1039 lines
47 KiB
Plaintext
1039 lines
47 KiB
Plaintext
Volume 6, Number 3 16 January 1989
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+---------------------------------------------------------------+
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| _ |
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| / \ |
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| /|oo \ |
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| - FidoNews - (_| /_) |
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| _`@/_ \ _ |
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| International | | \ \\ |
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| FidoNet Association | (*) | \ )) |
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| Newsletter ______ |__U__| / \// |
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| / FIDO \ _//|| _\ / |
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| (________) (_/(_|(____/ |
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| (jm) |
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+---------------------------------------------------------------+
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Editor in Chief Dale Lovell
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Editor Emeritus: Thom Henderson
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Chief Procrastinator Emeritus: Tom Jennings
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Contributing Editors: Al Arango
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FidoNews is published weekly by the International FidoNet
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Association as its official newsletter. You are encouraged to
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submit articles for publication in FidoNews. Article submission
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standards are contained in the file ARTSPEC.DOC, available from
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node 1:1/1. 1:1/1 is available for network mail between NMH-1
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hour to NMH+1 hour. At all other times, netmail is not accepted
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although submissions can be uploaded.
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Copyright 1989 by the International FidoNet Association. All
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rights reserved. Duplication and/or distribution permitted for
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noncommercial purposes only. For use in other circumstances,
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please contact IFNA at (314) 576-4067. IFNA may also be contacted
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at PO Box 41143, St. Louis, MO 63141.
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Fido and FidoNet are registered trademarks of Tom Jennings of
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Fido Software, 164 Shipley Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94107 and
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are used with permission.
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The contents of the articles contained here are not our
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responsibility, nor do we necessarily agree with them.
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Everything here is subject to debate. We publish EVERYTHING
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received.
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Table of Contents
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1. ARTICLES ................................................. 1
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Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette ...... 5
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FidoNews Policy Changes by Rick Siegel 1:107/27 .......... 12
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2. COLUMNS .................................................. 14
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RegComm - Communications From RegCon ..................... 14
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3. NOTICES .................................................. 17
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The Interrupt Stack ...................................... 17
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Latest Software Versions ................................. 17
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 1 16 Jan 1989
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=================================================================
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ARTICLES
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=================================================================
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Are These Christian Views on AIDS?
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Fredric L. Rice
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(103/503.3)
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"I'm getting out of my closet with this issue. We are under
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siege. The homosexuals didn't create this plague; God did. But
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they are the primary distributors.
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"Of course, it is really a waste of time to get angry with them.
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They won't be around much longer. A decade from now, they will
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all be dead. There will be no gay lobby because there will be no
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male gays. (The irony of all this is that the one group that is
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probably safest is the lesbian community). But we must recognize
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what we face. The disease will be here in a decade because
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Judgment has come!"
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- Gary North, p.h.D., President of the
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Institute for Christian Economics.
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Normally, you wouldn't see me write this kind of article. You
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may have seen many submissions such as Voyager and the Deep
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Space Network. What prompted me: I read an article posted on
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several Christian systems in the Southern California area which
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was titled "AIDS: God's gift to mankind." The file name was
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PLAGUE.TXT. Its description peaked by interest, to say the
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least, so I downloaded it and took a look.
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FidoNews is generally considered to be a forum for dissemination
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of the technical aspects of the network as well as a forum for
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the distribution of network news. I would also like to mention
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that its potential for dissemination of other information is
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likewise always there. Views and opinions have been expressed
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and I generally appreciate their being included. I have also
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tried to post astronomical articles in the hopes that there are
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a great many SysOps and users who enjoy such things. This
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posting didn't come easy but I have some questions to ask.
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The authorship is listed as Gary North, president for an
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economics institute. The references at the back, (which I always
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check for before reading any article), mention that the majority
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of the source for Norths' article came from an interview with
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Gene Antonio, author of "The AIDS Cover-Up?", which was made
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available through Focus on the Family, a quasi-religious
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organization which guides its followers with heavy family
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relationships being stressed.
