THE REAL SORCE OF INFIGHTING: COPPERATION ONLY WORKS IF YOU ARE WILLING TO CHANGE YOUR CONDUCT

It is no secret with any organization that infighting is bound to happen among members. Regardless of whether it may be a difference of opinion over how situations are to be handled, or online strategy with recruiting, or a proposed guideline. It is the duty of any organization’s leaders to quell the unrest or disturbances among their members. If issues are handled correctly, and effectively the risk of a festering grudge will be greatly reduced.

HOLDING PERSONAL GRUDGES: When one leaves a camp and transfers to another for whatever reason may be, a member has the parliamentary right - if they are in good standing – to transfer of their own free will. To falsely accuse someone of staging a mutiny and to hold that as the reason why someone should not be allowed to hold a higher office in the organization is simply petty. The act of continuously blaming others for one’s own mistakes shows a level of juvenile mentality and narcissism.

DIVERGENT VISIONS OF THE SCV: When a difference of opinion on visions is brought forth, yes there are going to be a lot of emotions in play. The members of the SCV are a passionate group of southern men whose mission is to honor our ancestors for their service and sacrifice for the Confederacy. But when you have an individual repeatedly state in open meetings "I don't have to follow the rules!", that is where the divergence starts and needs to stop immediately. Camp Commanders of the SCV are empowered to maintain the established order and cohesion of their respective camps. However, they are bound to the will of the membership and all governing documents of their organization. When a Camp Commander attempts to alter a well-established tradition of a solemn ceremony and wishes to "modernize and diversify" for the sake of his/her vaunted reimagining. This is unacceptable! An example of this would be having goth girls inducted into the Texas Society Order of Confederate Roses, Inc. as Black Roses.

EXTERNAL PRESSURES: With the current political and social pressures on the reimagining of Texas and Confederate history, we do not need the reimagining of our historical ceremonies and have an erosion of our values. We all need to be pulling the wagon in the same direction which is the preservation of our organization.

FOSTERING OPEN COMMUNICATIONS: It is difficult to foster such forms of communication when you have an individual who only desires compliance to his ideals and values. An example of this would be the blocking of all access to his/her social media accounts for viewing or comments. Another is the deliberate segregation of information, distributed via email to only certain people who happen to agree with him or are useful to that person’s own agendas. "Open Communications" is not a one-way street.

FOCUSING COMMON GOALS: The common goal of the SCV as stated in the charge given to us by General Stephen D. Lee, "To your strength will be given the defense of the Confederate soldier's good name, the guardianship of his history, the emulation of his virtues, the perpetuation of those principles which he loved and which you love also...".

CONFLICT RESOLUTION: Although the bylaws of the SCV have clear and established guidance into defusing conflicts among the members, it is only applicable when leadership fulfills their roles and obligations. It is psychologically valid that you get more of what you reward.

LEADERSHIP BY EXAMPLE: We do have members of the SCV who have years of practical leadership experience they have acquired from their varied  professional backgrounds such as law enforcement, military, public education, and private corporations. These gentlemen are repeatedly elected to the positions they hold because they have earned the respect of their camp membership. Also, when one is a leader, one should dress appropriately to the office he holds. Failure to appropriately dress in a role to which he has been elected is not inspiring, nor is it conducive to unity. A disheveled and ungroomed appearance is not socially acceptable. To be called "petty for striving for conformity and not harmony", when an individual’s conduct is repeatedly called into question detracts from that individual’s personal honor, and/or the organization he/she alleges to represent.

A leader should not spread malicious gossip, blatant lies, and half-truths based on secondhand knowledge. Nor should that person excommunicate his/her own members for the slightest suggestion of a different point of view. These actions are counterproductive to the  organization’s overall goals and purposes.  

If a leader who has resigned from, or is not a member, of another SCV camp intentionally, enters or causes to be printed a false or misleading statement that would harm the activities of the other camp or camps, in a document, news magazine, to be seen and relied upon by  the public, he/she should include only the contact information, letterhead, or logo of the camp with which he/she is currently affiliated so as to avoid any confusion and/or hardship on the part of the other camp(s).    

IN CONCLUSION: Cooperation only works if a mutually agreed upon decision benefits all, not just the few. A large effort is placed on the individual whose conduct has gone undisciplined or altered, and who has been allowed to create the divergences and grudges among his fellows. If the individual refuses to take guidance from his superiors on his conduct, that individual has no right to hold the position with which he/she has been entrusted.