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From: owens@gatech.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: re:net.women.only
Message-ID: <400@gatech.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 25-Aug-83 08:59:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: gatech.400
Posted: Thu Aug 25 08:59:27 1983
Date-Received: Thu, 25-Aug-83 22:01:16 EDT
References: <458@ssc-vax.UUCP>  Although I can see very good reasons for a net.women.only, my main
Organization: Georgia Tech, School of ICS
Lines: 16

concern is 'truth' in the discussions therein.  Exclusive groups are 
powerful means to transmit beliefs, truthful or otherwise.  People are
people, and will definitely be influenced toward prejudice if they don't
watch themselves.  I once recalled a black minister who was called to
preach at a prison, only to be shocked that the majority of his audience
was white.  He later glumly admitted that even blacks were prejudiced and
had to be careful about the attitudes that they adopted.  My main concern
is that a whole lot of flames will be generated in net.women.only complaining
about prejudice and discrimination, and not being tempered by interaction
with any members of the accused party.  I look at net.women as a way for
members of both sexes to bring their beliefs out in the open for others
to look at and comment on, so that uninformed opinions can be corrected.
I, for one, need all the correction that I can get.
                			Gerald Owens
					ICS at GaTech.