Re Idea

[Guest guest]

Dear Prabhus,

 

PAMHO. AGTSP.

 

Thank you very much for your ideas and enthusiasm. A lot of questions and

points have been brought up and we will address them in this letter.

 

1) ISCOWP

ISCOWP is a non profit educational organization registered with the federal

govenment as a 501C 3. All donations from USA citizens are tax deductible.

ISCOWP is current with all tax reports to the federal government since 1990. It

is an organization legally independent from ISKCON with a long reputation of

working in cooperation with ISKCON. Most donors who give to ISCOWP till this

date are not interested in ISKCON but in the activities of cow protection on a

universal scale. Incorporated since 1990, ISCOWP is known throughout the ISKCON

world and often ISKCON leaders and devotees refer to the ISKCON Ministry as

ISCOWP. Most see no seperation because of our serving the cows/oxen in Srila

Prabupadas mission for so many years..

 

2) ISKCON Ministry for Cow Protection and Agriculture

Balabhadra was appointed ISKCON Minister in 1999. The primary purpose of the

Ministry is to deal with cow protection within ISKCON. Although there are

ISKCON leaders who would like to see us reach beyond the ISKCON borders and

hence their acceptance of ISCOWP. Due to the fact that funding for this

Ministry to deal with ISKCON cow protection has been minimal or non existence

since 1999, the Ministry has relied on ISCOWP resources to carry on its duties.

Hence we see the Ministry as a department of ISCOWP. Funding that comes into

ISCOWP for the purpose of ISKCON cow protection can go into a seperate bank

account for that pupose. To this point the funding for this purpose has been

minimal and therefore the Ministry is depoendent on ISCOWP resources (Like

computers, office, ISCOWP farm center for seminars, etc.)

 

There have been many Ministries created in ISKCON most of which become defunct

within a short time. We are recognized as one of the few active ministries in a

recent consenus of what is an active and non active ISKCON ministry. I believe

there are 10 such ministries. The reason this may not be apparent to some is

that there is intensive, lengthy ,internal investigative and political work

going on within ISKCON performed by this ministry which this ministry can not

share with the general populace of devotees due to its sensitivity and on going

nature. Many of the GBC and other leaders have been touched by this work and

they are aware of our activity.

 

..

3) Our Unique Position

As an ISKCON Ministry we are not interested in working outside of the GBC. We

are not interested in using the ISKCON name to gain funds etc and then do our

own independent thing. This seems to be happening in certain arenas. We have

observed some devotees setting up house and calling it "ISKCON of Wherever"

without abiding by the codes, restrictions and legal requirements of an ISKCON

center. If one does not want to work with the GBC and ISKCON then create a

seperate organization. But don't use the ISKCON name, attempt to gain the

funds, prestige and following from that and then do your own thing. Such

cheating will produce failure in the long run. This is also illegal.

 

Irregardless of this we are known widely for having no fear to point out to the

highest in ISKCON faults within thier cow protection facilities. At the same

time remaining in good standing and on friendly terms with most leaders. It is

a delicate balance that could easily turn sour with the wrong words, actions

etc.

 

An example: At one ISKCON Ministry meeting the active ISKCON Ministers were

writng a group paper of where they wanted to be in 5 years. One suggestion of

Jayapataka Maharaj was that the Ministries would have the power to enforce the

standards that they have created. So I was interested in that and wanted to

clarify by asking "you mean we could go after the gross trangressions without

reprimand?' He said to me, well what do you care you are already doing that.

Then all the ministers of which there were about 5 GBCs and two gurus laughed

for a long time. Myself, I laughed the longest and hardest. Everyone knew where

we were at, maybe not liking it but accepting it. The first thing the Cow

Protection Ministry did with the help of a group of cowherds world wide was to

develope a set of Standards by which the ISKCON goshalls should operate within.

