Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!rutgers!att!mcdchg!ddsw1!karl From: karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Karl Denninger) Newsgroups: news.groups Subject: Re: Renewed call f/ discussion : ALT.KIDS Summary: Bigotry alert Message-ID: <1989Nov28.172854.4558@ddsw1.MCS.COM> Date: 28 Nov 89 17:28:54 GMT References: <1989Nov17.032939.11435@ddsw1.MCS.COM> <1222@mondo.omni.com> <1989Nov26.043958.771@ddsw1.MCS.COM> <1233@borabora.omni.com> Reply-To: karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Karl Denninger) Organization: Macro Computer Solutions, Inc., Mundelein, IL Lines: 84 In article <1233@borabora.omni.com> bob@omni.com (Bob Weissman) writes: >In article <1989Nov26.043958.771@ddsw1.MCS.COM>, benfeen@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Ben Feen) writes: >> In article <1222@mondo.omni.com> bob@omni.com (Bob Weissman) writes: >> >In article <1989Nov17.032939.11435@ddsw1.MCS.COM>, benfeen@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Ben Feen) writes: >> >> Ok, here's an idea; How do you guys feel about alt.kids, rather than >> >> soc.kids, and the more suggestive rec.kids? >> >I don't care what the name is; this group is inappropriate for USENET. >> >Let 'em use CompuServe. >> >> AAAAAARGGH!!!! I can't believe this attitude! What do you MEAN, >> "inappropriate?" In what way? Why should those under 18 be denied access to >> a public-access network? > >I didn't say you should be denied access. You obviously already have >that, anyway. You called for discussion about a newsgroup, and you got >it. Don't scream. I find your idea of the Usenet somehow being inappropriate for those under a certain age bigoted and unrealistic. Why should those who are under-age be singled out? >USENET has historically been limited to those of college age and above, >simply because of the lack of physical net access by kids. It is already >vastly overloaded. I would like you not to contribute to that overload >with traffic which would only be of interest to a tiny minority of net >readers. The net is >not< overloaded any more than you allow it to be. If you want to talk about things of interest to a tiny number of readers, well, we could talk about talk.bizarre, or alt.sex, or any one of a number of other groups. But I won't do that. >> And in any case, you misspelled Compu$erve. The >> '$' is important - without it you lose the full meaning of the word, for >> Compu$erve is the domain of they who have the ca$h. > >Listen up, junior. USENET isn't free, either. It costs real money to >send your postings around the world. Listen up senior. Ben is aware that Usenet isn't free. He even pays to access it, out of his own pocket. We're a public access site here, I own a portion of the machine, and by Gods, Ben pulls his own weight. He's also more articulate and less offensive, on the balance, than any one of a few hundred posters that are "of college age or above". See the recent chain letter, the JJ fiasco, or any one of a hundred other examples for details. All perpetrated by so-called adults. >Nobody is denying you an open forum to express your views. You are >perfectly free to write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, >or stand and picket outside the White House. (I often wish more people >would participate at this level rather than taking the easy way out >by posting to the net.) > >Furthermore, if you can participate in an adult manner in the existing >USENET newsgroups, then you are entirely welcome to do so. > >As for why you shouldn't be adding to USENET traffic with kid-specific >postings, that's easy: because you're not paying for it. Ok, I AM PAYING FOR IT. And I don't have a problem with the proposal, especially in alt.*. If you're an admin, and don't like it, then don't carry the group. Simple. >> I KNOW that there are many kids on the >> net, and all we need is a group for a kind of free conversation found >> nowhere else, and for the cost of a phone call, no more. > >There are plenty of BBS systems around. Use them. This system is >clogged enough as it is with drivel from so-called adults... Well-said. We could use a few thinking under-age people on this net; it would help to drown out the noise. -- Karl Denninger (karl@ddsw1.MCS.COM, !ddsw1!karl) Public Access Data Line: [+1 708 566-8911], Voice: [+1 708 566-8910] Macro Computer Solutions, Inc. "Quality Solutions at a Fair Price" Brought to you by Super Global Mega Corp .com