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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I'm not sure that I understand the complaint. The V
comes to one of my regular e-mail boxes. It takes maybe 20 min. tops (on a topic
laden or contentious day) to read through and delete as required, usually less.
Don't you have to go through the same thing and weed out Viagra come ons,
investment "opportunities," and recipes for baklava? How does a few extra
minutes spent here put a serious kink in anyone's day? Is the mere suggestion of
a topic that might not be to ones liking in some way harmful? Does a little
bickering between parties cause some folks to break out in a virulent case of
the vapors? I would have to imagine that if what one sees on 2020 is too
upsetting to a delicate constitution, a newspaper or a stiff dose of CNN, FOX,
or even CNBC might just be lethal. I think we have heard this lament
before. If we all post and debate as seriously and as sweetly as Jimmy
Carter vs. Al Gore the V will be as dry and boring as Jimmy Carter & Al
Gore. Better to kill the forum here and now then let that insipid and
vapid outcome rear its humdrum head. The idea of modifying V2020 to suit
the unhappy seems far more draconian then the unhappy suiting themselves, as
best they can, with "bozo filters", averting their sensitive peepers, and
the liberal application of the delete key. Or do what Chas has apparently done
and take a little vacation in Mr. Roger's neighborhood. A ride on the trolley
with Henrietta Pussycat and a little quiet time and I'm sure
he'll be good as new. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Best,</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>gc</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=joanopyr@moscow.com href="mailto:joanopyr@moscow.com">Joan Opyr</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=nils_peterson@wsu.edu
href="mailto:nils_peterson@wsu.edu">Nils Peterson</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Cc:</B> <A title=vision2020@moscow.com
href="mailto:vision2020@moscow.com">Vision2020 Moscow</A> ; <A
title=chasuk@gmail.com href="mailto:chasuk@gmail.com">Chasuk</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, July 26, 2006 10:08
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Vision2020] Chas leaves
V2020;Liberal Moscow Dead? How might V2020 be improved?</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>On Jul 26, 2006, at 9:05 AM, Nils Peterson wrote:<BR><BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE>And where is the Liberal Moscow blog? A V2020 alternative,
announced in<BR>early June 2006. I looked in via the RSS and the last post
is mid-June.<BR>Another corpse un-mourned, a better medium (blog + RSS) but
no critical mass<BR>on the site.<BR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR>I can answer this quickly
and succintly. The Liberal Moscow blog is not dead; it's only sleeping. (The
Norwegian Blue likes to kip on its back.) Chas and I launched the site in a
hurry, but we have not been able to take an active interest in it or work to
promote it since mid-June. I'm on deadline writing the sequel to my novel,
Idaho Code. The new book, From Hell to Breakfast, must be finished by the end
of this month. Sometime in August, once I've caught my breath, I will (or,
rather, Chas and I will) pull our respective selves together and get active on
Liberal Moscow. We have kinks and bugs and RSS feeds to work out, but we will
actively promote the site at that point.<BR><BR>FYI, we see Liberal Moscow as
a complement to Vision 2020, not a replacement. I was on the verge of giving
up on this list some months ago. I am not posting very often, and I read very
little of what is posted, but I still believe in the forum. It is too easily
hijacked by unending bickering, nonsense, and malicious malefactors, but it's
still a great source of news and information (verify first!) and I have made
many friends here. I may take the occasional vacation from Vision 2020, but I
will not leave.<BR><BR>Joan<BR><BR>PS: How might Vision 2020 be improved?
Fewer dipshitacious posts; less tit-for-tat; more information of genuine
community, national, and global relevance; thicker skins all the way around.
And if you find you're sailing posts back and forth along the lines of Pee Wee
Herman's "I know you are, but what am I?" then take it offlist. Easy enough,
right? Wrong. I do it, too, but I'm lucky to have Melynda to kick me in the
backside when I'm getting off-kilter.<BR><BR>Joan Opyr/Auntie
Establishment<BR>www.joanopyr.com<?fontfamily><?param Helvetica><?smaller><BR><?/smaller><?/fontfamily><BR>
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