Survivor!

[Wojtek Sokolowski]

At 11:28 AM 10/24/00 -0400, norm wrote:
>i've haven't been subscribed to a list yet where people didn't get the crap 
>flamed out of them.  flamage is a necessary part of social life to some
>extent.
>
>-----------------------------------
>there are plenty of cyberspace lists devoted to social issues where the use
>of insults and foul language are absolutely forbidden.
>
>the list decorum rests exclusively on its moderator's preferences.  he/she
>is the final authority on who can say what.  if this a permissive list where
>just about anything said is tolerated, then it's because the moderator likes
>it that way.
>
>personally, i find that lister monopolization and invective intimidate
>listers who otherwise might learn about the more edifying ideas presented on
>the list.  also, these unfortunate subs might present interesting and
>valuable posts.  lacking the courage to "suffer the slings and arrows of
>outrageous fortune" or "take arms against a sea of troubles", unheard and
>unheeded, they eventually quit the list.
>
>also, i find that most posters seem to be more interested in playing "king
>of the intellectual mountain" rather than seeking to learn from others and
>educate them as well.

I disagree.  lbo-talk is the most civil discussion group i've seen on the
net. If you do not believe me, try some of the discussion groups run by
major news providers, such as NYT, The Guardian, or for that matter Yahoo.
Most of what is being posted there is nothing but invective - not even a
shred of reasoning.  Right wing discussion groups I used to visit long time
ago ain't much better either.  OTOH, some of the leftie listservs I know
are basically dominated by groupthink and political correctness (by which I
mean equating saying things with doing things).

I agree that there is some schmoozing, idle chat, and silly bickering going
on, but a fair number of posts is quite informative.  

Given my time constraints, lbo-talk is the only listserv that i regularly
monitor for these reasons.

wojtek