rlh@cvl.UUCP (Ralph L. Hartley) (04/03/85)
> There are no Storm Troopers waiting inside your terminals. No Gestapo > agents are going to drag you away for replying to Don Black. Maybe not. But remember that everything that is posted to the net (and probably quite a bit of mail) gets recorded somewere. The net is just a toy now but if it grows there might come a day when one of the first things people do when they look for background on someone is to read all the stuff they have ever posted. So just because the net has almost perfect free speach dosnt mean you should just post off the top of your head (like I am doing now). Remember that just as there is nothing to prevent you from spouting BS on the net, there is nothing to stop The Washington Post from printing it at an embarasing time. What would MaCarthy have done with usenet "conspiracy in the omputer science comunity"? This is not to say that one should not speak up about things that you really believe. Only that you shouldn't forget that you are speaking "for the record". Some things are worth denouncing no matter who can hear. Black and other Neo-Nazis are certianly a good example. It is almost certainly true (ignore protestations to the contrary) that if Black's vision of the future comes true such postings are almost suicidal, but in that event suicide dosn't look that bad. I'm not worried that much since there are matters of record that would ensure that if the klan came to power I would already be in "deep sneakers". If you are realy a reasonable guy spouting of at the net try to think of a "Sixty Minutes" camera crew inside your terminal. On the other hand, those of you who realy in your heart agree with Black, please post! We would all like to know who you are! Ralph Hartley rlh@cvl