What the Hell is a "People's Committee"?

[Ben]

My fed.gov agency just sent out this email with gigantic attachments discussing focus group results on diversity in the workplace. They keep mentioning "People's Committees". What the hell is that? It sounds like what you set up in a communist regime.

[RocketMan]

My fed.gov agency just sent out this email with gigantic attachments discussing focus group results on diversity in the workplace. They keep mentioning "People's Committees". What the hell is that? It sounds like what you set up in a communist regime.

Very much so.

[Standing Wolf]

Maybe it was brought to you by the Department of Fatherland Security.

[Scout26]

Did you get the schedule for the the Two Minutes Hate ??  You don't want to be late for that....

[Ben]

Did you get the schedule for the the Two Minutes Hate ??

No, but here's a few choice tidbits from the "brainstorming summary". I'm sure there's more, but I don't think I can make it through the whole document:



•   Respect individuals; respect for all – meat eaters and vegetarians

•   Broaden definition of diversity to include diversity/difference in external community – more than race, gender, age, ability and other dimensions

•   We just hired the 1st African American Ph. D. in the lab

•   Special interest activities and  affinity groups

•   People’s Committee/NEDAC

•   Green team

•   Random climate surveys  (Ben says, " I have no idea....")

•   We still have “duds” who impede progress around diversity and policies

•   Some offices – all white men -- no women or people of color – other offices have more women – generally there are relatively few people of color

•   Management team in XXX are all white men, except for one woman of color

•   Not unexpected that men do not show up for diversity training

[lee n. field]

They keep mentioning "People's Committees". What the hell is that? It sounds like what you set up in a communist regime.

Dambetcha it does.

What fedgov agency?

Not unexpected that men do not show up for diversity training

Yeah, well "F*** that S***."

People’s Committee/NEDAC

Google pulls up zip that's useful.

[Scout26]

No, but here's a few choice tidbits from the "brainstorming summary". I'm sure there's more, but I don't think I can make it through the whole document:



•   Respect individuals; respect for all – meat eaters and vegetarians

•   Broaden definition of diversity to include diversity/difference in external community – more than race, gender, age, ability and other dimensions

•   We just hired the 1st African American Ph. D. in the lab

•   Special interest activities and  affinity groups

•   People’s Committee/NEDAC

•   Green team

•   Random climate surveys  (Ben says, " I have no idea....")

•   We still have “duds” who impede progress around diversity and policies

•   Some offices – all white men -- no women or people of color – other offices have more women – generally there are relatively few people of color

•   Management team in XXX are all white men, except for one woman of color

•   Not unexpected that men do not show up for diversity training

I see Room 101 in your future.....

[Jocassee]

I see Room 101 in your future.....

Followed by rats...but if you can convince us you love Big Brother, you get as much Victory Gin as you can drink.

Couldn't help myself.

[Viking]

Followed by rats...but if you can convince us you love Big Brother, you get as much Victory Gin as you can drink.

Couldn't help myself.

He might even get double chocolate rations! 40 whole grams! Such a luxury!

[Waitone]

Any mention of religious diversity?

[lee n. field]

Any mention of religious diversity?

As long as you burn a pinch of incense to the genius of the One and you follow a religio licita you can worship any number of gods freely.  These soldiers will show you how.

[El Tejon]

That's absolutely brilliant!

Emperor Barry.  *snicker*  You forgot the cigarette in his mouth.

[Ben]

Any mention of religious diversity?

Not that I saw, unless they included it in "external community / other dimensions". 

What I've generally found is that when they have these "focus groups", the focus groups themselves lack diversity because the only people they get to participate in them are the employees that are big on the subject, so the expected results are already heavily front-loaded. People like me are ordered to go to local diversity training, but I've certainly never been given a questionnaire or anything where I can give my view on diversity, which is basically, "I don't care if you're green and from Mars and have wild monkey sex orgies at home. As long as you pull your own weight at work and don't shove your personal views down my throat or tell me how to think, we'll get along just fine."

Plus in this case, from what I saw, all the employees came from DC and two large regional centers in Seattle and Charleston SC. So for DC and Seattle at least, you can guess the political leanings of the majority of the participants.

[seeker_two]

... but I've certainly never been given a questionnaire or anything where I can give my view on diversity, which is basically, "I don't care if you're green and from Mars and have wild monkey sex orgies at home. As long as you pull your own weight at work and don't shove your personal views down my throat or tell me how to think, we'll get along just fine."

That's not an enlightened, civilized way to think. I see a re-education center in your future, Browncoat.....

"We're not teaching them what to think, we're teaching them how to think." SERENITY

[charby]

•   Not unexpected that men do not show up for diversity training

Yeah, because they are busy picking up the slack for the people who feel the need to change the diversity policy everytime the wind changes.

