From: tmaddox@milton.u.washington.edu (Tom Maddox)
Subject: Re: Lack of communication between VR commentators and everyone else.
Date: Sun, 2 Jun 1991 07:12:33 GMT
Organization: The Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington



>[MODERATOR'S NOTE:  Tom Maddox replies to some strong feelings expressed on
>alt.cyberpunk regarding discussion of virtual reality.  Please excuse the
>base language employed here.

        Bob, I seem to recall your taking exception (in one of the
EFF groups) to a moderator's heavy-handed editorializing.  Let *me* take
exception to yours.

        In particular, I find myself mortified that I inadvertently exposed
Eliot Handelman to your moralistic "base language" comment.  I was the one
who cross-posted this message, and I was the one who agreed to letting it
be expurgated, but in fact the original insight was Eliot's, and I was
merely building on it.

        I sometimes wonder just how great the divide is that separates not
disciplines but the habits of those who work in them.  Is the simple use of
an extremely common expletive really so heinous?  I find Eliot's original
message both funny and insightful, as I did his original insistence that
the powers that are with regard to Cyberspace 1 should make their proceedings
available electronically.

        So let me publicly apologize to Eliot for making him the target of
your scorn.  I think his original language, as posted in alt.cyberpunk, was
*entirely appropriate* for its venue, and I'm sorry that I exported it to
one where the standards of decorum are so inflexible.

--
                                Tom Maddox
                        tmaddox@milton.u.washington.edu
        "It is imperative to write invulnerable sentences."  --  Hugo Ball


[MODERATOR'S NOTE:  I absolutely disagree.  There are several reasons why
alt.cyberpunk is considered trivial; in the opinion of many, choice of 
language is one of them.  I choose not to import alt.cyberpunk habits to
this newsgroup.  And yes, I considered Eliot's language quite base, even
more so in the context of his vindictive attack.  I missed the humor.  In
fact, I missed most of what Eliot was screaming about until I got past the
yelping.  Filtering is a moderator's responsibility.  I never cut content.
-- Bob Jacobson]