Sunday 9 November 2014

A personal message

This post is a serious one.  Possibly the only serious one I will ever do.  So I apologise if you are here seeking entertainment, but please bear with me.

I understand that at least one person finds my “Not-so-secret diary” difficult to understand, is unsure whether to take it at face value, and accordingly feels much of it is inappropriate or offensive.

For the avoidance of doubt, my “diary” is a spoof.  Satire.  It is not intended to be taken at face value.  Thus, for example, my most recent post did not mean that I am actually a witch.  Nor was it intended as a criticism of the purveyors of bath products.

Also, I am not an alcoholic.  I do not really shed straw in meetings and I am actually quite competent at what I do.  But the real me would make far less entertaining reading.

My diary does not express official CIPA views.  I apologise if that was unclear.  When I want to express an official CIPA view, I do so in a different tone and through different channels – at Council and committee meetings, for example; at Congress; in the more formal parts of the Journal; and at meetings with CIPA members and external stakeholders. 

Here, on my blog, I write for the purpose of entertaining.  I write for intelligent readers with a good sense of humour.  I write to raise awareness of CIPA’s work in an accessible and human fashion.  I have been doing so for over four years, and during that time I have received positive feedback from many, many people both within CIPA and elsewhere.  I believe the diary has built friendships for this Institute.

If anyone – whether a CIPA member or not – finds my diary offensive or inappropriate, the best thing to do would be to raise the matter formally with Council.  As Vice-President, I am bound to act in the interests of CIPA and its members, and I am there to serve the Institute’s elected governing Council.  If Council as a body decides that I am behaving inappropriately, then the diary will of course stop.

Until that point, however, I refuse to walk on literary eggshells.

I do try to respond to feedback from individual readers.  But when that feedback reaches inappropriate levels, involving criticisms and queries on LinkedIn and/or Twitter virtually every time I publish a new post; when that feedback begins to look more like bullying than dialogue; when it becomes potentially damaging to CIPA’s own reputation, at that point I get angry and withdraw.  There is plenty of other CIPA work to do.

The diary will continue, for now.  It will remain humorous and satirical, and hence, at times, a little over-the-top.  So please be aware: there are no Biscuit Pixies at CIPA.  Council members do not wear grey suits and steam at the collars: they are lovely, lovely people – open-minded, well-intentioned, committed to the IP profession.  Mr Davies used to be a plumber, yes, but he is an intellectual match for the best of the patent attorneys, a thumping good Chief Executive and exactly what CIPA needs right now.

We really do have green things and floppy bits for lunch, though.  That I didn’t lie about.

3 comments:

  1. I made a comment immediately after this post was made and it mysteriously disappeared. I will therefore try to recall what I said, at least in spirit. Satire is difficult to do as references to real people, by name or even description, may create problems. There is usually an underlying message with satire. Making fun of bye-laws and minutes is tricky. It is trickier for someone who is also the VP. A clear disclaimer in the blog heading that the comments are the writer's own and not the responsibility of the organisation may assist. Further, references to alcohol/ drunkenness are not dignified.
    Susan Pickin (Fellow)

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  2. شركة تتميز بجميع الخبرات في تقديم اعمالها المتميزة في الكشف عن التسريبات من خلال شركة كشف تسربات المياه بجدة التي تعطي كل ما لديها في اصلاح العديد من المشاكل التي تحدث نتيجة كسر او عطل مفاجئ في امدادت المياه لذلك ننصحم ان تعتمد علي شركة كشف تسربات بجدة لديه سباكين وفنين لديهم الخبرة في حل هذه المشكلة بكل سهولة كما نمتلك لديها القدرة علي تنفيذ اعمال العوازل من خلال شركة عزل اسطح بالرياض التي تعالج تسريبات المياه في الاسقف والحوائط كما نقدم خدمة العزل السليمة للخزانات الارضي والعلوي الخرسانية بواسطة فني متميزة لديه القدرة علي معالجة كل ذلك بسهولة من خلال شركة عزل خزانات بالرياض تمتلك مواد ذات جودة متميزة

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    Replies
    1. Please would this writer provide an English Translation

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