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From: wmartin@brl-tgr.ARPA (Will Martin )
Newsgroups: net.news.group,net.politics,net.rec
Subject: Re: Anyone interested in a firearms enthusiasts' mailing list?
Message-ID: <7679@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Date: Thu, 24-Jan-85 15:06:18 EST
Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.7679
Posted: Thu Jan 24 15:06:18 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 27-Jan-85 05:14:50 EST
References: <59@osu-eddie.UUCP>
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Xref: watmath net.news.group:2813 net.politics:7163 net.rec:239

I've mailed my vote already, but I do want to post a strong concern
regarding this: If such a list is established, it should operate under
the same restrictions that many other special-interest groups have --
that is, there should be NO debate about the basic subject.

Just as it is flat WRONG to use "net.women.only" to post anti-feminist
or anti-women messages, or to use "net.motss" to post anti-homosexual
statements, or to use "net.rec.nude" to claim that public nudity is
a terrible thing, etc., it should be wrong to post anti-gun (or pro-
gun-control) statements in "net.rec.guns", if one is so established.

The whole purpose of such a group would be for the pleasurable chat
and exchange of information regarding a HOBBY. The purpose of having
a hobby is to enjoy oneself for some periods of non-work time. If
such a group ends up to be a seething pit of gun-control flamage,
it is effectively spoiled as an enjoyable "clubroom" for a meeting
of like minds. If such a degeneration is inevitable, I would much 
rather that no "firearms" group ever was created -- seeing the 
desecration and destruction of what might have been an enjoyable
thing would be too painful. (I expect that some of the founders or 
original participants in groups like net.motss might feel just the
same way about what happened to those groups over time.)

I volunteer to be the moderator if the only way this could be saved
would be to make it "mod.rec.guns". I never volunteered to be so
involved in a USENET group before, because I have USENET access only
by the courtesy of the staff at BRL, who have granted me guest 
access privledges. It would involve shipping any postings mailed to 
me back to BRL, via FTP, from my non-USENET main account, where all
mail to me is auto-forwarded. The work would be worth it, to save
such a group from sinking into degeneracy from the start.

This is probably exactly what many people would NOT want in a
moderator -- explicit content and opinion control. Nonetheless,
that is the way I would do it, were I to have the position. (Who
would decide this anyway?)

Will Martin

USENET: seismo!brl-bmd!wmartin     or   ARPA/MILNET: wmartin@almsa-1.ARPA