RE: proposed changes to list

[Barry Ramsay <barry_ramsay@d8.com>]

I'm in favor of a "subscribers only" list that requires full names. 

Thanks to the steering committee for their hard work.

BR


Barry Ramsay
D8, Inc.
1293 E. Freeze Road
Potlatch, ID USA  83855


	-----Original Message-----
	From:	Bill London [SMTP:london@wsu.edu]
	Sent:	Tuesday, June 02, 1998 11:10 AM
	To:	vision2020@moscow.com
	Cc:	bmoore@wanda.fsr.com
	Subject:	proposed changes to list



	The Moscow Vision 2020 steering committee (Susan Palmer,
Priscilla Salant
	and Bill London) met Monday pm to discuss the upcoming Moscow
Community
	Retreat and the Vision2020 email list.
		The retreat is doing fine--the list is in trouble.
		The source of the problem, as most subscribers will
recall, are some
	recent divisive, unsubstantiated and potentially libelous
personal attacks
	included in postings to this list.
		As a result of those postings, the list is at risk of
losing both its
	effectiveness and its subscribers.
		Regarding the archives (a repository located at the
website so obligingly
	donated to 2020 by First Step Research at the following address:
	<http://www.moscow.com/archives/vision2020/index.html>):
		I received an email posting from Craig Mosman last week,
angry at what he
	noted was a potentially libelous mention of his name in a 2020
posting.  In
	a later phone conversation, in a very gentlemanly manner, he
requested that
	2020 take the offending postings out of our archives.  I told
him that the
	steering committee would discuss that suggestion and then likely
post this
	issue to the list.
		Before the steering committee met on Monday, however, I
received a a
	posting from First Step, announcing that they--due to concerns
about
	potential libel claims--had deleted the offending posts.
		So, since First Step has assumed the responsibility for
the archives, that
	issue has lost some immediacy.
		But the larger problem of offensive postings remains.
How can we keep
	this list open--encouraging the free flow of ideas (even
outlandish ones)
	without becoming a dumping ground for baseless and disgusting
personal blasts?
		The steering committee proposes two courses of action:
		1. change this list to subscribers only.  Now anyone who
knows the 2020
	address can post anything to this list (spam advertisements,
etc).  We
	suggest restricting access to people who have subscribed to the
list.
	Subscribing would still be free and easy to do....
		2. require full names for all.  All subscribers would be
required to
	submit their first and last names as part of the subscription
process.  We
	are not sure how that process would be implemented--I intend to
discuss
	this with FSR representatives and post that info to the list.
It may
	require that everyone resubscribe and add their first/last names
to the list.
		Please consider these 2 proposals and post your response
(acceptance or
	rejection) to the list.  In addition, we are still hoping to
hear from more
	people regarding the other questions about the archives (whether
the
	archives should be eliminated or kept the same or moderated).
(Moderated
	archives means that offensive postings would appear on the list,
but be
	taken out of the archives, according to some established
criteria, by
	someone charged with that duty).
		Thanks.....
		BL