[GRLUG] List Moderation

[Tim Schmidt]

On Wed, May 14, 2008 at 8:55 AM, Justin Denick <justin.denick at gmail.com> wrote:
> We should really think seriously about list moderation.

I assume that's your way of volunteering...  or do you want others to
do the work?

>  I don't who is maintaining this server anymore,
>  but perhaps they might adjust the spam settings to discard any
>  message containing certain buzz words like "top posting".

You just tripped the filter yourself.  This topic was dead (or so I
thought) until you dredged it back up.

>  We may even extend that to include messages that only
>  serve to discredit our lists' reputation and inflame
>  our attitudes.

Ah, yes.  Let's ban everything controversial, and burn some books
while we're at it.

>  The moderator may then choose to suspend the individuals' grlug
>  account for a week or so.

IMHO, this sort of treatment should be reserved for spammers.  Normal
discussion is quite well regulated by communal consensus.

>  The constant discussion of RFC standards for electronic
>  communication

huh?

>  has made me  wonder if we don't look more like the Email Police
>  and less like Linux enthusiasts!

I don't particularly care what you or I look like...  Looks rarely
impart information of substance.

>  Imagine what a prospective employer or recruitment firm thinks
>  when reading our threads. I know they've read our posts, I've had
>  them mentioned to me by a respected staffing firm.

Are you implying that the words of individuals you may not have ever
met, may share nothing in common with (save membership to a diverse
mailing list), have never worked with, and have no other associations,
might influence your job prospects?

Ridiculous.

Your own actions, here, or anywhere else, are an employer's concern.
How you handle yourself when the things around you go to shit.

Were I an employer, I'd have liked to see you lead by example, and
attempt to reinforce and buttress upon existing community values.
That's how successful [community] management is done.  Instead, you
looked for someone else (a moderator, an objectionable content filter)
to fix your problems for you.  I'd be much more worried about what
_that_ says to a prospective employer than anything coming from my
email address.

--tim