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Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!bellcore!decvax!vortex!lauren
From: lauren@vortex.UUCP (Lauren Weinstein)
Newsgroups: net.news,net.news.stargate,net.followup
Subject: STARGATE (READ THIS!)
Message-ID: <504@vortex.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-Jan-85 20:32:41 EST
Article-I.D.: vortex.504
Posted: Wed Jan 16 20:32:41 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 18-Jan-85 02:20:26 EST
Organization: Vortex Technology, Los Angeles
Lines: 192
Xref: watmath net.news:2981 net.news.stargate:21 net.followup:4342

I am including the text of the threatening message from "hercules"
below.  Some of you will have already seen it.  But I want to
make sure that everyone interested in the project (one way or
another) sees this particular message.  I've had several people
already suggest to me that I or Usenix should take legal action
against the author of the message, under one or more of several
strong legal grounds.  However, my own inclination is not to hassle
with such things whenever possible.  I'll say this though.  If
the hassle level about this stuff continues to rise, I will pull
out and I will recommend to the satellite carrier that they pull
out as well.  In that respect, our friend at hercules may get his 
way--and then you can all personally thank him for the results,
one way or another.

I'm not going to go over all the issues again.  They've been 
discussed ad naseum in net.news and net.news.stargate, quite 
openly.  If you haven't seen them, I recommend that you dig up
the archives and look them over.  I'm not going to point out
the factual errors in the author's message, they have been
discussed already in previous messages.  My own impression is that
the clear issue bothering the message author is that he wants
to make sure that EVERYONE is forced, forever, to pay for and
receive EVERYTHING that ANYONE ever posts on Usenet.  Only in that
way can he be sure to keep getting all his free goodies, even though
he's forcing other people to pay for things they might not want,
and to spend their time wading through the muck.  But if that's
the way most people want it, that's fine by me.  The ONLY way stargate
can work is through moderation.  Not vicious censorship--but
considered moderation.  Nothing forces people to drop landline
netnews feeds other than their own costs and interests.  Right now
they are held captive by the technology of the net.  I was hoping
to give people some choice.

But I can live quite nicely, thank you, without threats and
intimidation over a damn volunteer project.  I am *this close*
to pulling my support from the project and recommending that
the satellite carrier refuse to provide facilities.  Some of 
the satellite people are going to be at Usenix, and I'll be
damned if I'm going to let them get insulted, even if only
by a few people.

I don't need this kind of sh** in my life.  Within the next
24 hours I'll probably decide if I'm going to proceed at all.
I know that there are many people out there who support the
project, and I have appreciated your messages of encouragement.
But I hope that you'll understand, after reading the message
below, why I may be forced to recommend that this entire
matter be terminated.  And if that happens, you'll have 
the author below, and a relatively few people like him,
to thank.

I have my own life to live and I'm not ready to put up with
this sort of stuff indefinitely.  I hope you all understand.

--Lauren--

[MESSAGE FOLLOWS]

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Path: decvax!tektronix!teklds!hercules!franka
From: franka@hercules.UUCP (Frank Adrian)
Newsgroups: net.cooks,net.crypt,net.cse,net.cycle,net.flame,net.followup,net.games,net.games.emp
Subject: WARNING
Message-ID: <387@hercules.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-Jan-85 00:59:34 EST
Article-I.D.: hercules.387
Posted: Wed Jan 16 00:59:34 1985
Organization: Tektronix, Beaverton OR
Lines: 119


     First of all, let me apologize for the  multiple  post-
ings,   posting   to   groups   where   I   am  not  allowed
(net.women.only), and, in general, making a mess of the net.
Also,  let me say that ALL  RESPONSES to this  should either
use net.news  or private mail to me.  Again I apologize  for
the  inconvenience,  but  in  this  case,  due  to this mes-
sage's importance, I feel this is justified.

     Also, the opinions posted here are my own and in no way
reflect those of my employer or any of its other employees.

     Primarily, the message is  that,  unless  something  is
done  shortly,  this  newsgroup  may not exist a year or two
from now.  To understand why requires a bit of history.

     The USENET was at first a very small net.  Being a very
small  network,  the  news  software was written as an unmo-
derated bulletin board system, where anyone could post items
thought to be of interest to all.  As time went on, the suc-
cess of  this  concept  became  evident,  as  shown  by  the
increased  number  of  machines  on the news network and the
corresponding increased volume of news items.  In fact,  the
volume  of  news  items  increased  so much that some of the
backbone sites were finding it hard to justify the  cost  of
news forwarding over long distance phone lines.

