Originally Posted by
tcook052
FWIW I dislike this term as some TBers may for various reasons be unable to reach a decision on a topic at hand and may opt to abstain but that to me hardly makes them cowards.
Well unfortunately for those who currently vote 'abstain' with pure intentions, their vote can too easily be interpreted at a coward's no.
As this proposal would lift that stain from their intentions, all the more reason for its quick passage. ^
That said, I don't think 'I can't make up my mind' is a good reason to abstain. TB members are elected to make up their minds. If they cannot, they should step down.
A good reason to abstain, to my mind, is a conflict of interest or the TB member does not feel adequately informed about the issue at hand based on the debate and information provided.
In any case, whatever the motivation for the abstention, abstentions should
not count in tallying the vote negatively or positively; when members abstain, they are in effect only attending the meeting to aid in constituting a quorum, never in deciding the outcome.