This is a real crisis for me. I mean I love the idea, Who wouldn't? It is the sweetness and light at the end of the rainbow, but my feet of clay wish to kick the pot of gold and the little leprechaun too, if'n he don't get outta the way. Respectfully, of course. I pledge to be a good guy and convert all the others to good-guyism. As soon as I can, of course. This excludes parking anywhere in the I-95 corridor and especially New York and Boston. Don't even drive in DC.

"Let other members know that you've committed to the values that the omidyar.net team have invited us to embrace by becoming a member of this community."

I committed to these values a long time ago. I even joined the Marine Corps on my seventeenth birthday to extend these values to the rice-propelled-freedom-loving peoples of Southeast Asia. I was wrong then and probably haven't gotten any smarter in the interim. Although I have discovered some things that won't work. Marines can't bring peace and freedom. "We had to destroy the village to save it." Jeez, I don't even say the pledge of allegiance because the implication is that I am either dishonest, or uncommitted, or worst of all, unpatriotic. Thank you, Monsieur le general Chauvin.

I've already read on other parts of this site that long posts are tantamount to shouting. But it would take days to explain all my feelings about taking this pledge: Any kind of pledge. I don't even Pledge my furniture. Why do I have to prove to you that I am committed? Vive le barricades! And I'm gonna look gross going over the top with my shirt undone just to show you which side I'm on. "They say in Harlan County, there are no neutrals there. You'll either be a Union man . . ." or you'll have to go somewhere.

Don't make me go! And don't do one of them "Member Alert" things on my ass -- I mean "my butt," of course; that other thing just slipped out. In my non-violent-training group my "adjective nickname" is "Riotous RicHie." We CAN have a peaceful, nonviolent riot. I'm an agitator, a heretic, a heathen, a paleolithic troglodyte, a thievin' lyin' no-good murderin redneck cracker. Is there room enough at the table for me? Love and peace, RicH

"I don't want to come to your revolution, if I can't dance." -- Mother Jones

Richard, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I'm sitting here grinning, because I recognize the reluctance in what some people are jokingly (or not) referring to the "Up With People" movement. Don't know if you've seen the thread where folks are discussing the idea of a code of conduct or not, but I've talked a little bit about why I felt compelled to quietly lead by example instead of hammering people over the head with rules driven from the top down.

This was also a visual cue to remind myself that I was commited to fair play, not power plays, which can be an increasingly tough thing to live up to as the community grows larger and more diverse. Kinda holding myself accountable publicly (and when I slip, inviting other people to kick me in the gluteus max).

This isn't for everyone, and I respect your thoughts and intentions very much.

Thanks for taking the time to share your voice.

And BTW ... dancing entirely welcome ;^)

Sue, thanx for your kind words and welcome. I'm not saying, "It isn't for me." I am saying, "A pledge means nothing more to me than my willingness to keep it and to live by it." In my own daily life: I am either living by this pledge, or not. I like the idea of a "visual clue." I have a picture of my wife and son on my desk, right next to Pepe Le Peu holding a heart saying "I love you" and a small statue of the laughing Buddha. But another sort of visual clue is getting "Born to be wild" tattooed on my tookus. That's probably an image we all could have lived without, but my point is: Even my commitment to "fair play," to "making the world a better place," or "treating others with respect" is contingent upon this sorely inadequate "self" that frequently jumps up, both inside of me and without and starts thinking he is in charge. When what he really needs is a kick "in the gluteus max." Very often, it is when I am on my "best behavior" and doing the "right thing" that I need the most help. Presumption and vanity are both my weak and strong points.

You know I am probably going to put a pledge seal in my profile because I want to be "identified" with the values of this site. I don't want to think -- even in private -- that I know what these ideals mean, or how to live them. Cause when I think I've got it, I certainly must be lost. "I am the least of these." R.

Rich, you're like my good Christian friend in San Jose. He does not want to put the fish symbol on his car as he does not want to make it obvious that Christians break the law - overspeeding, parking and the like - a disgrace to the fish symbol!

Excellent idea from Sue. Maybe she will notice my goals and share her expertise in "helping communities collaborate through technology to solve tough problems with natural allies globally". I dare not ask such an eminent person directly.

Shalom

Good morning, Joseph. I'm not sure if the last part of your note is perhaps in jest? I'll send you a note offlist.

Sue Braiden said:

Good morning, Joseph. I'm not sure if the last part of your note is perhaps in jest? I'll send you a note offlist.

Oh! I for sure wanted to see this post! Transparency my buttons. Now I feel left out, or is that leftist?

I love you both, even IF you choose to hide your love from me,

RicH

Rich,

Sure, Sue wrote to me. But my reply put her off and is not talking to me now. I have a gift for rubbing good folks the wrong way, especially pretty women. You are one of those kind souls who would care to look beyond what I say and still say you love me. The love is very definitely mutual. Even though Sue will not talk with me, I still love her!

