'd better things to do with her time.
Each of the departing committee members made valuable contributions to the bylaws during their time on the committee. Their comments influenced my own thinking. They helped me to see things from another perspective and I'm sure the same is true for the other committee members. So, while I regret that they chose to leave the committee and regret that I was unable to persuade them to remain on the committee, I think it is important that everyone recognize they were NOT kicked off the committee because they were advocating for the wrong things. There is simply no truth to the rumor they were kicked off. None.
Finally, George, when you claim you mean no disrespect and then call the results of our efforts a "dirt sandwich", I'm not sure you understand meaning of the term "no disrespect". If someone were to say, "No disrespect, but your mom's a whore", the "no disrespect" wouldn't make the "your mom's a whore" alright, would it?
Update: Below, Al says I should retract what I wrote above. I'm not going to do that for a couple of reasons. 1st, I'm stubborn. 2nd, and more importantly, I don't think a retraction is necessary. I mentioned three members of the committee who left of their own accord. None of them were Al. My understanding is that Al was invited to join the committee and then, at the last minute, that invitation was withdrawn. That circumstance in no way contradicts the point I was making above: no member of the committee was asked to leave because of what he or she may have said as part of o