[12717] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
Re: Project Gutenberg Etext #1900
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Dan Lester)
Fri Feb 5 20:13:58 1999
Date: Fri, 05 Feb 1999 15:41:37 -0600
From: Dan Lester <dan@84.com>
In-Reply-To: <Pine.SOL.3.95q.990203103139.21583N-100000@bluestem>
To: PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU
Reply-To: Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU>
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Oh, Michael, Michael, Michael......
>From Edupage:
>
>E-MAIL RESPONSES AT A SNAIL'S PACE
>A recent survey of Fortune 100 companies by e-mail software firm Brightware
>shows that many respondents allow e-mail to languish for days before
>responding to it. Four companies took a full week to respond to the
>question, "What is your corporate headquarters address?" (In one case,
>Hewlett-Packard took 23 days.) Rapid responders included Texaco, which
>responded within four minutes, and Albertson's and Costco, both of which
>responded within five minutes. Overall, fewer than 15% responded
I know this is from Edupage....but I can hardly feel sorry for someone who
waited 23 days to find out a mailing address. They could have called their
local library to get an answer in minutes.
>ACTING DUMB, OR AT LEAST LEARNING IMPAIRED, GETS THE BIG BUCKS
>
>Last night, Feb. 3, one of the major networks did an expose on
>the practice of the residents of Greenwich, Connecticut] which
>is perhaps best known as the richest community in the USA], of
>having their students get extra funding, extra tutoring, extra
>exam time [even on the SATs], by the simple expedient of dumb,
>or as it is politically correctly stated, "learning impaired,"
I don't know (or even care a great deal) whether the above is true or not,
but this sort of "citation" hardly inspires one to dig into it. What
network were you watching? What show was it on? Who reported it? Who was
interviewed? Providing a bit of information generally helps the
researcher.....
>Connecticut was/is famous in this area for once having, at the
>same time, the highest per capita income AND the lowest amount
>spent per student in their public schools, possibly because of
>a trend to send all the rich kids to private schools, and then
>to refuse to fund the public schools. This should also have a
>corroboration, as I heard it from a Connecticut teacher.
Again, you'd sure inspire more confidence in your rantings if you had some
facts rather than rumors and memories. Remember, this is ratings period on
TV, and all the stations, local and national, are busy drumming up exciting
stuff to get you to watch the "exclusive" on their newscast.
And, if the above is true, why is it a problem or concern of anyone but
Connecticut residents? Why should you or I care? Or do you still have so
much sixties blood left that you fancy you can solve all the problems of
the world? And, finally, what does it have to do with PACS-L or the other
lists you post this stuff to?
>Speaking of corroboration, I received a number of statements a
>"modem tax" as many seemed to call ANY fee associated with the
>increased phone rates for using modems, never has happened. I
The key is that this rumor has been going around since the eighties, and
perhaps earlier. Still hasn't happened, particularly on the national level
that is always claimed. And, the rumors change weekly between whether it
will be done to us by the President, the Congress, the FCC, or some other
agency.
>can tell you from my personal experience that I have been at a
>college where their telco actually charged for an entire extra
>line wherever any modem was installed. Apparently, they had a
>system that allowed voice ONLY on "normal" lines so the charge
>could not be avoided. Apparently our local telcos have tried,
Once again, details would make this more credible. Sounds to me like it
was a campus with a digital phone system (I happen to work on one), which
thus requires a separate analog line for a modem to work. Naturally, you'd
have to pay for that. And, if it is this type of situation, it isn't up to
the telco...but the college which bought the digital system.
>and failed, to get additional modem charges as well. But that
Most telephone tariffs are set by state public utilities commissions or
similar agencies. If such is happening in your state, then political
action might be useful.
>And last, but certainly not least: for those of you receiving
>email from the LIBREF listserver about "Censorship," and "Free
>Speech," and a few other related topics. . .the reason you did
>not hear more about these is because my remarks, and, so I was
>told, those of several others, were. . .how to best put this:
Michael, you're forgetting one of the basic laws of publishing and
information: complete freedom of the press is held only by he who owns the
press. An electronic mailing list is such a printing press. The mailing
list that you use to disseminate these tracts is one. What is published on
it is up to you. The same is true of any other mailing list, if the list
owner chooses to exercise such control.
Do you have a deal with the NY Times or WSJ that they'll publish all your
letters or news releases? I didn't think so. The same goes for a mailing
list that is moderated or edited. Period. End of story. I can scream
"censorship" that the New Yorker didn't publish my poetry, cartoons, and
articles, but it is indeed a meaningless cry.
>I won't repeat those simple four lines
>here, even if it may be true that their censors don't very far
>down toward the bottom of longer messages. However I will say
Good. We read them the first time around.
> When I complained, they posted the note
>that had been censored, then, as I recall, still wanted to end
>the discussion with me having the last word.
Well, if you got the last word, it seems strange that you're complaining.
I've ended discussions on off-topic things frequently on my lists. When
POSTCARD gets off into discussions of the ups and downs of the stock market
(inspired by marginally on topic posts about eBay postcard auctions and the
company's stock prices) for a week or more, I end them. Period. End of
story. As you know, a classroom teacher or professor will do the same
thing. Anarchy just doesn't work in most environments.
>I may not agree with what is being said, but I will defend, to
>the death, their right to say it.
I agree. I even think the anti-abortion idiots and murderers have the
right to publish the abominable web page that they just got sued over. I
despise what they say and do and suggest there, but I'll also support their
right to say it, and hope that the court judgment will be overturned.
>They finally decided to let the conversation go on its own and
>the result was that it ended soon enough and simply enough w/o
>any interference from the "listowners" rather than moderators.
>
>I wonder if we will have to go through all that again. . . .mh
I'm not sure what we'll have to go through again that you're worrying
about. Oh, of course, you mean that anyone would DARE to not let your
rants go on forever.
cheers
dan
--
Dan Lester, 3577 East Pecan, Boise, ID 83716-7115 USA 208-383-0165
dan@84.com http://www.84.com/ http://www.idaholibraries.org/
http://library.boisestate.edu/ http://cyclops.boisestate.edu/
http://www.lili.org/ http://www.postcard.org/ Sent me a postcard of a
library yet?
