Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!yale-com!debenedi
From: debenedi@yale-com.UUCP (Robert DeBenedictis)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: Fixes, please, not educational anecdotes??
Message-ID: <2356@yale-com.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 8-Nov-83 00:22:33 EST
Article-I.D.: yale-com.2356
Posted: Tue Nov  8 00:22:33 1983
Date-Received: Wed, 9-Nov-83 03:19:28 EST
References: rabbit.2186
Lines: 22

Recently (Mon Nov  7 10:43) rabbit!jj said:
    Let's get back to discussing EXTERNAL things, not net personalities.

Well, (I believe) that as access to OTHER people via communications
networks (such as this) increases that people will need to discuss
INTERNAL things in order to adequately differentiate themselves
from others.  Having a unique sense of personal identity is important.
If I watch some sitcom and it has a white, male, 21 yr. old programmer
with dark hair, dark eyes, average height, AND he acts more or less like 
me (read: has the same middle-class customs) THEN  who  am  I ?
Well, it's gonna be much more unlikely that the sitcom character will
also have MY interests and (especially) MY memories.  I see this desire
for differentiation as one of the chief reasons that there is no
censorship on the net, i.e., no restrictions on how one conveys themselves
to others.   (Why is it that there are so many others and just ONE me?)

Silly Aside:  Ever think of the word 'others' as denoting some subset
	      of the population (like 'redheads' does)?

"Now, You're Never Alone"                                        Sticking
Another Message In The Bottle from                               Out Like
Robert DeBenedictis                                              A Sore Thumb