At public meetings, people who are hard of hearing or weak of eyesight should receive preference to sit close to the meeting’s speakers. People who have difficulty walking should receive a preference to sit near an exit.
Otherwise, in a well-ordered environment, leaders will sit in the back, allowing non-leader residents to sit closer to the front. The better view (except for the disabled) belongs to non-leaders.
The opposite often happens among Old Whitewater’s leaders. They sit in the front row, backs to everyone else in the room, arms folded, almost never looking back at others. They speak as though there were only two groups in the room: guest speakers and these entitled few. They do not hesitate to push themselves forward; they take first for themselves.
This is funny, of course, because there are no dignitaries, VIPs, notables, etc., in Whitewater.
Where are there dignitaries, VIPs, notables, etc.? Buckingham Palace, perhaps, but even that’s doubtful.
In Whitewater, there’s truly not one dignitary. We’re better off.
In any case, one might happily yield the front to others for another reason. The back of the room allows one to survey the entire scene – speaker, entitled few, and residents.
It is the entire scene, viewed quietly and without commotion, that should matter more than the view closer to a few prominently, but selfishly placed, local grandees.
Generals eat last, an aspect of servant leadership.
Yes — a good principle, and the right kind of leadership.