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Further references were also interesting: "Homosexuality: A
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Biblical View by Greg Bahnsen". "The AIDS epidemic, A Citizen's
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Guide to Protecting your Family and Community from the Gay
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Plague". There were also tapes from "Joseph C. Morecraft the
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 2 16 Jan 1989
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Third, pastor of the Chalcedon Presbyterian Church, Atlanta",
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which sells "Homosexuality and AIDS, tapes 1 and 2", and "How
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God Removes Dross from a Culture".
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A few more quotes from this article:
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"On the final weekend of February, I attended a conference.
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Because of restrictions imposed by the organization, I am not
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allowed to mention its name. This was a rule established in
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1981, at the first meeting. It's not a secret society; it's more
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of a publicity-shy group. The major 'New Right" leaders in the
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U.S. belong, and a lot of them were in attendance this time."
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"Dr. Koop is preaching condoms for teen-agers. He wants a huge
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sex education program in the public schools. Here is the
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ultimate irony: the Christian conservatives are now promoting
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the one program above all others that conservatives have fought
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for three decades: Federal sex education in the schools. The
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Koop report could have been written by the Gay liberation Task
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Force on AIDS. Its solution is educational and technical, not
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moral and religious.
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"The only long-term solution is MORAL AND RELIGIOUS! We are not
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saved by knowledge! For three decades we have seen that sexual
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promiscuity increases with every sex education program
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introduced into the public schools! Conservatives have been
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yelling about this the whole time. Now, I fear, they will remain
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silent, and a full-scale sex education program with no holds
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barred will be given to our children!"
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"An EVOLVING virus: what a perfect means of bringing the age of
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Darwinian self-confidence to an end! God has a sense of humor!"
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The article goes on at length about his children being in
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private schools and that "Public schools are going to be
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abandoned", in capital letters. Because of the semi-hysterical
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content of the article, I dismissed it half-way through and set
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it in a binder where I keep a copy of everything I have ever
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downloaded. A day later, I brought it out again to see if I
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could verify the authorship and see if the Christian community
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in general actually retain these views about AIDS.
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I was able to verify that Gene Antonio actually exists and has
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written several books. The Institute for Christian Economics
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also exists yet appears to be a business which offers courses in
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tax evasion for church members, (this because the ICE yields
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extensive incomes through multiple publications, qualifying for
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tax exemption under the U.S. tax laws, and show no visible
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product or services other than postal freight). This is an
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opinion that _I_ hold due to all facts available when denied the
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possibility of enlightenment due to 'publicity-shy'
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organizations.
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Finally, I called Focus on the Family in Pomona, California, to
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 3 16 Jan 1989
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arrange an interview with Gene Antonio. The request was refused
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with no explanation Offered. This was probably due to my lack of
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credentials; how does writing about Christian views on AIDS for
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a million above-average intelligent computer users affect the
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possibility of my gaining an audience with a Christian leader?
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Had I misrepresented myself as a fellow church newsletter
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writer, my request for an interview may have had a better
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reception.
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Thus the validity of the article remains in doubt and I elected
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to consider its source as questionable: The article was not
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written by someone who represents the views of Christian
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Religions. I filed it away again.
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There remained in my mind, however, the references at the end of
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the article. Many of these books were available for sell at a
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local Christian book store. Spending time in the store wasn't
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very comfortable, I kept waiting for someone to look up from
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the shelves of book, point at me and chant "An unbeliever! An
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unbeliever in our midst! Punish the non-believer!" Not wishing
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to give money to their organization, I simply looked through
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the books quickly and was able to confirm the overall consensus
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that AIDS _is_ considered Gods Gift To Mankind, stripping away
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the gays and junkies of the world, leaving the planet cleansed
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for the few chosen Christians.
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This didn't strike me as a particularly Christian view to take.
