Quick Thoughts for a Monday

Leadership

A leader without followers is a person out for a walk.

The Federal Government and Money

Spending is the most bipartisan activity.   Only in Washington is every question of competence reduced to a budget line item.

Members and Cooperative Democracy

The alternative to active members is  passive subjects.

Pandemics and Unmooring

Economic calamity can lead to the search for easy solutions. When unchecked by democratic norms, those in power can  default to the illusions of false prophets promising a future without uncertainty.

Revolution versus Democratic Change

Destruction is easy, persuasion is hard.

Regulatory Decisions

Choices made without options are actions lacking accountability.

Crises Are Twice Lived Through

The first time as experienced firsthand be all participants. The second time when the losses are clear, people endeavor to ask what have we learned?

Deregulation

The reconciliation of order and freedom; the union of individual enterprise within a community, pragmatism with idealism, creating multiples paths to a better society.

Covid-The Great Pause

When to “fast” means to go slow, recenter our purpose and continue on the journey to something better.

The Medical Community’s Wisdom

When all else fails, ask the patient.

 

 

Timeless Wisdom: The Impact of Federal Share Insurance On NCUA

“People tend to forget that only at the end of Bergengren’s career did he help foster the Federal Credit Union Act. For decades he worked on the local. He did what needed to be done to get people to come together for their mutual benefit, mainly around communities. . . Then came the federal insurance fund. The irony of this idea was that the bureaucrats were suddenly turning into the protectors of the people and hence kind of policeman. Soon the core of what credit unions are, began to get lost. The Federal vision went from one of creativity and growth (of charters) to jittery watchdog.”

Ed Callahan, Callahan Report, October 1995

Lessons of Deregulation

“The position of our agency has been that the business decisions of the credit union rest with the management or the board, and not with our agency. The motto outside the Chairman’s door is: We don’t run credit unions.

“Bucky Sebastian, General Counsel and Executive Director, NCUA before the House Committee on Government Operations, Hearing on Federal Supervision and the Failure of Penn Square Bank, Oklahoma City, OK July 16, 1982.

“. . .it seemed as though we would never escape the attitude that the regulator knows best. . .A dramatic change has taken place in the last few years. We now have a federal regulatory agency which openly concedes that credit union people know more about running credit unions than the agency does.”

– Frank Wielga, CEO, Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union, NCUA 1984 Annual Report, page 14.

I’m Traveling to Mars

I watched the Mars rover landing live. It was exciting, joyous and uplifting.

The first messages back from the rover were just as inspiring. They will be in collections of “memorable quotes” from now on.

Rover texted: “I have found my forever home!”

And this was followed by: “Perseverance and Ingenuity will take you anywhere”–the names of the two AI vehicles which had successfully landed minutes earlier.

So I have decided to join them. Below is my boarding pass from NASA. Mars certainly seems to be a friendly neighborhood planet, especially with so much intelligence already there.

The only question is how am I going to spend my 1.1 billion frequent flyer miles?

Brother Blaine: Guided by Higher Principles and Universal Truth

From CUToday February 24, 2021: “The African-American Credit Union Coalition (AACUC) plans to induct five credit union leaders into its Hall of Fame at the Virtual Induction on March 1, 2021.

Each One a Stellar Leader

“This year’s honorees are shining examples of professional excellence.”

An Iconic Leader

The only honoree I personally know is Jim Blaine. A reflection on his selection.

The fresco artist Fra Angelico (1387-1455) was a member of the Dominican order, whence the “Fra” or “Brother.” He is a canonized saint whose feast day is celebrated on February 18.

In the leadup to Fra Angelico’s canonization, Pope John Paul II is said to have pointed to the artist’s Vatican frescoes and remarked, “Why do we need miracles? These are his miracles.”

That comment is an insightful reminder of the lasting contributions when ordinary human responsibility is given to an artist.

Jim combines the competitive discipline of a CEO with the artistry of a poet. His succinct pronouncements have the ring of truth, a rare quality in a digital era. State Employees Credit Union NC became a towering presence in his tenure as he was fully public and transparent in his motivations.

He stayed at the forefront implementing credit union purpose. His leadership demonstrated how member well-being can be the incontestable outcome of cooperative design.

An iconic leader guided by higher principles and universal truth, he eschewed contemporary fads preferring to enhance credit union legacy strengths. In that conviction, he acknowledged the needs of every soul, equally.

Timeless Wisdom: Creating Effective Public Policy

Two principles guided Ed Callahan’s tenure as NCUA chair.  One was his positive motivation.  In his many public comments,  he never summoned  fear about the future; rather he always presented examples of hope and progress by the movement.

The second was his belief in the enterprising spirit of human nature.   He believed ordinary men and women had created an extraordinary cooperative system  that deserved the respect and support of regulators.  In his own words:

“Our movement does not exist because it was created from the top down. Rather it was created from the bottom up. We did not tell Congress we wanted to be “safe and sound” institutions. We always knew that if we were lending to our members there was risk involved. Serving came first; safety and soundness was a means to the end of serving.”

Ed Callahan, Callahan Report, May 1999

A Critical Role for America’s Credit Union Museum

The stay-at-home pandemic induced isolation has caused many to clean out years of storage.  And find forgotten keepsakes, even treasures.

I discovered two complete copies of the July 21, 1969 Boston Globe, with the headline: Man Walks on the Moon.  The half page black and white fuzzy photo was printed right below.

What should I do with them?  Who might find them uniquely useful for instruction or other use? Should they just be put in this week’s recycle bin along with this week’s papers?

In a nutshell this illustrates  an issue every credit union professional will confront in the twilight of their career.  What to do with all the records, memorabilia, recordings and  newsletters one kept of their professional years?

The emotional meaning and possible historical value that caused them to be set aside, will not matter to one’s heirs.  When downsizing, the easiest thing to do with these basement or garage-stored boxes  is to just throw them out.

But might these individual and industry documents, newsletters, and recordings be valuable to future researchers seeking first hand accounts of credit union history and critical events?

Without an ability to easily access historical records–both public documents and private collections–the movement can lose touch with its past.  Most importantly personal records can help future generations appreciate the “human capital” that laid he foundation for today’s system.

One CEO’s View Why History Matters

“I wish I had kept the phone numbers and emails of CEOs that are now gone from view. Ex-CEOs that could tell what they wished they had done when they faced downward curves to the end. I worry that lessons lost and archived outside our industry are what is needed now.

Some might say that we missed nothing; we witnessed progress and the natural march towards an industry’s maturation. But that sounds like short-term winners talking to me.”

Randy Karnes, CEO CU*Answers, February 2018

This valuable, vital role is one the Credit Union Museum is expanding through its archiving and library functions.  This effort warrants everyone’s support, especially those wondering what to do with their personal archives.