Friends,
In our recent steering committee wrap up it occurred to me that my comments may have been interpreted incorrectly. I'd like to take this opportunity to clear them up. My personal opinion of Caroline and her endeavors to make the world a more equitable place are overwhelmingly favorable. I believe her arguments and society as a whole will only benefit by considering everyone.
However in my role as steering committee member I see it as my responsibility to try and see every aspect of the summit through a variety of perspectives. We live in a complicated world and things that should not be controversial (at least in my opinion) often are. You don't need to drift too far in to social media to see this bare out. I have had many conversations with friends and colleagues who have told me that they feel that their beliefs are under attack. It is these conversations that informed me when I stated that I felt Caroline's talk bordered too close to politics, I received a text from a colleague during the discussion who said "here we go...more things men are doing wrong" (I didn't particularly want to reveal this but I think it's important to give the context of my statement in the meeting). I responded in defense of the keynote but equally could see where he/she was coming from.
You, like me, might believe it is important to be confronted with things that make us feel uncomfortable, things that are thought provoking or things that challenge our belief systems. However our friends in JMP/SAS may not want to do that at a Discovery Summit, or maybe they do want to support certain societal changes through their Summit. Whatever they decide to do, what is certainly true is that they do it with their eyes open and it is our job as committee members to give them all the information and perspectives we can.
All this said that will have been my last post conference committee meeting so you won't have to listen to my contrarian assertions going forward. I wish you all the best for Spain and look forward to attending from behind the first two rows.
Warm Regards
Kevin
