Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site h-sc1.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!harvard!h-sc1!wilson_3
From: wilson_3@h-sc1.UUCP (bradford wilson)
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: Fear and Loathing on the Clouds
Message-ID: <638@h-sc1.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 25-Oct-85 20:53:20 EST
Article-I.D.: h-sc1.638
Posted: Fri Oct 25 20:53:20 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 31-Oct-85 06:08:35 EST
References: <614@h-sc1.UUCP> <1718@gatech.CSNET>
Distribution: net
Organization: Harvard Univ. Science Center
Lines: 139


         I see that Mr. Spafford has outdone himself this time:
> (Preface: Normally, I try to avoid responding to petty insults and
> slander.
>  dI would normally ignore this
> (especially since it is crossposted to net.trash...er, net.flame)
        
        Sinking to our "petty" level already, eh Spaf?
  
> >"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds."
> >				--- Ralph Waldo Emerson
> 
> "Controversy equalizes fools and wise men -- and the fools know it"
> 				Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
> 
> This, of course, is also a snappy quote, and helps explains Mr. Thau's
> posting, I would guess.
  
   "Puritanism: The fear that somewhere, somehow, somebody is having fun."
                                --- H.L. Mencken
  
  This, of course, is also a snappy quote, and helps explain Mr. Spafford's
  posting, I would guess. 
  
> >Recently, however, Spafford has taken it upon himself to delete two
> >thriving, busy newsgroups --- net.internat and net.bizarre.
> 
> The PLO is thriving and busy too, but I don't want them using my
> machine, nor am I going to pay for their phone calls.  Busy is not
 
          Oo, Oo. I love it when you address the issue, Spaf. 
  
> No comment. ("By dint of railing at idiots we run the risk of becoming
> idiots ourselves."   --Gustave Flaubert) 
 
          Too late.
 
> Right.  And we have all noticed how you have worked at maintaining a
> major news feed, and justified the costs to your administration.  We've
> noted how you've helped write and debug the news software, maintain the
> newsgroups, write tutorials for new users, answer thousands of
> questions by mail, and otherwise contribute to the general welfare.
> Your many constructive comments and suggestions in groups other than
> net.flame have been recognized by many.  That's why I value your
> comments so much.
 
          You seem awfully defensive to me. Methinks thou dost protest
  too much (to coin a phrase.)
 
> Object away.  We objected to it remaining.  My mail (as of 9pm tonight)
> is over 20 to 1 in favor of the move.  You are one of only 3 people
> whom I have heard stating objections to it.
 
           3+1=4. Hey, I have an idea. Since Spaf doesn't read net.flame 
enough to know how net.bizarre lovers really feel, let's all Mail him.
C'mon, let the Cloud Lover know how you feel, and while you're at it,
why not mail any garbage you have in your accounts to him. (This oughta
tie up the net!) Heh heh. :-) 
 
> ...hit EVERYONE?  My lord, what happens to news when it gets to your
> machine?  Flocks of geese attacking your users!  No wonder you're
> upset!  ...or were you just exaggerating a mite?
 
        Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha oh god stop you're so funny I can't stand
it oh no geese ohmigod hahahahaha gasp sob ack gag barf sigh. 
 
> >...moderation implies central control, the evils
> >of which are by now apparent.
> 
> It does?  They are?  That conclusion only comes to people attempting to
> tie their shoes, Robert.
 
        Huh?? Robert has a good point here, but you once again evade the 
issues he addresses and go for the cheap insult. That's OK by me, 'cos I
don't feel bad about doing the same to your posting. 
 
> >It runs (more or less) on a PDP-11.  Adjusting it for more groups, should
> >that become necessary (it hasn't) is simply a matter of changing a number
> >in a header file and typing 'make'.  I have *no sympathy* for anyone whose
> >software would require more work than this.  *NONE*.
> 
> Great!  I'm glad that you have written such software and are going to
> document and distribute it to every net site that needs it, and that
> you'll handle bug fixes and upgrades, and you'll make sure that it
> fits into memory on *every* machine that needs to run it.
 
         I'm sure Robert would like to do this, if it didn't mean dealing
with folks like yourself. :-|     

> >One final note.  I am one of the recipients of mail to the 'usenet' alias
> >on tardis.ARPA.  As such, I have noticed (just today) new newsgroups called
> >(of all things) net.internat and net.misc.coke.  Plainly, there are people
> >out there (like me) who aren't usually terribly vocal in this forum, but
> >nevertheless resent being screwed over by the gods.
> 
> Ahem.  I don't think I want to hear about you being "screwed over" by
> any gods.  I hope that they're at least humanoid gods.
 
          Dig this, flamers, and gasp in awe. Robert has a message (which
you would see if not for Spafford's selective editing), and Mr. S. picks
instead on his rather colorful metaphor. What's wrong, Spaf. Feeling guilty
about those sexual God-desires?
  
> >(p.s. If traffic on the backbone is such a problem, why not simply improve
> >connectivity to eliminate the backbone?  This is a *solution* which could
> >be implemented by *local* decision of backbone sites to shuck some connections,
> >and *local* decisions at other sites to add new ones.  Any takers?)
> 
> Good move!  Suggest something and then ask someone else to do it.  That is
> precisely the attitude that causes us most of our problems netwide.
> There are too many individuals suggesting great things but doing nothing
> themselves -- except complain at length.
  
        Ah, yes. But alas, Robert (nor I) are heads of sites, and if we
tried to do something productive without first going through the red tape
that your kind has created, we would get busted for Net Abuse.

> USENET: "Those who can, try.  Those who can't, bitch and moan mightily
> 	about the ones who try."
 
             "Those of you who think you know everything are damned
           annoying to those of us who do."
 
> The Clouds Project, School of ICS, Georgia Tech, Atlanta GA 30332

            I always wondered where clouds came from...

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