At 9:33 AM 11/12/96 -0800, Declan McCullagh wrote:
The Netly News http://www.netlynews.com/ November 11, 1996
Cypher-Censored By Declan McCullagh (declan@well.com) ... That is, until recently, when Dimitri Vulis was given the boot. After he refused to stop posting flames, rants and uninspired personal attacks, Vulis was summarily removed from the mailing list.
...
Thus began a debate over what the concept of censorship means in a forum devoted to opposing it. Did Gilmore have the right to show Vulis the virtual door? Or should he have let the ad hominem attacks continue, encouraging people to set their filters accordingly? The incident raises deeper questions about how a virtual community can prevent one person from ruining the forum for all and whether only government controls on expression can be called "censorship."
There is a serious error here. Gilmore did nothing to prevent Vulis from posting to the list. He only prevented Vulis from receiving the list under his own name. And, the as hominem attacks continue. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | The lottery is a tax on | Periwinkle -- Consulting (408)356-8506 | those who can't do math. | 16345 Englewood Ave. frantz@netcom.com | - Who 1st said this? | Los Gatos, CA 95032, USA