Unrequited love :(

Joseph, I don't know whether to laugh or cry! First of all, please accept my profound apologies for the disconnect. I did infact reply to your note, but I'm also finding I'm having one heck of a time staying connected here the past two weeks. I hit reply on comments and PMs and find myself getting stuck in a server hang. I suspect it's my router. In any case, I'm really sorry that I managed to botch this up, and promise to send again. You certainly didn't put me off at all, and I found your note to be quite inspiring :^)

Rich, you crack me up! Wasn't meant to dishonour transparency. I was just trying to be respectful. But you already knew that, didn't you? ;^)

Now you know that no news is NOT good news!

Thanks Sue.

Sue, thanks for this. I took the pledge, but the real question for me is: How do you create such nifty design images? Impressive.

Soren, I'm chuckling. No magic. Just a quick circle with a little gradient shading and some text on a plane in Paintshop Pro. (Some of us are terminal kids at heart. It's just the playtoys that change ;^)

Thanks for leading by example Sue. I took the pledge and I am asking the other pledgers (and anyone watching really) to let me know when they see me speeding recklessly along in my pledge be-decked self. It's a lot to live up to and I'm gonna need a little help from my friends :)

Thanks for the fish-on-a-speeding-car metaphor Joseph. Sorry to love it to death by smothering it in the above cliche. Imitation and sincerity and all that :) :)

Sue,

I cannot take this pledge. I cannot honestly say I would consistently live up to it. One slip of the tongue and I wouldn't be able to look at myself in the mirror. I am not good at always trusting or being respectful. I am certain that if I would take this pledge, I would most certainly fail in keeping it. Guess I'm fairly confident about one and three but not so sure about two. And then, I can be kind of a snob. So, I don't know. My heartfelt admiration to people who can pledge and truly MEAN it. I cannot and be true to myself.

Debbie,

The pledge doesn't say anything about your behaviour. It only talks about your motivation.

I am here because I believe in making the world a better place.

I believe in treating others with trust and respect.

I believe everyone has something to contribute.

peace,

ted

Ah, yes, Ted, I see what you mean. Thanks for pointing out the distinction. To me, I am not certain I can separate the two out. I think it's time for me to have a long, hard talk with myself.

Debbie, your integrity rocks, girl!

Ted, I couldn't have said it better myself :^)

Debbie, don't think for a minute that I thought when I first quietly put this out there that I'd be able to walk a straight path all of the time myself. This gesture was initially just a personal one to hold myself accountable. Because I know it's there on my profile, I am telling people that these are the values I embrace. I am also inviting them to hold me accountable if I fail to do that myself. By sharing it here I thought I'd just let other people find it on their own and decided if it spoke to them too, rather than advertising it and pushing people to attach to something that they didn't feel connected to on their own.

Either way, your decision is one I honour, because your words and actions in the community already speak volumes :^)

I think you are all great and I am so glad I found you all. Sadly I have lived this pledge my whole life and it does not always go over well in the real world. In fact my desire to let others contribute has gotten me snubbed and worse. Integrity and respect? Well my mother, the Marine, taught these to me at a very early age. While I was in integrity my siblings found ways to get me back for it. I work for the Sheriff's office on the Vicitm Response Team, valiantly trying to make some worlds better only to find so many prefer it the way it is.

So I can take the pledge with honesty and maybe here it will really mean something.

Ted Ernst said:

Debbie,

The pledge doesn't say anything about your behaviour. It only talks about your motivation.

I am here because I believe in making the world a better place.

I believe in treating others with trust and respect.

I believe everyone has something to contribute.

peace,

ted

Ted,

Next to me, and Alex McKelvie, and Brandon Sanders, of course, you got to be the coolest guy on this site. The pledge is ALL about intention isn't it? What a fruitful, generous and necessary observation.

Peace yourself, Dude.

Susan, welcome to omidyar.net! The Pledge is really just a quiet demonstration of intent for those who feel so compelled. It's great to see that people are finding it and wanting to participate too.

Enjoy exploring. You'll find lots of allies here in the community. Give a shout if you get stuck along the way.

Glad to find you here ...

The other Susan :^)

RicHARD Makepeace said:

Next to me, and Alex McKelvie, and Brandon Sanders, of course, you got to be the coolest guy on this site. The pledge is ALL about intention isn't it? What a fruitful, generous and necessary observation.

RicHARD,

Thanks. I was supposed to meet up with Alex in Florida a few weeks back, but 'twas not to be. I did get to speak with Brandon on the phone last week. That was cool. :-)

"I believe everyone has something to contribute" - including the poor who are ill-educated, the despairing, the quick to anger, the bigot, and the fool. I believe there is room on O.net for rappers, chronic malcontents, and born again drunkards, wife-beaters, and thieves. "Everyone" means everyone, the Saved and the Damned.

I believe we discover in ourselves and one another our better selves as rocks are polished in a rock tumbler, abraiding one another until we are smooth.

So my pledge is to forgive others as I ask they forgive me for my trespasses, this one included.

Phil-I don't get what you're trying to say.

I will not take the pledge,

I believe in treating others with trust and respect. I believe everyone has something to contribute.

AS LONG AS THERE ARE NEGATIVE SCORES TO GIVE AWAY, ANNONIMOUS AND WITHOUT MOTIVATION.

My mother and father taught me about trust and respect a long long time ago. I do not need a pledge to remind me. Perhaps others do.