Category: Observations

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Creating Community with Shared Joy:  The Pub Choir 

There is a unique singing/sharing experience traveling across America and Europe this summer. It is the opposite of a Taylor Swift concert.  In these events, the audience is the show.

These ad hoc communal sings are led by an Australian musician, director and composer Astrid Jorgensen.

Her one night gatherings are called The Pub Choir.   It demonstrates the capacity of one person to help people discover and express their collective joy.

Learning to Sing Together

Here is how one person described her experience:

A few weeks ago, I walked to a small neighborhood arts venue and sang along with 250 of my neighbors at the sold-out event called “Pub Choir.” It was not in a pub, and we were not in a choir, but all in attendance now feel famous because the performers recorded it and put it on the internet. Even months later, I am still bubbling from the collective effervescence of learning a three-part harmony version of “The Best,” famously covered by Tina Turner.

(It’s not about you, but about us)

“Australian choral director Astrid Jorgenson set the stage by telling us to put our phones away. They would be filming us. We were the show. She had us belt out the chorus from “What’s Up,” by 4 Non-Blondes to figure out which voice part to stand with. Before she told us what song we would be singing and recording that night, Astrid said, “You might not know this song. You might not even like this song. But tonight, it’s not about your preferences. This is about us, singing together.”

“Astrid taught everyone their lines with a glorious low-budget PowerPoint presentation. We were instructed to follow our color-coded lines that were accompanied by memes to remind us of the style we were going for.  . .Astrid would sing the line for us, then have us sing it back to her.

(a holy call. .. and response)

“It was a holy call and response with subtle correctives like, “I see you moving a lot and working hard. I like your version, but I am wondering if you might want to try my version?” When she heard that a few of us “got it,” she winked at us saying, “I see you elementary school music teachers out there! Fabulous! Now squeeze the hand of someone near you and whisper to them, ‘We’ve got this’ and make sure they follow you for the slippery part.”

“. . .she moved us into three voice sections telling us we could check in with our friends during the bathroom break. We were not to stand with the section where we might have been placed in other choirs in the past, but where we felt most confident belting it out.

“Singing passionately was the goal. When we sang the line, “Tear us apart? Nooo … ” we were to look like our heart was being poured out like a waterfall. To direct us she danced across the stage, flipping her hair, shimmying, and occasionally pausing the rehearsal to have us all erupt in cheers for one section that finally got the slippery part right.

My friend Julianna and I squeezed hands with our neighbors, poured out our hearts, cheered, and shimmied on command. When Pub Choir ended, we hugged strangers while complimenting them on their passionate singing and practically skipped home.”

Creating Community with a Sense of Unity

I love this example of creating a community of shared effort from complete strangers.  The result is  a moment  of pure joy.   Ok, it is only for 90 minutes and maybe just one or two songs.  But it shows the power of leadership in a common effort-even when some believe they have no singing voice at all.

This is an example of a Seattle video from a Pub Choir singing Tina Turner’s The Best.  Makes you want to skip out of work and go sing.    Singing makes you feel awesome.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlc7sHBQ4Oo)

Music at This Year’s Political Conventions

Music is at the center of many communal events. At the Republican convention last month, the following musical motivators were part of the experience:

Among the offerings: Kid Rock performed his 2000 song “American Bad A–”; “Real American” by Rick Derringer; and Lee Greenwood performed “Holdin’ a Good Hand” in person.

Here is my suggestion for the Democratic convention taking place next week.  It is the 1971 release byThree Dog Night- Joy to the World:

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9uoq9gfeL0)

 

 

 

 

 

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Transparency: An Advantage When Properly Understood

Spent time earlier this week talking with people who work with a DC non-profit 501 C 3.  It is called Everyone Home DC.

It was incorporated in 1967 by an interdenominational group of religious leaders called the Capital Hill Group Ministry.  For almost six decades the organization has focused on the housing needs of those at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder.

Its Vision:  We support the holistic needs of individuals and families at risk of, or experiencing homelessness.  Housing is our starting point

The group’s website has five components, similar to many credit unions’ content, in an About Us section:  Our Story, Board, Staff, Careers and Funding and Reports.

