The issue of whether to moderate or not is a thorny one for listowners. I am a list owner with very little time (and, hence, an unmoderated list), so this question is crucial also to me. Junk mail notwithstanding, the fact is that there is a very fine line between moderation and censorship, probably no line at all. In my opinion, moderation is, as one correspondent here pointed out, distasteful. I also think that it is hard to justify. Yet, cluttered lists are a nuisance. What to do? I have a couple of suggestions: 1. Regularly send out to everyone a LIST POLICY STATEMENT and LIST ETIQUETTE. It seems to me that each list should have its own set of rules of etiquette, and that these should be decided upon by the membership (not the list owner) and then adhered to. I think it helps if all new signons receive the List policy statement and etiquette automatically at signon (as well as, or instead of, the usual "virtually yours" blurb that goes out. It is important that members both old and new know exactly what the list is supposed to focus on. It's amazing how many lists simply depend on their cryptic names to impart this information to their members. This list, for example, has a very general name that could accomodate postings on almost any subject. On my own list, which is for teachers of English to foreigners (TESL-L), the membership was invited to participate in drawing up an etiquette or guidelines statement. This statement now goes out to all new signons and regularly to "old" members too. Among other things, it states what the focus of the list is, and mentions some topics that are NOT what we are about (linguistics, for example, and cross-cultural communications) and gives the names of other lists that DO focus on those issues. We now have a very clean, lean list, even though it is also extremely active. 2. Create "sub"-lists for those members of your list who have special interests and who want to carry on "conversations" on those topics. Censorship is NEVER the answer to any problem, and it is a terrible precedent to set. Those of us who are involved and interested in computer-mediated communications should never lose sight of the potential for abuse. Anthea Tillyer