Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!ficc!jeffd
From: jeffd@ficc.uu.net (Jeff Daiell)
Newsgroups: news.groups
Subject: Various topics
Message-ID: <_DW17VCxds8@ficc.uu.net>
Date: 20 Feb 90 18:51:48 GMT
Organization: FICC [but opinions my own!]
Lines: 44




I think a head-to-head-to-head vote on *.aquaria is a good
idea.   But we need to pick the proverbial innocent bystander
to count the votes (i.e., Richard, Peter, Oleg, me, Trish, and
Chuq would be prima facie ineligible).

If we take this step, perhaps the illwill generated by the
actions and counteractions regarding *.aquaria can die
down.  "'Tis," as a certain young Dane once put it, "a
consumation devoutly to be wished."

BTW, bowing to a rather wide desire that the arguments
amongst Trish, Tom, and me cease, I'm going to let most
of their silliness slide from now on.  There were two
reasons for that: (1) the realization that, no matter how
many times folks correct them, Trish would be unwilling
(or unable) to curb her irascability, and Tom would be
unwilling (or unable) to return to Earth from whatever
bleak pseudo-universe it is he inhabits; and (2) I wanted
to see how long it would take them to turn on each other!

Finally, a note on soc.culture.iranian.  I agree that the 
actions of the Iranian government are reprehensible ...
but let's not deprive net.Iranians --- and anyone else who
receives soc groups --- of the chance to explore this
culture.  

As I've said of other lands, there's more to Iran than
the Ayatollah.  For instance: will Iran's Baha'is stay,
or leave?  Has the supply of gold been totally wiped out
by the war with Iraq?  How is the country's Jewish population
treated?  What is the literacy level?  If many Moslems
adhere to Islam's prohibition on interest, how do the
banks handle savings accounts -- and loans?  And so on.

Let's direct any retribution toward the actual offenders.
Collective guilt is an irrational concept, and collective
"justice" is a contradiction in terms.


Jeff

-- 
         "I'm just a soul whose intentions are good ...
        Oh, Lord,  please don't let me be misunderstood!"

                              -- The Animals