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The United States Federal Government, under the guidance of the
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Surgeon General, has published and distributed a pamphlet to all
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the residences in the United States. If your city or town was
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not targeted for this federal mail-out, it basically listed,
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(in _very_ clear and unambiguous language, complete with
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graphic pictures), what can and can not propagate AIDS. Also was
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offered how to protect yourself and family against this disease.
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The Christian community would have us abandon technology and
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request Gods mercy to keep from getting AIDS. Certainly we have
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seen, by virtue of the media, that morality alone does not keep
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people from having sex with whores, (rana' Swaggert, Fallwell,
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Graham, Bakers, et. all), or not using protective devices. It
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has been mentioned before that such devices are considered
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unclean because they keep sinners from receiving the negative
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results of their sins while allow the positive results to be,
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um, realized.
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It boils down to believing the Federal Government, (not an easy
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thing to do in light of the many naughty things our leaders do),
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or having faith in our religious leaders, (likewise not easy to
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do in light of they many naughty things they do).
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As the ads say: Get the facts on AIDS. If you have doubts, I
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would urge you to contact an AIDS hotline; there's bound to be
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one in your area. Likewise, contact your church leaders if they
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don't already have seminars and learn what they have to say
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about AIDS. It's possible that not all churches retain the same
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 4 16 Jan 1989
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views as the authorship of the "Plauge.Txt" article does.
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I have read Tom Jennings comments about the problems he has had
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confronted with ignorance and prejudice and would have to agree
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with his comments about the fear AIDS has generated causing
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violence against gays. This is an education problem, not truly
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a social problem that needs to be solved. To be fair, gays make
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me nervous when I am working someone I know is gay. I should
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also mention that I avoid them all the more since the disease
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has met the media the way it has. This attitude is a carry over
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from my many prejudices and is an attitude that will never
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change; The ignorant among us, however, react with violence. The
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Christian community react by praying for salvation.
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I have read a short upload that mentioned some Christian doctors
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abandoning research on AIDS. In the same upload, it mentions
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still other not willing to treat AIDS victims. It was not
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because they feared they would contract the disease, it was
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because they felt that it was a God-sent plague; all with the
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corresponding Biblical references, chapter and verse. To combat
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it would be to fight the will of God.
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Tom mentioned that it's time to speak out, take a stand; try to
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disperse the ignorance spreading faster than the disease itself.
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This won't happen very easily, Tom: Speak out in favor of sex
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education for the prevention of AIDS, and you get branded a fag.
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Speak out in favor of a national public education for the
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prevention of AIDS series on television and you need to tell the
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networks where the money is coming from. Speak out for truthful
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education on the disease in the church, and you get branded a
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devil worshiper.
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- PLAGUE.TXT. can be file requested from Astro-Net, 103/503, 24
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hours a day. Fredric Rice requests any rebuttals from the
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Christian community in response to my findings. I _would_ like
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to hear if the view that AIDS is from God is generally accepted.
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Another interesting article available is "Evolve.Txt", a paper
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on why evolution is an unworkable theory. I wonder how the
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authors of some of these Christian articles are able to function
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in a world where the age of the gas they put into their cars
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contradict their belief in the age of the planet; or what the
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age of the star light that they see at night from galaxy
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clusters over 170 million light years away might do to their
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beliefs of they understood parallax. I'm sure some do but why
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continue to think the universe is only a few thousand years old?
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-----------------------------------------------------------------
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 5 16 Jan 1989
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Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette
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Newsgroups: news.announce.newusers
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Subject: Emily Postnews Answers Your Questions on Netiquette
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Original-from: looking!brad (Brad Templeton) [Most recent change:
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24 October 1988 by looking!brad]
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**NOTE: this is intended to be satirical. If you do not recognize
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it as such, consult a doctor or professional comedian. The
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recommendations in this article should recognized for what they
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are -- admonitions about what NOT to do.