[Ben]

That's not an enlightened, civilized way to think. I see a re-education center in your future, Browncoat.....

Funny you should mention that. I got an additional notice that I have "Mandatory EEO Training -- Traditional Classroom #3" on June 16th. I have a brown duster....maybe I should wear it as an inside joke to myself. 

[lee n. field]

That's absolutely brilliant! grin

Emperor Barry.  *snicker*  You forgot the cigarette in his mouth.

(Not quite the one I was looking for...)

Ahh, this is the one:

[HankB]

We had "diversity" classes a few years back . . . they really didn't go well with the outside consultant the company had hired.

At one point, he asked for an example of groups that aren't diverse . . . he was looking for KKK and Aryan Nations, but instead we gave him:

* The NAACP, a racist organization devoted solely to advancing people with dark skin.

* NOW, a sexist organization devoted solely to advancing people of the female gender.

* The NBA, a sports organization in which members of one particular race are hired in disproportionate numbers.

* The NFL, ditto.

* The Congressional Black Caucus, a group of government employees, receiving government money which was exclusively limited to members of one race.

[Perd Hapley]

Funny you should mention that. I got an additional notice that I have "Mandatory EEO Training -- Traditional Classroom #3" on June 16th. I have a brown duster....maybe I should wear it as an inside joke to myself. 

You always seem to find yourself in a diversity-friendly classroom, come U Day. 

[Doggy Daddy]

Have you seen the Emperor's new clothes?

[Ben]

You always seem to find yourself in a diversity-friendly classroom, come U Day. 

 

[FTA84]

We had "diversity" classes a few years back . . . they really didn't go well with the outside consultant the company had hired.

At one point, he asked for an example of groups that aren't diverse . . . he was looking for KKK and Aryan Nations, but instead we gave him:

* The NAACP, a racist organization devoted solely to advancing people with dark skin.

* NOW, a sexist organization devoted solely to advancing people of the female gender.

* The NBA, a sports organization in which members of one particular race are hired in disproportionate numbers.

* The NFL, ditto.

* The Congressional Black Caucus, a group of government employees, receiving government money which was exclusively limited to members of one race.

Every diversity workshop seems to end with the racist life boat exercise.

That is, you have to throw one person off the life boat or it will sink (let us not speak to the logic of how such a situation would occur).  It always seems that the life boat is loaded with
*A black guy
*A black woman
*A single mom
*A working woman
*A female homosexual
*A male homosexual
*A hispanic male
*A while male that is a tax cheat

Guess which is the only choice that doesn't make you racist?

[Boomhauer]

anything where I can give my view on diversity, which is basically, "I don't care if you're green and from Mars and have wild monkey sex orgies at home. As long as you pull your own weight at work and don't shove your personal views down my throat or tell me how to think, we'll get along just fine."

The people that diversity training is supposed to make you compatible with don't want to actually pull their own weight. Not when they can blame "diversity issues" and such and play the race/gender/whatever card. This lets them sit around, jerk off, and collect a paycheck. Of course, management is scrambling around to solve the "diversity issues" that don't really exist.

Working for the government is really depressing because it lets you see just how screwed up the government really is. I thought it was bad before I was hired...then, I got to see the real truth. 

[Perd Hapley]

I will add my usual anecdote on this topic, whether you like it or not.  To wit:

Back about ten years ago, while employed with the First Cav, we had "briefings" on this topic every few months.  After sitting through a couple of these stupid things, I quickly developed my own outline for a diversity briefing.  (I don't remember what they called them.)

1.  All men are your brothers.  (Women too, but we were an infantry unit, so...)

2.  Don't say mean stuff.

3.  Don't join the Klan.

Sadly, this simple plan was never given serious consideration. 

[Ben]

Working for the government is really depressing because it lets you see just how screwed up the government really is. I thought it was bad before I was hired...then, I got to see the real truth.

10-4. And the other thing that cracks me up (or puts the burr under my saddle) in this situation is that for the local "re-education" I have to go to, they're flying a private consultant from DC to CA to give it. Nobody local available? Or why isn't it a web class? Our annual mandatory agency-wide safety training is setup on the web and that training is supposed to be there to save you from injury or death. Seems more important to have that in person than diversity training. In fact probably 95% of our mandatory training is "take it when you have time by date XXX" web training now, partially as part of .gov "greening" initiatives, and partly to save taxpayers money (nevermind that the taxpayers would be better served by me actually working versus taking a bajillion training courses a year). Except for this stuff, which to train (indoctrinate) an office of 30 people, with travel and instructor fees will probably cost at least $3000.