<miniflame>
 
I hate people who can't stand a quiet list. Especially on lists I own,
but even lists that I merely read.
 
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On Thu, 1 Dec 1994 01:41:42 -0600 Winship said:
>What is going on with this list?  I've been helping a couple of
>listowners with problems in my bumling, illinformed manner, and have
>told them not to be afraid to post "dumb" questions to this list
>(I do it all the time and make dumb comments to boot) as they will
>get lots of answers from those who know better than I.  They post
>to the list and get zilch in return.
 
I haven't noticed any questions going unanswered that I thought were worth
answering.  (That qualification is meant to exclude the, "Can I get a list
for my own breed of dog?" requests that seem to have flooded the lists I
read lately.)
 
>And we have had great opportunities for discussion on lists and
>listownership (ethics and philosophy thereof) which have been totally
>ignored (I didn't respond to the item which referred to one of my
>arguments as a "red herring" (which it was not) as I was sure lots
>of others would jump in).
 
Ethics?  Philosophy?  There are matters of style of style and procedure and
not much else.  Yes, there are unethical things to do, such as filtering
out one user just because he's dating your ex-lover.  That hasn't come up
on this list, because it's blindingly obvious.  The trauma that some people
feel on their lists about possible commercial activities on their lists
aren't philosophical or ethical issues:  they're very list specific.
(Raise your hand if you think it's unethical for L-Soft, Inc.  to
participate here.  OK, same question for FISH-ECOLOGY.  See, list
specific.)
 
>There are folk out with loaded guns to get us because they don't like the
>authority, however lightly it may be applied, we have over our lists.
 
I don't run the lists I run for folk out there.  I run them for my employer
and for some of the peer groups I participate in.  It's my employer's box,
it's my time, let them get their own mailing lists if they don't like
mine.  If they don't like the way I use what little power I have, have them
tell me.  If they don't like the fact that I have power that they don't
have, gee, nobody said life's fair.
 
Oh, dear, is this quote-bait for some academic without a clue?
(disclaimer:  this is not to imply that all academics are clue-less.  In
fact, some of my best friends are academics.  Heck, some of my users are
academics.)
 
If you think there are philosophical or ethical issues in what I just
said, that's your opinion, not mine.
 
As for mobs with pitchforks and torches, I'll worry about them when they
get the ear of my employer.  And then I'll explain to my employer why I do
what I do the way that I do it.
 
>Why no discussion on legal and philosphical matters pertaining to lists
>and listownership when there are ripe topics crying to be addressed
>presented on the list?
 
Been there, done that.  Some issues, like copyright, are beyond definitive
answers at this time.  This ain't a debate society, it's a list I presume
is meant to help with the practical issues of list ownership.
 
Nick
 
disclaimer: not speaking for my employer, but willing to defend what I
wrote to them if called to.
 
* Intelligence demands reasons, not rules.