     A few months ago, a group of network administrators got
together  and  decided  to fund a project called "STARGATE".
Basicly, this was a  sound  idea.   News  sources  would  be
routed to the STARGATE transmitter which would beam the mes-
sages to a satellite which would, in turn,  relay  the  mes-
sages  to  more localized network hubs, thus alleviating the
need for as many long distance calls.  A  satellite  carrier
was  found and the plans for designing hardware and software
put into motion.

     Unfortunately, the people who have promoted this scheme
could  not  leave  well  enough  alone.   They felt that the
volume of "garbage" flowing through the net  was  too  high.
They  felt  that the carrier of these messages might be able
to be sued for possibly libelous messages.  They  felt  that
this  was  their  chance  to  play God and they took it.  In
short, the new network will have no unmoderated news.

     Any message that is to be transmitted through  STARGATE
will  be  screened  by a  moderator for "suitability of con-
tent",  "possibility of libel",  and  other  vague  criteria
which  only  he  moderators will know.  You won't be able to
protest a bounced message, because the moderator is the only
person  with  a right to relay your message to the STARGATE.
If your article is bounced or edited beyond recognition  you
won't  be able to defend yourself - how are you going to get
a message past the moderator?  In short,  you  can  call  it
moderation, but it's still a euphemism for censorship.

     "Fine," you say, "We'll just post  it  in  groups  that
don't  go through the STARGATE." Well, I wish that were pos-
sible.  Unfortunately, the backbone sites have decided  that
since  they have STARGATE, and all of the "important" groups
are there, they don't have to forward news articles in other
"less  popular"  groups.   The net, except for STARGATE ser-
vice, has effectively been destroyed.  The only  people  for
whom  the  net exists freely is the moderators.  The modera-
tors decide what are "acceptable" topics for the net.   They
have the power to say what you can say.

     The new people in power bleat, "We're saving  the  net.
Without  this  the backbone sites will desert, anyway." What
good is saving the net if only the people in power can enjoy
it?   If  they  cared about the net (and not just their cozy
little portion of it) they'd fight in their  institutions to
save  it.   The news network, as it stands now, is something
unique and should not be drastically altered.

     What can we do about this?  I  really  can't  think  of
much.  The net has always been voluntary.  One thing is cer-
tain, though.  As soon as STARGATE  goes  into  effect,  the
chances  for  a free network surviving is nil.  The institu-
tions involved can point to STARGATE and say that there's  a
perfectly good network right there.  There will be very lit-
tle chance to start a new network at that time.  So the only
thing  I  can  suggest is to try to stop STARGATE in any way
possible.  Let the people who conceived of this know that it
is  not  appreciated.   E-Mail  bomb them.  Flame them until
they drop.  If you see them in public, spit on  them.   Hide
dog  turds in their desks.  Disrupt the next USENIX meeting.
Check with your local ACLU to see if  there  are  any  legal
means to stop this.  Harass them in any way possible.

     In the mean time, organize.  Let your institution  know
that  you  appreciate this service they provide to you.  Let
them know that any change in the posting criteria of one  of
the  last  free  bulletin  board systems is not appreciated.
Set up an alternative network to take this net's place  when
it  folds.  Hopefully, there will be a place for unmoderated
news posting when this is over.

     The organizers have been less  than  honest  with  you.
They  hide  in  net.news (and net.news.stargate), discussing
these things which will alter  your  news  service,  without
generally  informing  the  public.  The first you would have
heard about it is  when  backbone  sites  would  have  said,
"We're  not  transmitting anything but moderated groups from
now on." You wouldn't have been able to stop them.  Goodbye,
net.women.    Goodbye,   net.motss.   Goodbye,  net.singles.
Goodbye, net.rec.*.   Goodbye,  net.flame.   Goodbye,  every
news  group that doesn't relate directly with what you do at
work, is politically unpopular, or that  your  administrator
just doesn't like.

     It looks as if a great experiment is coming to an  end.
But  it  doesn't  have  to be this way, if we work together.
Save the net.  Stop the STARGATE.  Don't let them  take away
a  unique  and wonderful resource from us.  Together, we can
stop them.

                         Stop the STARGATE,
                         Frank Adrian