Why some people do not post - why some people leave the list

Subject: Why some people do not post - why some people leave the list
From: "Suzanne Townsend" <suzyt -at- hfx -dot- eastlink -dot- ca>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Fri, 19 Apr 2002 09:26:23 -0300


Gang of thousands,

Just wanted to say, this list may not be as democratic as some of us would
like it to be, but enough voices might make a difference over time. So do
please complain to Eric about any post that you find offensive and that
discourages you or others from posting. Just ... stock up for a seige.

I have been a listmember off and on since .. 1995? ... a long time ago. I
always found Andrew Plato's posts slightly irreverent but funny. I laughed
out loud at the satire on his web site. It was only last Fall that I began
to find Andrew's presence on this list harmful to the general aim of open
discussion on the list. His approach became more and more to go for the
jugular. His posts began to stop the voices of others. And when told, he
would not back down. It's one thing to be an arrogant know-it-all, but when
people won't post questions because they have become afraid of a possible
response from one personality, that is a problem that should be addressed.

I didn't start the troll label. But sometimes a person waits for certain
questions and then pounces. Sometimes an egomaniac is so full of himself
that there is no compassion or space left for others. Sometimes a person
thinks that in the interests of "technical communication" it's OK to be rude
and unkind. Sometimes a person posts genuinely useful and wonderful
information that draws the list's interest. This reinstates that person's
power over the community so that the person's follow-up posts, which
generally become more and more lethal, are sure to be read as well. This
person also never shows interest in *learning* anything about the topic at
hand.

This person might not even be aware of what they are doing. When they are
told that is what they are doing, they still do not believe it and will not
listen.

Andrew just posted to me on the list, "It isn't my fault ... when you ...
get offended or annoyed."

Yes, it is his fault, but and because he cannot and does not listen.

Either that, or he knows exactly what he is doing and simply hides behind
rhetoric once he's fingered. As another poster put it, "back before I
stopped reading Andrew's posts, he admitted several times (usually when he'd
voiced some particularly cross-grained opinion and got a batch of posts
disagreeing with him) "Oh, I just wrote that to get a rise out of you lot.
And it worked."

I have really tried. I have written Andrew directly (once was enough, based
on his response). I have written Eric many times. I continue to write Eric
each time I see the same crime being perpetrated (evidence of which is other
people's frustrated responses and attempts at continuing a genuine
discussion about the original topic). But then another list member told me
that "Eric and Andrew are quite buddy-buddy. It seems to me that, on
TECHWR-L at least, Andrew can do no wrong." Eric wrote me that "I'll freely
grant that complaints from readers effectively define a problem. That said,
I don't know of a solution." And many similar complaints to Eric from other
listmembers have not changed anything. Therefore I have no confidence left
in the integrity of the techwr-l list. At least on the HATT list, such
personalities are moderated and thus never become such a stultifying
presence.

Please keep complaining. The techwr-l list might once again be free and
open!

Bye for now,
--Suzanne


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