At 11:09 PM 9/21/96 -0400, Jeanne Hedge wrote:
At 12:49 PM 9/22/96 +1000, Martin Bennett wrote:
WARNING! LARGE RANT AHEAD!
I'm trying to figure out what you're ranting about. I had absolutely no
trouble sending this message to BOTH the list and to you personally. All I
had to do was click the "Reply All" button instead of the "Reply" button on
Eudora. They are right next to each other on the toolbar.
Actually, Jeanne, it is not. I have Eudora 1.5.4 and that option has
been made 'always or never' in my version.
In any case, Martin's point, while a bit over blown, is quite
accurate.
His complaint is not so much the 'explicit' workings of the FFML but rather the
'implicit' suggestions of the act itself. Suggestions, I might add, that have
been reenforced by the recent "SHUT THE HELL UP" note so 'elouquently' posted
by Mr. Entomorph. Consider it a 'spam and die' situation. You, no doubt, have
noticed the reduced traffic on this ML. Some will suggest it has more to do
with people being busy with their projects and such. I contend it is the
direct result of the 'chilling' effect of the recent desire for overt censorship
on the part of a relative few. Even the usual amounts of C&C are down; I'm sure
an unintended side effect of the colder than usual atmosphere generated by
the new censorship. What all this has done to the 'lurkers' out there who, in
the past, would feel free to 'unmask' once in awhile to comment on a story
they particularly liked, cannot be positive.
In any case, any actions that embolden people to post responses such as
"SHUT THE HELL UP", are dangerous to the free exchange of ideas and should be
abhorred by all.
Having said all that, let me be perfectly clear; this ML is the
property of WW and he is free to run it as he sees fit. Whatever steps he
chooses to impliment are the way it will be, reguardless of what I or anyone
else thinks. If I wish to participate, I am obligated to play by whatever
rules WW wishes to use and must abide by them at all times, whether he changes
them or not. We are ALL guests here and must abide by the house rules.
Tell me... did you like it better when the "reply-to" field automatically
routed all messages to /dev/null, as it was 3-4 days ago? At least now the
"reply-to" field sends your message replies to a PERSON instead of the big
trashcan in the ethernet.
This is a specious argument, at best. Removing all freedom, then
restoring partial freedom is no improvement. Declaring a police state but
changing it to allow everyone to come and go only to work, is hardly an
improvement. And that is, basically, what has occurred.
Face it Martin. There's been nothing changed on this list that could
possibly stop you from posting all the spam you want. (It's a just little
more inconvenient, but maybe not if you can "Reply All") The only thing that
could stop anyone from spamming the crap out of this list would be for WW to
unsub them and set the server so their addy can't be resubscribed. And that
would only stop them personally, and only for as long as it takes them to
get a new address.
Face it, Jeanne. A lot has changed on this list, starting with
its general atmosphere. And, yes, there is a great deal stopping each of
us from voicing our real feelings concerning the recent situation; the
unpredictability of our status should we catch the moderator on a 'bad day'.
As for allowing myself to be subject to the 'ultimate' penalty; being kicked
off the ML for voicing my opinions, not all of us are so free with which
service provider we choose. Not all of us can easily and cavalierly switch to
another e-mail address to avoid detection by WW on re-sub. I'm not sure
that would work all that well in the first place (someone is sure to rat:
'Isn't he the guy you kicked off the ML last week?').
A week ago, I used to get 70+ e-mails a day. Some were fanfics, some
were C&C, and some were just plain spam. I willingly sorted through the
spam and uninteresting fanfics to get to the meat. Occasionally, a spam
thread would intrigue me enough to follow it for awhile. And yes, I did spam
on occasion. I considered it 'making friends'; something I deem ESSENTIAL
to a successful 'writers workshop' atmosphere. Friends are more likely to
be honest with you and honesty is what I am after when someone C&C's my
stories.
I'm sorry, Jeanne, for directing so much of this your direction. I
really like hearing from you and value your opinions. It's just that I think
too many are, as Martin put it, scared to voice their objections for fear of
paying the 'ultimate ML price'. I, too, am a little apprehensive about how
WW will react to my concerns. I have really enjoyed being on this ML and
meeting, if only by e-mail, so many nice people. I liked the fanfics, the
C&C, and, yes, even the spam.
- Greg
(Going back to watch 'Space Ghost: Coast to Coast' on the Cartoon
Channel)
[This has been a '3 Fosters' production. So please forgive the
misspelled words.]