Originally Posted by
Dovster
What this in effect does is give John and his friend the ability to block his removal while giving the pretense that they were not involved in the decision.
Exactly.
This is precisely why I was careful with my "abstain" vote in this particular vote as I did not want it to be the deciding vote in favour or against the proposal. Once
jackal was officially inducted as the 9th TalkBoard member, a single "abstain" vote is irrelevant.
However, if only 8 TalkBoard members were voting and 1 wished to abstain then there would be a difference between actually casting an "abstain" vote (6 "yes" votes still required to pass) versus simply choosing to abstain from voting (5 "yes" votes required to pass). The "abstain" vote has exactly the same value as a "no" vote in this case.
This is why the Guidelines should be amended to properly reflect the will of those voting, including those who wish to simply not pick a side.