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"Dear Emily Postnews"
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Emily Postnews, foremost authority on proper net
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behaviour, gives her advice on how to act on the net.
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====================================================
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Dear Miss Postnews: How long should my signature be? --
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verbose@portal
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A: Dear Verbose: Please try and make your signature as long as
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you can. It's much more important than your article, of course,
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so try and have more lines of signature than actual text.
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Try and include a large graphic made of ASCII characters, plus
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lots of cute quotes and slogans. People will never tire of
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reading these pearls of wisdom again and again, and you will soon
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become personally associated with the joy each reader feels at
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seeing yet another delightful repeat of your signature.
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Be sure as well to include a complete map of USENET with each
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signature, to show how anybody can get mail to you from any site
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in the world. Be sure to include ARPA gateways as well. Also tell
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people on your own site how to mail to you.
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Aside from your reply address, include your full name, company
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and organization. It's just common courtesy -- after all, in some
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newsreaders people have to type an *entire* keystroke to go back
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to the top of your article to see this information in the header.
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By all means include your phone number and street address in
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every single article. People are always responding to usenet
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articles with phone calls and letters. It would be silly to go to
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the extra trouble of including this information only in articles
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that need a response by conventional channels!
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------
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Dear Emily: Today I posted an article and forgot to include my
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signature. What should I do? -- forgetful@myvax
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 6 16 Jan 1989
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A: Dear Forgetful: Rush to your terminal right away and post an
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article that says, "Oops, I forgot to post my signature with that
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last article. Here it is."
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Since most people will have forgotten your earlier article,
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(particularly since it dared to be so boring as to not have a
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nice, juicy signature) this will remind them of it. Besides,
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people care much more about the signature anyway. See the
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previous letter for more important details.
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Also, be sure to include your signature TWICE in each article.
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That way you're sure people will read it.
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------
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Dear Ms. Postnews: I couldn't get mail through to somebody on
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another site. What should I do? -- eager@beaver.dam
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A: Dear Eager: No problem, just post your message to a group that
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a lot of people read. Say, "This is for John Smith. I couldn't
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get mail through so I'm posting it. All others please ignore."
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This way tens of thousands of people will spend a few seconds
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scanning over and ignoring your article, using up over 16
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man-hours their collective time, but you will be saved the
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terrible trouble of checking through usenet maps or looking for
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alternate routes. Just think, if you couldn't distribute your
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message to 9000 other computers, you might actually have to
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(gasp) call directory assistance for 60 cents, or even phone the
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person. This can cost as much as a few DOLLARS (!) for a 5 minute
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call!
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And certainly it's better to spend 10 to 20 dollars of other
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people's money distributing the message then for you to have to
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waste $9 on an overnight letter, or even 25 cents on a stamp!
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Don't forget. The world will end if your message doesn't get
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through, so post it as many places as you can.
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------
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Q: What about a test message?
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A: It is important, when testing, to test the entire net. Never
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test merely a subnet distribution when the whole net can be done.
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Also put "please ignore" on your test messages, since we all know
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that everybody always skips a message with a line like that.
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Don't use a subject like "My sex is female but I demand to be
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addressed as male." because such articles are read in depth by
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all USEnauts.
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------
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Q: Somebody just posted that Roman Polanski directed Star Wars.
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What should I do?
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 7 16 Jan 1989
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A: Post the correct answer at once! We can't have people go on
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believing that! Very good of you to spot this. You'll probably be
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the only one to make the correction, so post as soon as you can.
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No time to lose, so certainly don't wait a day, or check to see
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if somebody else has made the correction.
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And it's not good enough to send the message by mail. Since
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you're the only one who really knows that it was Francis Coppola,
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you have to inform the whole net right away!
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------
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Q: I read an article that said, "reply by mail, I'll summarize."
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What should I do? -- weemba@brahms
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A: Post your response to the whole net. That request applies only
|
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to dumb people who don't have something interesting to say. Your
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postings are much more worthwhile than other people's, so it
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would be a waste to reply by mail.
