SEELANGS Administrivia - Proposed Addition to Welcome message

[Alex Rudd]

Dear SEELangers,

This message is the follow-up to a message I posted here
on November 11th, 2001.  For those who missed that post,
or would simply like to refresh their memories for purposes
of context, you can have LISTSERV e-mail you another copy
of it by sending the command:

GETPOST SEELANGS 15286

in the body (not the Subject: line) of e-mail to:

LISTSERV at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU

In response to my request for comments, I received 27 messages
from you.  Most contained no specific requests or suggestions,
but simply expressed support for the way in which I had handled
the situation.  To those who took the time to send along
concrete suggestions and insightful observations, I thank you,
as they were useful.  I'm sorry I didn't have the time to
respond to everyone individually.

In general, most respondents felt there was no need to alter
or further clarify the purpose of this list.  Some specifically
requested that it be kept as restricted to "topics concerning
Slavic Languages and Literatures" as possible.  However, others
rightly pointed out that what may qualify as such a topic is
open to interpretation, and some guidance may be necessary.  My
opinion is that observation for awhile of the discussions and
topics seen here is the best guidance for any new, or existing,
list member.

Two other prominent themes emerged from among the comments sent
me:

First, it is upsetting to see intemperate messages posted to
SEELANGS by some list members in response to those posts
perceived by them to be inappropriate and not sufficiently
related to our core purpose.

Second, although the message that started this particular ball
rolling may have been inappropriate subject matter for SEELANGS,
it is not always a simple matter to separate the discussion of
politics from discussions of Slavic Languages and Literatures,
as an understanding of a given set of political concerns may
be required for linguistic comprehension in a particular context.

Accordingly, I have drafted language I propose we add to the
Welcome message that greets new SEELANGS subscribers.  Here
it is:

--- Begin ---

Use of the List
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There are many people subscribed to SEELANGS.  Most are instructors
or students of one type or another, and all of them presumably have
some interest in Slavic Languages and Literatures.  List members'
specific areas of interest vary, as does the knowledge they bring
to our discussions.  Please remember that every other list member
is deserving of your respect, and conduct yourself accordingly when
posting.

Specifically, remember that "Slavic Languages and Literatures" is
what brings people to this list, yet not every post will contain
a question or comment fitting neatly under that heading.  If you
are concerned that someone has posted something falling, in your
opinion, too far from the central purpose of the list, do not
write to the entire list to express your displeasure.  Instead,
first understand that there must be some amount of wiggle room on
a list like SEELANGS, as there will be small differences in what
subscribers expect to see here.  If you are new to the list, please
observe for awhile to see the uses to which most members put it.

If you must voice your opposition to the fact that a given subject
has been raised on the list, please write directly to the list
owners, as they will be in a position to take action, or explain
why taking action is not warranted.  The list owners can be
reached by writing to:

SEELANGS-Request at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU

For purposes of clarification, please note that the discussion of
discrete political matters is not welcome on SEELANGS.  However,
as political and other concerns have influenced Slavic Languages
and Literatures, if posting on such a theme, use common sense and
recognize when your contribution has ceased to be about aiding
linguistic comprehension, and has begun to be purely political.
There are many other discussion lists and similar on-line discussion
forums that exist solely for the discussion of politics, and you
should not confuse SEELANGS with them.

--- End ---

Although a couple of people requested that I include specific
examples of topics both acceptable and unacceptable, I chose
not to do that to avoid the additional confusion I feel doing
so would have created.

If there's no serious concern with that language, I anticipate
adding it to the Welcome message within the next few days with
no further announcement here.

For those of you who've never seen our Welcome message, you can
always grab your own copy by sending the command:

GET WELCOME SEELANGS

in the body of e-mail to:  LISTSERV at LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU

It's also available on our Web site; URL below.

Please direct any response to this message to me off-list.

Thanks.

- Alex, list owner of SEELANGS    seelangs-request at listserv.cuny.edu
....................................................................
Alex Rudd                ahrjj at cunyvm.cuny.edu            ARS KA2ZOO
{Standard Disclaimer}    http://home.attbi.com/~lists/seelangs/

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