I clicked on the Funding and Reports tab and found links to the latest five years of Annual Reports, complete external CPA audits, and the IRS 990 filings for nonprofits.  These reports provided an open and full picture of the group’s financial status, trends, how they are funded, and objective measures of their  community impact.

Overcoming shortages of shelter for low income individuals is one of the most intractable problems for every major city in America. The group’s reporting and disclosures give the reader confidence that the leaders know what they are doing and are accountable for their outcomes and responsibilities.

That confidence is vital.  For this nonprofit’s modest budget relies on government grants and private donations.  It is vetted by its funders. In 2023, the organization announced that the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund had granted them their first-ever multi-year, multi-million dollar funding.

Trust from Transparency

Transparency is critical to Everyone Home’s credibility.  it is a non-profit, totally dependent on external funding and engaged in an area of social need where work is never finished and endgame always distant.

It is an example credit unions who are dependent on member and community support might learn from.  Especially the posting of the latest five years of IRS filings, CPA audits and Annual Reports.

A  long-term practice of open and full communication with a group’s supporters is vital when hard times or unexpected challenges arise.  A foundation of trust is built through transparency.  It becomes the intangible capital (goodwill) that can be the difference between a successful recovery or a demise.

Sweeping a Problem Under a Cobalt Rug

Contrast this expectation with the events in an August 7th  Credit Union Times story of the recent merger, without a member vote, of the $67 million Creighton FCU (Omaha) with the $1.2 billion Cobalt Federal Credit Union in Papillion, Neb.

The Times’ story reports the credit union’s net worth ratio went from 9.09% at March 2024 to a negative 10.95% three months later at June’s quarter end.

In announcing the merger Cobalt’s explanation for the consolidation, per the Times, was the July 31 retirement of Creighton’s President/CEO Thomas C. Kjar.

One does not have to be a financial analyst or even a credit union member to know there is something dreadfully wrong for a deterioration of almost 20% of a credit unions assets in just 90 days.

Creighton was a federal charter, filing four quarterly reports per year and presumably subject to NCUA’s annual exam oversight.  It was organized in 1951 and operated five branches with 20 employees.

At June 30, 2024 its balance sheet of $43 million in loans and $23 million of investments appears normal, and not much different from a year earlier.  The allowance for loan losses is just $277K.

The one unusual item is a $12.5 million under miscellaneous expense (compared to $15K a year earlier).  This one time significant amount suggests a newly discovered financial hole due to misappropriation or other sudden loss event. That one entry accounts for most of the $13.5 million YTD loss, which eliminated all of Creighton’s net worth.

How can such a catastrophic loss occur under the agency’s supervisory nose?   I can find no NCUA announcement of this forced merger.  Silence undermines confidence in the NCUA’s examination and supervision competency.  It suggests there is something to hide.

When problems of any kind are swept under the rug, there is no learning by either credit unions or the agency from whatever went wrong.  This forced merger transaction deserves more explanation  than the FAQ’s of Cobalt FCU, the rescuing party.  An accounting is due for Creighton FCU’s members and to the credit union community about what happened and NCUA’s role.

Now Creighton’s 10,000 member-owners are left in the dark about their institution’s oversight and why NCUA  ended its existence.  Such an abrupt, unilateral and forced action can only increase  skepticism of a government agency about  its openness and responsibility to the public.

In the example of Everyone Home, transparency is critical to carrying out its mission.   At NCUA the opposite seems to be the norm.

NCUA has an obligation in  its supervisory role to provide its funding constituents the circumstances about any major failure.  This is the kind of event the agency is supposed to prevent.

The published call reports are the only “facts” available on this $67 million credit union’s closing. They scream for an explanation of this sudden 90-day catastrophic loss.

The agency’s failure to address its actions at this most critical junction in a credit union’s life, poses basic questions about its competence, not just its transparency.

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How to Start Riots Throughout a Country

You may have read about the multiple riots in Great Britain following the stabbing deaths of three children in Southport.  How did this horrible crime lead to instant countrywide rioting and attacks on mosques, immigrant shelters, minority shops and stores, and ultimately the police?