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------
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Q: I collected replies to an article I wrote, and now it's time
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to summarize. What should I do?
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A: Simply concatenate all the articles together into a big file
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and post that. On USENET, this is known as a summary. It lets
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people read all the replies without annoying newsreaders getting
|
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in the way.
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|
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------
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Q: I saw a long article that I wish to rebut carefully, what
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||
should I do?
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||
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A: Include the entire text with your article, and include your
|
||
comments between the lines. Be sure to post, and not mail, even
|
||
though your article looks like a reply to the original. Everybody
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||
*loves* to read those long point-by-point debates, especially
|
||
when they evolve into name-calling and lots of "Is too!" -- "Is
|
||
not!" -- "Is too, twizot!" exchanges.
|
||
|
||
------
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Q: How can I choose what groups to post in?
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||
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A: Pick as many as you can, so that you get the widest audience.
|
||
After all, the net exists to give you an audience. Ignore those
|
||
who suggest you should only use groups where you think the
|
||
article is highly appropriate. Pick all groups where anybody
|
||
might even be slightly interested.
|
||
|
||
Always make sure followups go to all the groups. In the rare
|
||
event that you post a followup which contains something original,
|
||
make sure you expand the list of groups. Never include a
|
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"Followup-to:" line in the header, since some people might miss
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FidoNews 6-03 Page 8 16 Jan 1989
|
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part of the valuable discussion in the fringe groups.
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------
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Q: How about an example?
|
||
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||
A: Ok. Let's say you want to report that Gretzky has been traded
|
||
from the Oilers to the Kings. Now right away you might think
|
||
rec.sport.hockey would be enough. WRONG. Many more people might
|
||
be interested. This is a big trade! Since it's a NEWS article, it
|
||
belongs in the news.* hierarchy as well. If you are a news admin,
|
||
or there is one on your machine, try news.admin. If not, use
|
||
news.misc.
|
||
|
||
The Oilers are probably interested in geology, so try
|
||
sci.physics. He is a big star, so post to sci.astro, and
|
||
sci.space because they are also interested in stars. Next, his
|
||
name is Polish sounding. So post to soc.culture.polish. But that
|
||
group doesn't exist, so cross-post to news.groups suggesting it
|
||
should be created. With this many groups of interest, your
|
||
article will be quite bizarre, so post to talk.bizarre as well.
|
||
(And post to comp.std.mumps, since they hardly get any articles
|
||
there.)
|
||
|
||
You may also find it is more fun to post the article once in each
|
||
group. If you list all the newsgroups in the same article, some
|
||
newsreaders will only show the the article to the reader once!
|
||
Don't tolerate this.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: How do I create a newsgroup?
|
||
|
||
A: The easiest way goes something like "inews -C newgroup ....",
|
||
and while that will stir up lots of conversation about your new
|
||
newsgroup, it might not be enough.
|
||
|
||
First post a message in news.groups describing the group. Hold
|
||
discussion for a short while, and then ask for a vote. Collect
|
||
votes for 30 days. Every few days post a long summary of all the
|
||
votes so that people can complain about bad mailers and double
|
||
votes. It means you'll be more popular and get lots of mail. At
|
||
the end of thirty days if you have 100 more yes votes than no
|
||
votes you may create the group.
|
||
|
||
No matter what the group, it is not necessary to get the approval
|
||
of admins at backbone sites. They will be happy to create any
|
||
group if it passes the above test.
|
||
|
||
To liven up discussion, choose a good cross-match for your
|
||
hierarchy and group. For example, comp.race.formula1 or
|
||
soc.vlsi.design would be good group names. If you want your group
|
||
created quickly, include an interesting word like "sex" or
|
||
"bible."
