Subject: Re: letter to paul treanor


> Do you think there is an argument for saying that just sending a
> well-thought of (and no doubt very well written) email is worthless?

Yes, I'm afraid there is - as has been pointed out many times before, for
instance in the websites devoted to the legendary 'Women in Afghanistan'
e-petition:

 http://snopes.simplenet.com/spoons/faxlore/afghani.htm
 http://www.hoaxkill.com/afghanistan.html,

both of which contain salutary messages about the futility of e-petitions
generally.  

In addition it is also worth noting the warnings about initiating e-mail
chain letters in general - your ISP could bar you from using their service.

Paul Redfern

p.s. the above applies only to the use of e-mail for e-petitions. The
problem is precisely because of the 'anonymity' provided by e-mail
(allegedly!). You and I can have as many accounts and account names as we
like, and so one has no way of knowing how many signatures on an e-petition
represent multiple submissions from a single source. The use of e-mail for
mobilizing support or disseminating information is not in doubt.  If you
really want to lend your support - send cash - WAVE supply their account
details!


> From: Alistair Fraser <[log in to unmask]>
> Reply-To: Alistair Fraser <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Fri, 18 Feb 2000 18:02:58 -0500
> To: [log in to unmask], [log in to unmask]
> Subject: letter to paul treanor
> 
> 
> Paul,
> 
> The situation in Austria really concerns me, for obvious reasons.
> 
> Worth thinking about is that this is the first email plea reaching our
> (academic) community highlighting the start of the right-wing purge in
> Austria.  
> 
> What can we do?  What will we do?
> 
> When will the emails start to tell us about arrests or
> racits/sexist/homophobic round-ups?
> 
> What then?  
> 
> Do you think there is an argument for saying that just sending a
> well-thought of (and no doubt very well written) email is worthless?
> 
> What action is best if not email?
> 
> Should we strike?  Should we be organizing workplace campaigns to bring
> this development to a wider audience?  What else might be realistic?
> 
> I cant help but feel helpless and, unfortunately, writing an email (only
> for it to be deleted as is often the case in these circumstances) doesnt
> make much difference.  What does this say about the e-mail age  - when we
> all think that sending off an email is the most we can do (or at least the
> most realistic thing we can do) ?
> 
> 
> Just thinking aloud,
> 
> Greetings from Ohio.
> 
> 
> Alistair Fraser 
> MA Student
> Geog Dept
> Ohio State University
> 
> At 09:05 PM 2/18/00 +0100, you wrote:
>> Nick Blomley forwarded this plea:
>> 
>>> Please, write letters of protest via E-mail to:
>>> 
>>> The new Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel
>>> <[log in to unmask]> who is mainly responsible
>>> for bringing the Freedom Party into government
>>> 
>>> To Austrian President Thomas Klestil
>> 
>> 
>> That will help.
>> 
>> And what do the courageous e-mailers suggest we do in the meantime? Accept a
>> racist government?
>> 
>> 
>> --
>> pt
>> http://web.inter.nl.net/users/Paul.Treanor/haider.html
>> 



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