The Five Minute News is a free daily pod and YouTube broadcast by Anthony Davis, a British journalist who lives in the US.

This episode is a case study of how disinformation is created and then spread by both foreign media (Russian  Today-RT) and domestic extremists.

Disinformation is intentionally designed to spread anger, fear and chaos.  It is false.  The initial creator in this instance is quickly identified and the post taken down in an hour.  But it had already spread throughout the world by social media provocateurs in Britain and elsewhere with this completely made up, totally false, account of the person in custody.

The Role of Musk and X

This broadcast also documents Elon Musk’s role in spreading the false information and augmenting it with other fake documents.  He ultimately adds his prediction of civil war in Britain.  The country’s far right extremists all amply these apocalyptic predictions.

This is the full broadcast, ten minutes rather than five!

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEuJ3V1yzzQ&list=PLGNXhNKeaOmWgTQ3T7oA5ioACZvSB5cRC&index=2)

It should be a mandatory watch for anyone concerned about the state of public discourse and the role of social media in the US and around the world.  And the malicious intentions of Elon Musk.

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Friday Outtakes

Ukrainian refugee professional artists, living in Wales, received a small grant to present this puppet and shadow theater show in England.

(photos by Nadiia Khomaziuk)

A 2026 National American Celebration-How Will Credit Unions Participate?

This historical milestone may be a perfect opportunity for credit unions to celebrate their contribution to the creation of economic democracy in the United States.

The America 250 Celebration’s mission is “To commemorate and celebrate our 250th anniversary with inclusive programs that inspire Americans to renew and strengthen our daring experiment in democracy. The shared experiences of America 250 will have ignited our imaginations, elevated our diverse stories, inspired service in our communities, and demonstrated the lasting durability of the American project.”

The five themes suggested for this commemoration by cities, towns and organizations are: The Unfinished Revolutions, Power Of Place, We The People, American Experiment, and Doing History.

All five are certainly illustrated by the cooperative system’s role in America.

The Skill to Listen in Public Debate

Silence involves listening, for one cannot argue without first listening to one’s opponent. As the writer of Ecclesiastes reminds us, “The words of the wise are heard in silence, more than the cry of a prince among fools.”

Thankfully, Solomon has not yet called and asked for his wisdom back.  (Frank Bruni)

An Upside Down View of the Economy

. . .maybe the economy isn’t booming despite higher rates but rather because of them. It’s an idea so radical that in mainstream academic and financial circles, it borders on heresy. But the new converts (along with a handful who confess to being at least curious about the idea) say the economic evidence is becoming impossible to ignore. By some key gauges—GDP, unemployment, corporate profits—the expansion now is as strong or even stronger than it was when the Federal Reserve first began lifting rates. So, with that in mind, here’s how the theory works.  (From Bloomberg)

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Friday’s Outtakes

A history note from a Credit Union Times July 11, 2006 article on pandemic preparations:

WASHINGTON – Lockheed Georgia Employees Federal Credit Union CEO Ed Collins testified, jointly for CUNA and NAFCU, before the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on credit unions’ preparedness for pandemic influenza.

Politics and the Economy

From a July 24, Axios commentary on the election’s possible impact on the economy.

The bottom line: There are untold moving pieces in a $28 trillion economy, so if you think you’re absolutely sure of how a given election outcome will affect any one of them, you might just be letting your politics brain do the thinking for you.

Making Amazon pay

Gas taxes fund most road maintenance, so what can states do when more cars go electric? Minnesota and Colorado are charging a fee for every retail delivery within the state. This Stateline article is about how more states may follow suit to shore up their transportation funding.  (from Marketplace.com)

To raise your spirits: A 2009 video of Marines singing Days of Elijah at Camp Pendleton:

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjZ_IlP9c5A)

 

 

 

 

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The Olympic Games and “Movements”

From the sporting contests in ancient Greece to the current day’s world wide athletic extravaganza, the Olympic movement has evolved.  This trajectory provides an example of how ideas and actions transform over time and political eras.