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 9 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
Q: I cant spell worth a dam. I hope your going too tell me what
|
||
to do?
|
||
|
||
A: Don't worry about how your articles look. Remember it's the
|
||
message that counts, not the way it's presented. Ignore the fact
|
||
that sloppy spelling in a purely written forum sends out the same
|
||
silent messages that soiled clothing would when addressing an
|
||
audience.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: How should I pick a subject for my articles?
|
||
|
||
A: Keep it short and meaningless. That way people will be forced
|
||
to actually read your article to find out what's in it. This
|
||
means a bigger audience for you, and we all know that's what the
|
||
net is for. If you do a followup, be sure and keep the same
|
||
subject, even if it's totally meaningless and not part of the
|
||
same discussion. If you don't, you won't catch all the people who
|
||
are looking for stuff on the original topic, and that means less
|
||
audience for you.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: What sort of tone should I take in my article?
|
||
|
||
A: Be as outrageous as possible. If you don't say outlandish
|
||
things, and fill your article with libelous insults of net
|
||
people, you may not stick out enough in the flood of articles to
|
||
get a response. The more insane your posting looks, the more
|
||
likely it is that you'll get lots of followups. The net is here,
|
||
after all, so that you can get lots of attention.
|
||
|
||
If your article is polite, reasoned and to the point, you may
|
||
only get mailed replies. Yuck!
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: The posting software suggested I had too long a signature and
|
||
too many lines of included text in my article. What's the best
|
||
course?
|
||
|
||
A: Such restrictions were put in the software for no reason at
|
||
all, so don't even try to figure out why they might apply to your
|
||
article. Turns out most people search the net to find nice
|
||
articles that consist of the complete text of an earlier article
|
||
plus a few lines.
|
||
|
||
In order to help these people, fill your article with dummy
|
||
original lines to get past the restrictions. Everybody will thank
|
||
you for it.
|
||
|
||
For your signature, I know it's tough, but you will have to read
|
||
it in with the editor. Do this twice to make sure it's firmly in
|
||
there.
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 10 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: They just announced on the radio that Dan Quayle was picked as
|
||
the Republican V.P. candidate. Should I post?
|
||
|
||
A: Of course. The net can reach people in as few as 3 to 5 days.
|
||
It's the perfect way to inform people about such news events long
|
||
after the broadcast networks have covered them. As you are
|
||
probably the only person to have heard the news on the radio, be
|
||
sure to post as soon as you can.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: I have this great joke. You see, these three strings walk into
|
||
a bar...
|
||
|
||
A: Oh dear. Don't spoil it for me. Submit it to rec.humor, and
|
||
post it to the moderator of rec.humor.funny at the same time. I'm
|
||
sure he's never seen that joke, and I know he loves to have jokes
|
||
sent to rec.humor and rec.humor.funny at the same time.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: What computer should I buy? An Atari ST or an Amiga?
|
||
|
||
A: Cross post that question to the Atari and Amiga groups. It's
|
||
an interesting and novel question that I am sure they would love
|
||
to investigate in those groups.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: What about other important questions? How should I know when
|
||
to post?
|
||
|
||
A: Always post them. It would be a big waste of your time to find
|
||
a knowledgeable user in one of the groups and ask through private
|
||
mail if the topic has already come up. Much easier to bother
|
||
thousands of people with the same question.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: What is the measure of a worthwhile group?
|
||
|
||
A: Why, it's Volume, Volume, Volume. Any group that has lots of
|
||
noise in it must be good. Remember, the higher the volume of
|
||
material in a group, the higher percentage of useful, factual and
|
||
insightful articles you will find. In fact, if a group can't
|
||
demonstrate a high enough volume, it should be deleted from the
|
||
net.