It took a year of e-mail correspondence to formulate the standards and then

they were presented to the GBC Body for a vote. Consequently THE MINIMUM

ISKCON STANDARDS FOR COW PROTECTION was passed into ISKCON LAW. We have been

trying to introduce and enforce these MINIMUM standards as a benchmark for

ISKCON and this is what Jayapataka Maharaja was refering to. His goshalla in

Mayapur is undergoing many good and progressive changes because of the Minimum

standards.

 

3) Past History of Volunteer services

We have had poor experiences with volunteer help. We have had to spend hours,

days, months undoing what volunteers have done and in the end more would have

gotten done doing it ourselves. Perhaps that is because we have in the past

accepted anyone who said they wanted to help. Whereas, we have observed

Shyamasundara prabhu's methods of asking for resumes, references, interviews

and contracts when he attempts to fill a position needed in the cow department

at Bhativedanta manor producing better results. Of course he has something to

offer like stipend, etc.

 

Services like volunteers doing web pages have proven to be the worse. Content

on web pages that we do not approve of and we can't change it because we don't

have the password which is being held from us etc. Enthusiastic volunteers in

the beginning getting involved in other things later and the web project is at

a standstill. All under the name of ISCOWP.

 

4) Suggestions of how to proceed with the "Ideas"

I have recently taken ove the ISCOWP web page afeter having about 5 volunteers

over a period of years. I have learned the basics of Frontpage. I have many

ideas of how to change and improve the site. One idea I had was to create a

seperate category on the left of the page entitled ISKCON Ministry and put

there everything to do with the Ministry. I know how to add pages. So the idea

of a listing of farms could be on one page, the form on another page, etc. We

already have a cow report form that was compiled by the members of this

conference and that is on the web page. It is not in PDF format as I do not

have that capacity. I also think it should be editied. Any PDF file is very

easy to work with. Hare Krsna dasi just gave me the OX POWER unit in pdf file

and I put that on the web page easily. Shyamasundara prabhu in Bhaktivedanta

Manor told us he has already down loaded that information as he is in the

process of building a sturdy, OXPOWER unit for his goshalla complex.

 

My suggestion is that if anyone wants to work under the banner of the ISKCON

Ministry for Cow Protection and Agriculture they submit files to this section

of the ISCOWP page. Of course it would all have to be in an organized manner.

An agreed format, what should be there, etc. This would require discussion and

consensus. At this point in time we are not interested in a seperate web-site

for the ministry due to past negative experiences.

 

However anyone can do whatever they want. But if the name ISKCON Ministry ,

ISKCON, ISCOWP is used without authorization it is illegal. We feel the ideas

presented are good ones, some of them we have already traversed, but most are

workable. We also welcome help as we can not do the service alone but we have

learned the hard way that here must be certain controls, understandings, etc.

This is how the Minimum Cow Protection Standards were put together and now they

are part of ISKCON goshalla managemnt practices. Working together in a

cooperative manner is one thing that Srila Prabhupada has asked of us all. We

are ready. lets get going.

 

Your servant,

Balabhadra das and Chayadevi

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Visit us at: www.iscowp.org

[Guest guest]

Suggestion:

 

Don't put ISKCON ministry as sub page of ISCOWP website.. Make it a separte

website, with a link from ISCOWP. You could still be webmaster, but the

distinction between the two entities would be maintained.

 

There is no such word as irregardless, regardless of how many times you have

seen it used.

[Guest guest]

Mark Middle Mountain wrote:

 

>Suggestion:

>

>Don't put ISKCON ministry as sub page of ISCOWP website.. Make it a separte

>website, with a link from ISCOWP. You could still be webmaster, but the

>distinction between the two entities would be maintained.

>

Probably the best idea. At least in name, it should be ISKCON Ministry

of Cow Protection and Agriculture. For the time being, I think you

could probably continue to maintain it all as one website in technical

terms -- but the viewer should probably get the feeling that there is a

distinction.

 

In reality, you could leave most of the files exactly where they are

now, but just relable the pages a bit and shuffle the links around a

little bit -- not that you have to pay for two separate websites.

 

ys

hkdd

 

>

>There is no such word as irregardless, regardless of how many times you have

>seen it used.

>

>

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>

>