Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site stolaf.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!floyd!vax135!houxz!houxm!ihnp4!stolaf!dunlops From: dunlops@stolaf.UUCP (Steve Dunlop) Newsgroups: net.news.group Subject: Some reasons to keep net.general Message-ID: <1740@stolaf.UUCP> Date: Tue, 19-Jun-84 15:47:40 EDT Article-I.D.: stolaf.1740 Posted: Tue Jun 19 15:47:40 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 21-Jun-84 03:51:01 EDT Organization: St. Olaf College, Northfield MN Lines: 33 - If net.general is removed, people will still post garbage to newsgroups in which it doesn't belong -- net.announce could become the next net trashcaan. Removing net.general won't fix anything. - There is still a need for a newsgroup for announcements and items of interest to nearly everyone. Net.announce doesn't entirely fill this need. - Net.general once did serve as a valid newsgroup for general interest items. With some work, and cooperation from individual sites, it could be this way again. I would suggest the following: o New releases of net software would prevent anyone but site administrators from posting to net.general. If anyone else wanted to post to net.general, they would mail their posting to their site administrator. Although this is censorship, I think that it is necessary to keep net.general alive. If a site administrator refuses to post an article to net.general, users can still post their articles to other newsgroups. This would help keep obscene and inappropriate articles out of net.general, without really denying anyone use of the net. It would also prevent accidental postings to net.general. o Articles posted in net.general would be limited to 24 lines. I am sure that many people will feel that the limited censorship I have proposed is a violation of rights and goes against the philosophy of the net. There is some truth to this, but eventually we are going to have to realize that the net has become too large to allow unlimited posting of articles to all newsgroups. Posting net articles is, more than ever, a privilege, NOT a right. -- Steven Dunlop ihnp4!stolaf!dunlops