At 02:46 AM 8/15/2012, you wrote:
After watching -with some interruptions due to local conditions-
the Theory Panel at ICCF-17, my first reaction was to go to the Merriam
Webster dictionary and to search for the best antinomy of Consensus.
It is Dissensus. Perhaps reading the text will be more encouraging.
Peter
It's commonly assumed that a set of decent people will almost
automatically find consensus. That's a myth. It takes skill to
generate consensus that isn't just a suppression of dissent.
The process starts with exactly what has been suggested elsewhere:
understanding each other. That does not mean "agreeing."
We can know that we understand someone if we can explain their ideas
such that they will say, "Yes, that's what we think."
And if we try to do this and fail, it's a sign we have some work to do.
(Rarely someone may be holding a position of "I strongly disagree"
that is so strong they will make up objections to such a restatement,
just to make the other person wrong, but it's actually uncommon, and
socially disapproved. With a little patience, these barriers can be overcome.)
(It often takes facilitation by a neutral party, or at least one
whose goal is consensus, who will attempt to "make everyone right,"
to find consensus with untrained people. Much of our social training
in modern society leads us to emphasize and pursue difference,
instead of building agreement. Perhaps we can start a discussion by
agreeing on *anything*.)
