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From: igb@fulcrum.bt.co.uk (Ian G Batten)
Newsgroups: misc.misc,news.admin,news.groups
Subject: Dedication
Message-ID: <$`J9$$@masalla.fulcrum.bt.co.uk>
Date: 4 Jan 90 14:05:26 GMT
Sender: igb@fulcrum.bt.co.uk (Ian G Batten)
Organization: BT Fulcrum, Birmingham, England.
Lines: 58


Due to a quiet lunchtime, I've just been catching up on
news.groups and such other flame-fests.  I have one question:
what do people get out of this?

There are (presumably) intelligent people making wild threats,
insults and assertions amongst themselves about things that
ultimately just don't matter.  It seems that there are people who
feel so personally about the creation of some newsgroup or other
that they become totally irrational about it.  

Take the current Pink Floyd row.  I find it rather sad to watch
someone saying they will press for a group to be created for as
long as they live.  It's not that they will strive against
cancer, support their family or defend freedom, but they'll
create a group to discuss rock music.

Later, the proponent defends his excesses by reference to his
fanaticism about Pink Floyd and, by extension, the group to
discuss same.

As chuq@apple.com said, people then start using words like
rights, fascism, rape et cetera to make their point.  People
accuse other people of dastardly deeds, dishonesty, immorality.
As if it mattered.

Let's face it, there are a lot of people with social problems in
computing.  People who are damn good at what they do, but have
nothing outside of it.  And people who aren't so good, and still
have nothing outside.

In the 70s, they played D+D.  Now they play the net.  All the
words, actions and statements are really just role playing;
people taking big stances about worthless things.  I attack the
goblin.  I call Richard Sexton a rude name.  

In the end, the net just does not matter.  Sure, it's fun.  Sure,
it passes the time whilst your neat kernel hacks are compiling.
Or the machine is rebooting after the panic().  But is it going
to change the world?  Or even make you happier?  I doubt it.

All we have are rather pathetic figures sparring with each other
to try and mask out the pain of being unwanted.

Someone a while ago got flamed for saying ``Get a Life!''.  It
seemed a pretty good statement to me.

Before you launch into some flame-war about the next newsgroup,
or even a flame war against me, just think.  Couldn't you be
doing something WORTHWHILE?  Do you have a better use for your
life?

Just cynical.

ian

--
Ian G Batten, BT Fulcrum - igb@fulcrum.bt.co.uk - ...!uunet!ukc!fulcrum!igb