I wholeheartedly endorse Alan Freeman's comments.
Andy Denis
Director of Undergraduate Studies
Economics Department
City University London
London EC1V 0HB
+44 (0)20 7040 0257
http://www.staff.city.ac.uk/andy.denis
-----Original Message-----
From: Alan Freeman [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 18 March 2009 23:14
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: JANET acceptable use policy
I think Wilfred's email presents this list with a problem which it is
time it confronted.
The JANET acceptable use policy can be found on
http://www.ja.net/company/policies/janet-aup.html Emails containing
scatological or offensive material violate this policy and place Capital
and Class and the users of this list at risk of service termination.
Users of discussion lists tend to shy clear of actions that might appear
'authoritarian' such as regulating content or confronting list abusers.
Actually, a rejection of the need to confront abusive list behaviour has
nothing in common either with liberty, democracy or left politics. If
anything, it is characteristic of ultraright libertarianism.
Capital and Class is a scholarly list. On the tin, it says that it
conducts discussions related to the content of Capital and Class, a
scholarly journal.
Scholarly is not just a synonym for 'academic' or 'hierarchical' - it
has a meaning that extends beyond the academy. It means mutual respect,
tolerance for difference of views, engagement, and, therefore,
renunciation of conduct, or forms of expression, which offend or
denigrate, or act as a deterrent to participation. Wilfred's email was
out of order on all these counts. It was dismissive of views it did not
accept, using derogatory and offensive language to characterise them.
Such discourse has no place on this list. Wilfred is entitled - like all
of us - to his views. Nobody is entitled, on this list, to characterise
those who do not share these views in dismissive, insulting or abusive
terms.
Not only Wilfred's choice of words but his entire form of expression,
which set their context, was simply wrong, and should not be tolerated
on this list. Contributions of this type prevent participation from
that large majority of Capital and Class readers who would be interested
- if the opportunity arose - in a genuine discussion around the issues
dealt with in its pages, but who are not in the least interested in
exposing themselves, or even listening to, such diatribes. They should
stop, and be stopped.
This is not an 'authoritarian' step but to the contrary the only way to
protect the targets of abuse and the common inheritance which Capital
and Class represents. The substantive issue is not the rights of the
abuser but the rights of the 'commons' and the abuser's targets. Abusive
list conduct suppresses the rights of the majority of the community. It
intimidates them, and takes away their rights to participate. A small
number of individuals, unless there are clear guidelines, will -
sometimes accidentally but usually, in my experience, perfectly
intentionally - jeopardise everybody's rights. I don't accept that they
should be allowed to do so.
Regards
Alan
|