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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!cbosgd!mark
From: mark@cbosgd.UUCP (Mark Horton)
Newsgroups: net.news
Subject: Re: Re: Welcome to Usenet 1984 (Chuq's reply)
Message-ID: <447@cbosgd.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 29-Oct-84 20:56:41 EST
Article-I.D.: cbosgd.447
Posted: Mon Oct 29 20:56:41 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 30-Oct-84 01:49:01 EST
References: <1622@nsc.UUCP> <229@bragvax.UUCP>
Reply-To: mark@cbpavo.UUCP (Mark Horton)
Organization: Bell Labs, Columbus
Lines: 32

OK, I see I was misunderstood.  Let me spell it out in detail.

If you see someone doing something you feel is inappropriate in
public (e.g. on the net,) first send them mail, POLITELY asking
them not to do that.  You probably won't be the only one.  In fact,
the person will probably get lots of unpolite mail, so try to make
yours the one that says what it must but is polite enough to stand
apart from the crowd.

If the behavior continues or the one posting was so horrible that some
followup action is required, complain to the Usenet contact for the
machine in question.  Send a carbon copy of the complaint to me.

If, and only if, this does not solve the problem, I or someone I appoint
will contact the person's boss.  This is a LAST RESORT but sometimes it's
the only resort left.  (For example, the person might be the local Usenet
contact, or the Usenet contact may lack authority to require the offender
to comply.)

In almost all cases, the desired result is that the person stop posting
whatever messages are causing the problem.  Only in extreme cases (e.g.
the AA complaint) is a public apology in order.  It is never the goal to
get the person fired, and it hasn't happened yet.  A word to the Usenet
contact is usually enough to take care of the problem, so bringing in the
boss is a very rare occurrence.  (I'd guess once or twice a year.)  In many
circumstances, when it's gotten to this level, other innocent people lose
netnews, so this is never desireable.

By the way, for those who feel this places too much power in my hands,
I'll be happy to appoint someone else the net trusts.

	Mark Horton