“That’s What She Said,” A Review of the Cult of RONR

“That’s What She Said”

A R EVIEW OF T HE C ULT O f RONR

By Jonathan M. Jacobs, PRP

When a serious student of parliamentary procedure sees a link to a series of videos titled, The Cult of RONR, on YouTube, the Internet site hosting millions of videos, he may be curious, but might be put off. It sounds like a site that is antiparliamentary procedure, or at least anti-RONR. When he (or she) starts watching one of these videos and is greeted by a woman with bright pink hair, and a man wearing tie-dyed clothing, he may assume that this is some type of parody of parliamentary procedure, and watch it for the humor. While humor is subjective, this reviewer finds it outrageously funny, and something else as well. The Cult of RONR, is an exceptionally good series of educational videos, especially for people studying for the NAP registration examination, or for people who want an in-depth education in RONR. i

These videos are co-hosted by Caryn Ann Harlos, with the bright pink hair, and Mike Seebeck, with the ubiquitous tie-dyed clothing. Ms. Harlos is the national secretary of the Libertarian Party; Mr. Seebeck has served on several bylaw committees of various state Libertarian Party organizations. Ms. Harlos is an aspiring parliamentarian, studying for the NAP registration exam.

Perhaps the best way to describe the site is to use its own description, which gives the flavor of the humor as well:

“Welcome to The Cult of RONR you heathen you. Each day we plumb the depths of the Most

Holy RONR to gain the esoteric wisdom so that we do not get our a**** kicked by High Priests of Robert’s at future meetings, and to bring the Good Word to the unwashed masses. We are practically Martin Luther!”

The hosts approved of the 12th Edition of RONR new citation system, noting that, “…so it looks like a Bible,” and is “perfect for the cult.”ii

It is this irreverent humor that cocoons the education.

The co-hosts ask each other, in turn, a question—their “daily devotions”— from the National Association of Parliamentarian’s “Daily Parliamentary Calendar.” One question is discussed every weekday. On Sundays, they conduct “Sunday Services,” where they do the research section of the exam, often with a discussion of the quote. This discussion of both the daily and Sunday questions is in depth, often delving deeply into the text to determine why an answer is correct, not merely if an answer is correct. This is the true educational value of The Cult of RONR.

Exceptional value does not mean perfection. For example, a majority vote is habitually referred to as fifty percent plus one, perhaps their greatest sin. The referrals to the procedure internal to the Libertarian Party are a double-edged sword. Much of the time an example of some event that happened at a Libertarian Party meeting can be analogous to situations that the viewer has faced. Other times, it can be quite obscure.

These videos are not for everyone, however. Someone offended by language that could not be used in debate (which is an understatement), should not watch these videos. The language is salty, risqué, and filled with double entendres, such as the oft repeated phrase, “That’s what she said.”

This is not a video series for people who like the lecture format; people who prefer a teacher lecturing to them should avoid these videos. This is much closer to the Socratic method of questions and answers. The co-hosts engage in an excellent dialogue about the arcane details of RONR.

This reviewer must admit to thinking, “Why didn’t they have something like this when I was studying for my RP?” He also enjoys the humor (if not the tie-died clothing and pink hair). That, too, is not for everyone. For those people who are not turned off by the humor, the language, and the format, the videos that are part of The Cult of RONR, are an excellent educational resource. NP

i The videos are found here: https://www.youtube.com/c/CultofRONR/videos They begin on 1/1/20 and reference the 11th edition of RONR until October, when they reference both the 11th and 12th editions. ii Video of October 6, 2020 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEO7HfcZWZo&t=4129s

Jonathan M Jacobs, PRP, cPP, is the vice president of the Pennsylvania Association of Parliamentarians and the secretary of the Delaware Valley Unit. He passed his registration exam 25 years ago.