For anyone who has not read this recently.  Trevor and cris, thanks
for your work here, is this the most recent description of the list?

WELCOME MESSAGE 

British and Irish Poets (often but unhappily abbreviated to Brit-Po):
is an e-mail resource for the exchange of and discussion of writing
poetry and poetics, including information on events and reports on
readings, symposia and conferences.We welcome poems posted directly
onto the list.

British and Irish Poets is particularly orientated towards British and
Irish poetry and poetics, although it fully recognises the problems of
such presently and historically constructed nation formations and
barrier policing. Consequently ' . . .-po' has both local and
translocal outlooks and a membership that continues to reflect that.

British and Irish Poets orients itself towards the contestation and
contestability of norms and forms both in and through poetry. We
recognise that ideas as to how this might and can be achieved will
vary, often vigorously and the list seeks to promote such vigour.
Debatable terms such as 'innovative', 'linguistically-innovative',
'experimental' and 'new' are not out of place here. Once again their
interpretation is part of the robust nature of the list. Publication
announcements and event information is part and parcel of discussion
here as are reports and reviews. Interdisciplinary perspectives on
poetry are encouraged. Those who are particularly interested in the
intersection of poetry and other media are welcome to talk as much as
they would like about that.

The list archive is searchable at
http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/BRITISH-POETS.html The list is
available in digest form. If you do not like the contents of an e-mail
list clogging your inbox, and tend not to engage in play-by-play
discussions, we highly recommend a digest subscription.

Please limit advertisements in the body of your e-mail to a bare
minimum. Please limit pasting and re-pasting of messages to which you
are responding to a necessary minimum also, as such posts are onerous
on those reading a digest option and generally clog the list for those
trying to perform searches.

Conditions of Membership: The list is unmoderated one with open files.
That means that messages will not be intercepted on their way to list
members. Messages cannot be censored by the list owners. But members
should take note that outright abuse, harrassment or repeated ad
hominem posts (either front channel or back channel) will be met with
brief or extended exclusion of such a member from the list. Everyone
is asked to abide by the common conventions of netiquette.

Off-limits are: repeat e-mails, EXTENDED SHOUTING (abusive use of
caps), the pursuance of exchanges which can be considered to
constitute harassment and unambiguous insults towards other list
members or those who who are not members of the list and therefore
cannot exercise right-of-reply. Equally off-limits is the importing or
redistribution of reference to previous e-spats occurring on other
lists. We humbly beseech that tired old animosities are not played-out
once again in this arena. Members who fail to abide by these rather
general concepts of civility will be suspended from list activities
for one full week for any first offense. After one week, the suspended
member can be reinstated - subject to agreement by the list-owners.
The second suspension will be for one month, the third, six months,
and the fourth, permanent. ALL decisions relating such suspensions
will be the responsibility of the list-owners at that time. ALL
correspondence is respect of such disputes will be expected to be
conducted back-channel and not on the list. It has been recognized
that many professional list saboteurs abound. Indeed this list has
been troubled by them in the past. Such saboteurs will not be welcome
on this list at all; if they do appear on this list (or if they
suspected through heteronymic devices to be present), they will be
excised from the list with extreme prejudice. Saboteurs will be
immediately and permanently removed from the list; they will receive
no warnings. "Not in our house."

It might be taken into account by list-members that the list co-owners
do so for the crack, such as it can be. We also have busy schedules.
It is not therefore ALWAYS possible to service enquiries, nor to deal
with troubles, with immediate effect. We hope that such situations
don't arise, but please don't become too impatient if they do. We WILL
respond.

Thank you cris cheek and Trevor Joyce

___________ The list was begun by Ric Caddell in 1994. In the interim
Peter Larkin, Elizabeth James and John Cayley have all been list
co-owners. The current co-owners are cris cheek and Trevor Joyce.