Okay... Zen will take a shot at this...

Zen thinks the ML is fine as it is... certainly there is a lot of spam just
now, but it is not hard to identify, and is easy to skip over.

Certainly too, there is a lot more spam than there needs to be- this, for
example, is also spam.

The answer, though, cannot lie in the creation of separate lists.  While
spam is annoying at times, it can also be very very useful.  A couple of
Zen's current projects were inspired by spam.  (Granted, they are sick
projects, but, well, there you are...)  What might be spam to some can be a
valuable aid in thrashing out the parameters of a given character or
character set - this helps writers keep their characters IN character.
Spam can be used for brainstorming - refining an idea, or finding someone
who really is just crazy enough to write it.

Certainly zen prefers reading fanfics to spam, and good C&C is vital - they
are, after all, the core of this list.  Zen tries to read all he can, and
C&C where he feels he has something to say.  Zen also tries to provide
information when asked for it, as the FFML can also be a useful research
tool.  (For example, does SOMEONE out there have the full text of the Q&A
session with Takahashi-sama from the SanDiego Comic Con in '94?  Doumo.)
If the answers are too long, or of limited general interest, Zen will take
them to private mail - it takes little effort to change the header.

Bottom line, is this.  If the ML is split, then the writers still lose -
people will be less spontaneous in their C&C if they are afraid that they
will be accused of spamming - a lot of people will no longer bother with
C&C, or even the odd "Hey, this is really neat!" posts.  And without the
fanfics to provie fuel for the fires, the social list seems like just a
slow version of IRC to Zen.  In other words, pointless.

Ultimately, White Wolf will do what he feels is in the best intrest of the
list - after all, it is his baby.  (BTW, WW, Zen thanks you for running it.
He has been enjoying it immensely)  But it seems futile to Zen to say that
regulation or more rules are the answer.  If people do not have the
courtesy to follow rules, increasing the number of rules will not help.

Writing is a social excercise - if you take the social component out of it,
it certainly cannot thrive.  (Where would Oscar Wilde have been without
*his* social set?)

All Zen would like to see changed is that if people are gonna post spam,
they should have something to say.  The only spam that Zen finds *totally*
annoying, is having someone Spam about how much they hate Spam.

C'mon, people.  A little self discipline is all it really takes.  Engage
brain before placing foot in mouth, and all will be well, if a little
noisy.  The only true control is self control.

Sorry for rambling.
Just Zen's 2 yen worth...

Zen-

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[[                  James Bateman (Otaku@nashville.com)                  ]]
[[ -The experiment has begun - A million monkeys at a million keyboards- ]]
[[                     ^_^ We call it the UseNet ^_^                     ]]
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