Yes, really.

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Unk's Troll-free Private Saloon : One Thread

I stopped by, with the kind assistance of Unk, to wish the forum a happy day of thanks.

During the great Y2K debate, I weighed in against private fora. While I defended the electronic right of "free assembly," I felt private clubs lacked the robust quality of open debate. The natural questions remain. Who decides who will be admitted? Under what criteria? Who decides who will be expelled?

These were concerns in the original TB 2000. Some of you may recall the "delete-on-sight" policy. This was censorship based on authorship, not content. I still value the ideal of open debate, however, the decline of the "Wild West" demonstrates that ideals cannot always be realized.

At any public meeting, there are general rules of decorum. If one grossly violates these rules, one will lose his right to participate. Unfortunately, the Internet makes it difficult to exclude the person who would deny everyone the right to discourse, save herself. Perhaps a password-protected forum is a reasonable way to protect those who would use their real identities from "stalking" or harrassment in real life... if such a dreadful thing might actually happen. (chuckle)

Ah, enough of the introspection. I hope you all enjoy a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and wish you the best with this quiet oasis of a forum.

-- Ken Decker (kcdecker@att.net), November 20, 2001

Answers

Howdy Ken:

I just dropped in. Have a good holiday yourself. Weren't you a deer slayer? How was your season? I have given-up hunting myself. I just hunker down and try to avoid being shot. In the 5 county area, we have had two people killed [they shot themselves] and 3 wounded. I no longer trust these people. This is the last day. Fortunately, we have a law, from 1820 and upheld in courts, that allows one to shoot armed trespassers. I am considering using that one. ;o)))

Best Wishes,,,,,

Z

-- Z1X4Y7 (Z1X4Y7@aol.com), November 20, 2001.


It's good to see you're alive and well, Ken. And not too old to modify a stance (re:password-protected fora). ;)

I've tempered my idealism in this regard as well. When WILL we, as a species, grow up? I shall not hold my breath while I wait.

A safe, happy holiday to you and yours,

-- Rich (living_in_interesting_times@hotmail.com), November 20, 2001.


Hey Ken,

WWWWaaaaaazzzzzzzzuuuuuupppppp???

We've come a long way since BIFFY..eh?..Mr. Decker ;)

Good to see ya...Have a Happy Thanksgiving to yerself too!

-- Peg (pegmcleod@mediaone.net), November 20, 2001.


to you Ken, and to all of the 'saloon's' patrons. :)

-- Pammy (the@head.barmaid in this joint ;)), November 20, 2001.


Mr. Decker,

Long time no speak? I am glad to see you here and look forward to some rousing debate with you sir...

Regards,

Snoozin' on the porch...

The Dog

-- The Dog (dogdesert@hotmail.com), November 20, 2001.



Happy Holidays Ken!

-- helen (glad@to.see.you), November 20, 2001.

Ken--

Happy Thanksgiving. It's a little quiet here but at least no one farts in the elevator. Yeah, there is a difference between a censured forum and a password protected forum. Hope you'll continue to drop by. No sign of Cathy Carow.

-- (lars@indy.net), November 20, 2001.


Howdy Ken,

Long time no see, at least under the regular moniker.Hope you have an excellent Thanksgiving as well.

And to all of you that are gonna be out on the roads this week please be careful, the traffic is expected to be much heavier than usual due to less people flying, Godspeed.

-- capnfun (capnfun1@excite.com), November 20, 2001.


Thank you for the kind words. As for hunting, the weather has not been favorable to my attempts (elk, not deer). Hopefully, Rich, I will never be so old as to lose the ability to reconsider a position. This was the great weakness of the Y2K pessimists. Once an opinion had formed, most lacked the ability (or humility) to reconsider. In principle, I still prefer open debate... but in a forum where general rules of behavior are observed. When a person is allowed to engage in sociopathic behavior, it's no longer a forum... it's a hostage situation. And yes, Cap, you guess correctly that I have visited the Wild West on occasion in stealth mode. I prefer people know who I am and that I "know" the people to whom I speak. Enjoy the celebration, folks.

