Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!mstar!bob
From: bob@MorningStar.COM (Bob Sutterfield)
Newsgroups: news.admin
Subject: Re: The Dynamics of Debate on USENET
Message-ID: <1989Sep27.151220.8080@MorningStar.COM>
Date: 27 Sep 89 15:12:20 GMT
References: <35033@apple.Apple.COM> <46115@bbn.COM> <35037@apple.Apple.COM>
Reply-To: bob@MorningStar.COM (Bob Sutterfield)
Organization: Morning Star Technologies
Lines: 17

In article <35037@apple.Apple.COM> chuq@Apple.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) writes:
   ...here are the keys to avoiding flamewars:
   ...   
   o If it's already been said, don't say it again.

This is one of the problems with holding a pre-vote discussion.  Once
the original points have been made, and the merits and disadvantages
catalogued, the discussion should quickly terminate.  Any "me too"s
violate this non-repetition principle.  Which makes the discussion
pretty quiet.  Which makes it seem as if there isn't much interest in
the topic or the newsgroup.  Which makes the proposer think that it's
not worth continuing efforts and advocacy, and not even bother holding
the post-discussion vote.

Of course, all this quiet is quite hypothetical, which shows that the
current structure violates the principle of non-repetition, which
shows that the current structure encourages flamewars.  Sigh...