Fortunately these days, I am not a batshit crazy, radical, leftist bar association, trying to live off meeting fees and investment income while my dues-paying members are leaving in droves. If I were, these might be pretty scary times.
As I mentioned in the comments to my last piece on the shrinking, stinking and sinking American Bar Association, the child-like observation by their treasurer, during her Mid-Year Meeting report, that "the markets have been good to us so far" actually evidenced a dependence on investment earnings that could prove devastating in the event of a major market correction. Boom. We'll see how that goes in the weeks and months ahead, as the newly lower-than-low interest rates will also ratchet up ABA's pension obligations. Leaning on the market may be an even better strategy than "the new membership model."
In an additional current development, the coronavirus scare has adversely impacted ABA's ability to attract members to various meetings that it counts on to generate non-dues revenue, and a raft of them have been cancelled, with as-yet unquantified losses.
As Illinois experiences a growing number of coronavirus cases, concentrated in the Chicago area, ABA has also cravenly beclowned itself with blatant, national origin discrimination, posting out all visitors from certain countries it believes might carry the virus to the hallowed halls of ABA headquarters.
Like "Masque of the Red Death" revisited, I suspect ABA's cowardly, discriminatory behavior will prove to avail it naught. This pandemic will not be stopped by a bunch of gutless wonders shitting themselves and trying to "profile out" the infected. Rives, of course, is specially at risk due to his age, and Rawles must be sweating bullets due to her morbid obesity and associated co-morbid health risks. Still, I don't see them getting ahead of this, and in all likelihood, the virus is even now circulating within their walls. They may only succeed in making themselves even more vulnerable while laboring under the delusion that they have made themselves secure.
If only I could play Danse Macabre on my guitar, the predicament of the capering ABA fools would be the perfect subject matter for a 2020 musical Peeps diorama!
https://www.abajournal.com/news/article/aba-cancels-some-meetings-due-to-coronavirus-concerns-offices-are-open-but-not-to-high-risk-visitors
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