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: My fanzine isn't doing well in the readership surveys because
|
||
it is only quarterly. What can I do?
|
||
|
||
A: Simply have the articles take three months to expire, so that
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 11 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
they always show up in the surveys. All those sites probably
|
||
aren't using their disk space for anything useful, so what not
|
||
use it to boost your ego?
|
||
|
||
------
|
||
|
||
Q: What does foobar stand for?
|
||
|
||
A: It stands for you, dear.
|
||
|
||
--
|
||
|
||
Gene Spafford
|
||
NSF/Purdue/U of Florida Software Engineering Research Center,
|
||
Dept. of Computer Sciences, Purdue University,W.Lafayette IN
|
||
Internet: spaf@cs.purdue.edu
|
||
uucp: ...!{decwrl,gatech,ucbvax}!purdue!spaf
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 12 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
FidoNews Policy Changes by Rick Siegel 1:107/27
|
||
|
||
As chairman of the publications committee of IFNA, I
|
||
have been requested, by the president, to solicit opinion on
|
||
changes to FidoNews policy and to compile a consensus and
|
||
advisory to him by Jan 17, 1988.
|
||
|
||
I ask anyone interested in expressing himself on this
|
||
matter send netmail to Rick Siegel at 1:107/27 prior to that,
|
||
and preferably a few days prior so that your opinion may be
|
||
included in the consensus.
|
||
|
||
I have never written anything for FidoNews, and this is
|
||
my first shot at this. I am not a writer, please forgive my
|
||
corruption of the English language.
|
||
|
||
I would, however, like to let you all know my opinion of
|
||
this affair.
|
||
|
||
It seems that the crux of the complaints about FidoNews
|
||
revolve around an article by Tom Jennings. I have read the
|
||
article. I have not seen any complaints. Then again, I do not
|
||
subscribe to SysOp or IFNA echoes.
|
||
|
||
I find it quite incredulous that anyone did not
|
||
understand the content and intent of the Jennings article.
|
||
Certainly it was not computer oriented in it's content. However,
|
||
it was a "piece of life" for Tom Jennings, and he shared it with
|
||
us, the SysOps in a network he envisioned and created. Yet this
|
||
network is full of the diversity from which Tom had spoken, so
|
||
it does stand to reason some will be offended in many ways.
|
||
|
||
For those that were offended, may we look deeper. Tom
|
||
Jennings is the founding visionary of the network we call
|
||
owe him is to keep the ideals he envisioned within his creation
|
||
communicate the frustrations he faces in his daily life. It
|
||
interest, if only to note what is going on with the granddad
|
||
of FidoNet.
|
||
|
||
Additionally, using this article as a ram rod to
|
||
put shackles on the editor of FidoNews and make moves to
|
||
constant bickering among the wolves of the echoes.
|
||
|
||
a majority of negative comment sway the flow of information to
|
||
the majority. I find the policy for FidoNews fine for the
|
||
purpose, and time proven.
|
||
|
||
Since there is a limited time for any of you to respond
|
||
to this, I have taken the liberty of contacting some SysOps
|
||
direct. I would however like to hear from anyone, and as soon as
|
||
possible. Please let me know what you feel by contacting Rick
|
||
Siegel at 1:107/27, which is #CM at 1200/2400 baud.
|
||
|
||
I appreciate your time and efforts to making this
|
||
research work.
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 13 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
Rick Siegel (107/27)
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 14 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
COLUMNS
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
RegComm - Communications From RegCon.
|
||
|
||
Last weeks column mentioned a rumor about one of the *C team who
|
||
was injured and his net helped him return to active status.
|
||
Well, it wasn't a rumor after all. We recently received the
|
||
following from Chris Baker:
|
||
|
||
|
||
A Holiday Ode to Net 135
|
||
by Christopher Baker
|
||
RC 18 / NC 135
|
||
|
||
Twas two weeks before Christmas and all thru my house,
|
||
my body was aching, I started to grouse.
|
||
"If I don't dump this backache and get back to work
|
||
my Users and Sysops will think I'm a jerk."
|
||
|
||
I'd been laid up at home for many a week
|
||
and I had no computer through which I could speak.
|
||
It's tough to do business without a remote and I'm sure
|
||
many NCs thought things I can't quote.
|
||
|
||
All the while in the background quite unknown to me,
|
||
the folks of my own Net were planning a spree.
