[Ansteorra] Politeness on a list-was Re: FYI

[D. Vandever]

Marion wrote:
>Thank
> you (every-one!) for maintaining civility through a very long discourse on
> such a volatile subject.  Rather than becoming a "melee," I think we all
> have achieved a little better understanding of each other.

I am also glad for that.  I had no doubts on the politeness of the first two
gentlemen I questioned for their saying trolls do not exist.  I know both of
them well, have had many a delightful conversation with both and can trust
them to always be polite, even-handed, fairly level headed, and I know both
love a good discourse.  The discourse may become impassioned but I can trust
them not to descend into the depths.  I did hesitate initially to state my
case, not because of these two but because on an open list where everyone
can read it, you never know who is going to have put tomato juice on their
wheaties that morning and are just spoiling for a chance to dump that
frustration on you.  What we have just seen happen with this thread and the
multiple babies it has spawned, is the ideal that lists strive for....a
forum where opinions can be stated, examined, rebutted, and refined without
the swift right turn into a shouting match where nobody is listening to each
other and everybody winces each time they open a new post.

My question is-if it happened here-why not everywhere?  And if it happened
this once-why not all the time?  I have followed all of this with great
interest and not a little relief that it did not become the aforesaid
shouting match.

Annes
Dear God,  Help me to be the person
my dog thinks I am.  Amen