-- Ken Decker (kcdecker@att.net), November 21, 2001.

Back at ya Ken. May each of us find ourselves filled with gratitude for all the blessings we recieve each day, however small or large. Nice to see ya in these parts Ken! Pull up a stool and stay a while...

-- Aunt Bee (Aunt__Bee@hotmail.com), November 21, 2001.


Oh jeeezuz, talk about ruining a good forum! That's all we need is Mr. Pompous Ass intruding on our conversations.

-- (start your own @ forum. decker), November 22, 2001.

So much for the Troll-Free in the forum title. Delete!

Happy Thanksgiving Everybody! :)

-- Rich (living_in_interesting_times@hotmail.com), November 22, 2001.


Whoever left the door open is responsible for getting that troll outta here... You know what they do to the carpets...

Sniffin' for trolls... (Grrrr...)

The Dog

-- The Dog (dogdesert@hotmail.com), November 22, 2001.


Happy Thanksgiving to you, Ken, and to all of you here.

-- FutureShock (gray@matter.think), November 22, 2001.

Well, Ken can add his thoughts to MY conversations anytime he wants. [What a crappy thing to say to someone on Thanksgiving.]

Happy Thanksgiving, Ken, and all the other folks here [exceptin' maybe that one.]

-- Anita (Anita_S3@hotmail.com), November 22, 2001.



I've been baking since 4:30 a.m., and decided to check my email. When I was younger, one of the best things about Thanksgiving was the smell of baking bread, turkey and pies. Now, I understand the work involved in creating the aromatic ambience.

As for our "troll," I would hardly recognize a Greenspun thread without some bringing forth an old axe to grind. (chuckle)

There are far more grievious wounds in our world than the bruised egos of Y2K. We also enjoy a bounty beyond the imagining of our ancestors. May you all find a Thanksgiving chalice plain enough to honor your sorrows, deep enough to hold your gratitude and full enough to share.

-- Ken Decker (kcdecker@att.net), November 22, 2001.


On this year, especially, with so many Americans hurting from the deep wounds of 9/11, I pray that we can all look around at the many blessings in our lives and be truly thankful for them.

Happy Thanksgiving to you one and all, even the troll, heehee.

-- Uncle Deedah (unkeeD@yahoo.com), November 22, 2001.


I got into a big argument with Ken Decker once, but hell, that's long over with. If someone comes into this forum being polite, it's being a churlish turd not to be polite in return.

Ken's postings, in his career, have contained many excellent points. As far as his manner is concerned, all I can say is that there are some people who don't like my manner. Hard to believe, but it's true. Certainly nothing I lose any sleep over.

-- Peter Errington (petere7@starpower.net), November 22, 2001.


Peter, most of us have argued with Ken about one thing or another. The thing about his suffering cooking at 4:30AM is that it's good suffering. Nice to hear that from Ken. (chuckle)

-- Carlos (riffraff@cybertime.net), November 22, 2001.

Hi Ken,

Glad to hear from you.Dare I ask what you are all giving thanks for?

-- Chris (Ejjjit @ireland.com), November 24, 2001.


Dare I ask what you are all giving thanks for?

Life

Liberty

and the pursuit of..

***FREEDOM***

;)

-- (juz @n old. American), November 24, 2001.


Peace

-- Cherri (jessam5@home.com), November 25, 2001.

Adding to the above: health, laughter and good friends

(And no further terrorist attacks.)

-- Pammy (pamela_sue57@hotmail.com), November 25, 2001.


I have to admit I prefer it nice and "mature"? here, that juvinile, insane stuff gets old, and yes, does drive off people who I would like to have discussions with. I realized with a new e-mail addy Unk wouldn't know if it were really me, until I told him something that made him sure it was me, something only he, I and one other person would know. Whew! Glad I realised that was needed :o) Thanks for being cautious Unk, it is worth it!

-- Cherri (jessam5@home.com), November 25, 2001.

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