[Vision2020] LMT Feb 19 -- Lurkers outnumber loudmouths

[AreaMan]

For those who don't get the trib, part 1:
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Lurkers outnumber loudmouths; Most subscribers log on to watch, not
participate 

By DAVID JOHNSON of the Tribune

MOSCOW -- The computer thesaurus likens the word "lurker" to a sneaker,
cheater, rascal or weasel. 

In Vision 2020 vernacular, a lurker is more of a voyeur -- someone who
logs on to what can become an e-mail food fight, but opts to read
instead of joining the fray. 

Most Vision 2020 lurkers say they are trying to stay abreast of issues.
Some admit they lack the rhetorical prowess to hold their own amid all
the verbiage, so they won't post. A few express disgust with what they
read, but they read it anyway. 

And just about every lurker, if pressed, will confess that amid all the
colorful wordiness, it's fun at the end of the day to see how much trash
has been heaped and on whom. 

About 500 people currently subscribe to Vision 2020, says Bill Moore,
spokesman for First Step Internet, the company that maintains the Vision
2020 e-mail soapbox. About 90 percent of the subscribers, estimates
Moore, are lurkers. 

The Lewiston Tribune solicited comments via e-mail from Vision 2020
lurkers. 

"I lurk because I don't want to get suckered into the unending
dialogues, and often nastiness, that seem to ensue," writes one lurker.
"The delete button is a handy little tool. I don't look at 99 percent of
all the postings, except to note who wrote them." 

One Moscow couple writes: "Many of us are lurkers who read the postings
for useful information but rarely if ever post messages ourselves. Many
of the messages posted are just plain childish and mean. We suspect the
writers who post most frequently are not representative of the majority
of subscribers." 

Another lurker, who used to live in Moscow but moved to Meridian, calls
Vision 2020 "elitist," but adds it offers more depth on issues than
newspapers or other media. 

Counters another lurker, "Vision 2020 is neither a community building
block, nor is it a family venue." 

Most lurkers subscribe to Vision 2020 for free and are able to keep up
with the discourse as e-mails are posted. Others lurk by logging onto
the Vision 2020 Web site and reviewing the archives. 

Either way, longtime lurkers confess the dialogue can become addictive
reading. 

"It's amazing to keep being reminded of how variously we all think and
see things," writes a lurker. "A real lesson in how complex life,
democracy, personal experience, etc. are." 
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Check out the pic of Tom Hansen and Keely Emerine-Mix

http://www.lmtribune.com/02192006/V2020A.jpg

DC