The games today are not the games of old.  Rather they have undergone multiple iterations in concept and competition. Their evolution may suggest parallels with the cooperative movement.  Or maybe not.  Anyway, the history is fun.

The Idealistic Origins: A Religious Celebration

The Olympic Games began as a religious celebration in ancient Greece, with competitions to honor their gods. But the Olympics declined once the Roman Empire replaced Greek power in the Mediterranean; the final blow came from the Christian Emperor Theodosius I, who saw the Games as a stage for paganism.

At the end of the 19th century, the modern iteration of the Games began – minus religion. This time, they were secular, with flags and patriotism replacing religious worship.  (source: Presbyterian Outlook)

Reinterpreting Sport in the 20th Century

At the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, the perfect brushstroke was just as likely to win a medal as the quickest sprint. That year, Pierre de Coubertin — co-founder of the International Olympic Committee — introduced a series of Olympic events in the fields of painting, literature, music, architecture, and sculpture, with the rule that all creations must be sports-themed.

Though many of the newly eligible competitors lacked the physical prowess of traditional Olympians, some excelled at both the athletic and the artistic. American marksman Walter Winans not only won a silver medal for sharpshooting at the 1912 Games, but he also took home gold for his 20-inch-tall sculpture of a horse-drawn chariot, titled “An American Trotter.”

In future Olympiads, the artistic events focused on even more niche disciplines. By the 1928 Amsterdam Games, architecture was subcategorized into design and town planning, while literature was divided into lyrical, dramatic, and epic works.

After a hiatus during World War II, the arts returned as official Olympic events one final time at the 1948 London Games. It was there that 73-year-old John Copley won a silver medal for his engraving titled “Polo Players,” becoming the oldest Olympic medalist in history.

Unfortunately for these more right-brained Olympians, new IOC president Avery Brundage led a campaign to remove the creative events from the official Olympic program, relegating the arts to exhibition status by the 1952 Games. All 151 artistic Olympic medals that had been awarded between 1912 and 1948 were stricken from the official record books. (Source lost)

Innovation, Money and Relevance in the 21st Century

The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris began last Saturday, with 329 medal events planned for 32 different sports, including the debut of breaking and the return of sport climbing,  skateboarding and surfing. The Paris organizers said they chose these sports because they’re easy for beginners to pick up and popular with young, social media-savvy fans.

Maintaining relevance is crucial for the International Olympic Committee to justify the more than $3 billion it’s charging media companies to broadcast and stream the games. But many of the criteria that the IOC uses to select new events relate to much more practical concerns.

Games organizers dropped polo as an Olympic sport in the ’30s because it was too expensive to host  — each team needs at least 25 polo ponies and matches are played on pitches about nine times bigger than a football field.

The host city of the Games also gets to weigh in on which sports get added, often at the expense of others that are less popular in its country. That helps explain why baseball and softball won’t compete in 2024, but will return for the 2028 Games in Los Angeles. Whether karate returns to future games is less clear.  (Source: Bloomberg)

Movements and Change

While the modern games trace their origin to two thousand years ago, the current edition has the same longevity as the credit union movement in America.

The games have emerged from their idealistic beginnings to be revived with multiple expressions of sporting enthusiasm.  Today they are big business with ever expanding participation supported by billions of dollars of underwriting to celebrate individual, organizational and national triumphs.

Look  familiar?

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A Contemporary Father’s Day Parable

Most  are familiar with the Biblical story of the Prodigal Son.  It is from Luke chapter 15.

In brief: the younger son did not want to wait for his father’s death to claim his inheritance, and instead asked for it immediately.

Verse 13 tells what happens next:  The younger son gathered all he had, traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living.

Broke and hungry living with animals, he traveled home intending to tell his father in verse 19, “ I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”

Instead of the expected reaction of “you made your bed, now lie in it” the father instead, “was filled with compassion and put his arms around him and kissed him.” (verse 20)

The Parable Today

How do you react to this picture? Like the father or the elder son whose response was: “I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back who has devoured all your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him.”  (verses 29-30)

Lost and then found?  Compassion or condemnation?  Like all parables, this modern day event helps us see who we are.

Also a reminder on Fathers’ Day of who we can be.