On Friday 18 Apr 2008 2:45:10 am Tea BeeDi wrote:
> . Do we need to sit together
> and watch something? Went to a movie couple of days ago with friends.
> Why is that strange enough to mention even?
>
> People have forwarded many things from lists to friends. We know the
> pain of such forwards.
>
> As I indicated earlier (reference link to my "cafe" posting's thread
> by someone in
> this thread), there is conviviality. I can know of what others have
> read and responded to.
> We can flag something of interest or sometimes even annotate a discussion.
>
> Few times, there is collaboration in responses. But it is a
> family/friends-unit/business-unit/ticket(?)
> that has to trust and deal with each other because of what one responds.
>
> Also, when you are into activism or such. It is a safety that you are one
> of potentially many who represent the email id.
This is the collective versus individual argument, and the eternal question of
where to draw the line. In India (and perhaps elsewhere) the joint family
always had this collective dynamic.
There are some advantages and disadvantages to the collective. An advantage is
companionship and sharing. Disadvantages include a blurring of personal
responsibility, an inability to relate to people outside the collective -
sometimes merely because the collective gives such a strong sense of
community that the outsider is always wrong. A third dynamic within the
collective is related to the previous one. Individual personalities dominate
or remain passive and mold the collective into one direction or other. Even
if an outsider is unable to relate to one particular member of the
collective, the whole collective stands behind that member ("What's good for
him is good for us") and the outsider is outnumbered and voted as being wrong
even if he/she is not.
More to the point - should a shared email id be used for a list membership?
List memberships are themselves a subset of a collective and develop their own
internal dynamics. Allowing a shared email id as "member" is not a problem as
long as one individual alone posts on the list. If more than one individual
posts on the list from that email id (without identifying himself or herself
as different) - the change in language and opinions are soon likely to be
picked up and branded as trolling. On silk - as on other lists and fora that
I subscribe to, one gets branded a troll at one's own risk and
the "collective" of the list can be a very effective medium to rip even
erudite trolls or inadvertent trolls to shreds.
Since this ripping/trolling business is unpleasant, it would be polite to
ensure that only one individual uses one email id to post opinions and views.
It would probably be the subject of another discussion to see if politeness
makes sense. Often, in strong collectives, especially in the Indian joint
family (as in a pack of dogs) politeness takes a back seat and is not missed
by some, while others are hurt, but are forced to swallow an insult.
Just my (individual) opinion
shiv
