Message-Id: <9403151526.AA20067@nwd2sun1.analog.com>
Date: 14 Mar 1994 19:37:08 U
From: Greg Dearborn <greg.dearborn@analog.com>
Subject: Hate Mail
To: antir@kwantlen.bc.ca, calontir@unl.edu,
        Carolingia <carolingia@bloom-beacon.mit.edu>, e5@uriacc.uri.edu,
        nordmark@ludd.luth.se, northshield@stolaf.edu,
        Northern Region <north@bransle.ucs.mun.ca>, sca-reform@MIT.EDU,
        sca-west@ecst.csuchico.edu

        Reply to:   Hate Mail
Greetings unto all from Lord Gareth of Stonemarche.

A close friend of mine who spent some time with Randall Tatro
this weekend shared some news with me. Randall told her that he has been
getting "hate mail." 

This really bugs me because:

I. I thought the Society fostered better values in its members than that. 

II. It hurts our cause to alienate Board members.

III. While I may disagree with his politics, Randall is the very model
of Chivalry and has been a good friend to Stonemarche, on and off the
throne, and so a personal attack against him feels like a personal attack
against me. (Note that I don't count impeaching him as a personal
attack. I don't count writing him a letter explaining why you disagree
with him a personal attack. I do not consider the Estrella Ultimatum
a personal attack. I *do* count writing him an insulting letter a personal
attack.) 

Please, when you are campaigning at events and local meetings to get
gentles to write to the Board, remind them that if we can't win this
fight courteously, there's no reason to win it at all. 

Also, my friend mentioned that Randall is annoyed by the half-truths
on the electronic message nets. IMHO, that's part of life on the Internet;
some things on the Net  must be taken with a small Siberian salt mine. All
the more reason why we must be very careful to document what we post.
Example: Bertram thinks outsourcing is a good idea. Bertram spent a lot
of time researching and writing a comprehensive report on the topic. 
Bertram has backed up his opinion with hard data. This is a Good Thing. 

My thanks for your time and consideration of my concerns.

Your servant,
Gareth

greg.dearborn@anlog.com
gdd@world.std.com