Kort:

As editor and publisher of a newsletter of my own, I was appalled and disappointed to read in "Diatribes and Digressions" the opinion of Intertel's treasurer regarding what a proper newsletter is for.

In an organization that has proper respect for the opinions of its members' intelligence - and one would assume Intertel would be one such - such a "trickle-down" model of organizational communications is anathema. When adopted, it insults the intelligence of the members, excludes them from discussion of issues, places them in the position of second-class citizens of the organization, and drives them away.

A newsletter is not the same as a management bulletin, which is what was described in the "trickle-down" model. It is a forum for discussion that should be open to all members. I have to wonder about the members in those regions where the treasurer claims to have used that model - can it be there are members of Intertel who can withstand being insulted, excluded, and demoted, without leaving Intertel?

What does that say about Intertel's future in those regions?

Kevin McGehee