|
||
They talked and they chatted and gathered up parts
|
||
to build me a system for home, bless their hearts.
|
||
|
||
They Netmailed and Echoed and telephoned, too,
|
||
deciding just which part was what and from who.
|
||
They assembled a system that was based on a Tandy;
|
||
with modem and hard drive, I mean, it's a dandy!
|
||
|
||
I was tired and cranky the night it was due
|
||
and had NO idea this dream would come true.
|
||
I had pains in my back and a pain in my head
|
||
but my wife kept insisting I not go to bed.
|
||
|
||
It didn't seem normal the way she cajoled.
|
||
It wasn't till later she said, "I was told."
|
||
So unknown to me I was being prepared
|
||
for a real demonstration of how my Net cared.
|
||
|
||
It was close to eleven P.M. when I said,
|
||
"I can't stay up longer. I'm going to bed."
|
||
Then suddenly and very much to my shock
|
||
came a tap on the door and then a loud knock.
|
||
|
||
"Ho, Ho, Ho!", said a voice not too clear through the door.
|
||
"Open up! I have presents for you by the score!"
|
||
The door was thrown wide to allow the sprite in
|
||
but he wasn't in red; not a hair on his chin.
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 15 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
He was thin as a rail and no Santa was he.
|
||
I recognized Peter; our own NEC.
|
||
"What the heck's going on?" I exclaimed to the air.
|
||
He said, "Just a small token to show that we care."
|
||
|
||
He said nothing else but went straight to his work
|
||
and set up the system then he turned with a smirk.
|
||
"No more excuses!", he said, "Now, get cracking!"
|
||
"Your traffic's piled up and the stuff keeps on stacking!"
|
||
|
||
I stood there dumbfounded, amazed and confused.
|
||
My mind boggled speechless and he seemed amused.
|
||
"What? How? Who and why?", I managed to say.
|
||
"It's nothing", said he, "now, get back in the fray!"
|
||
|
||
It wouldn't sink in that such things still take place
|
||
that confirm all your faith in the rest of the race.
|
||
The best I could do was to stammer my thanks
|
||
and then write this poem to honor our ranks.
|
||
|
||
I still can't believe it and simply must say,
|
||
"All the folks in my Net, you made my whole day!"
|
||
"I never can thank you enough for this gift."
|
||
"Your generous act brings a permanent lift!"
|
||
|
||
So, all of the rest out in FidoNet land,
|
||
keep your faith that our concept continues to stand.
|
||
The FidoNet concept of help and of sharing
|
||
is here. Look around and you'll see people caring.
|
||
|
||
It's never too late to put egos aside.
|
||
Let go some bygones and take them in stride.
|
||
This Network is people and people are kind.
|
||
When your urge is to flame them, please keep that in mind.
|
||
|
||
To all of my Net, I say "Thank you, nth times!"
|
||
To the rest of the world who are sick of my rhymes
|
||
I say "I hope the New Year will bring you much joy!"
|
||
Now, I think I'll stop here and go play with my toy! [grin]
|
||
|
||
The End
|
||
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to the wacky world of FidoNet!
|
||
|
||
Christopher Baker MetroFire, 1:135/14(0), 305-596-8611 Miami, FL
|
||
|
||
SFLorida Net 135, Miami_FL_USA
|
||
|
||
Roster of Net 135 Santas:
|
||
|
||
1 RAM-SOFT_Archive_Library, David_Gilbert & James Gilbert
|
||
2 Eclectic_BBS, Tark_Henderson
|
||
3 Medical_Software_Exchange, Richard_Kaplan
|
||
4 The_Kendall_BBS, Mike_Janke
|
||
5 CAP-BBS, Duane_Ellis
|
||
6 Dungeons_of_Darkness_OPUS, Mike_Jones
|
||
7 Miami's_First_Fido, Al_DelaTorre
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 16 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
8 Coral_Gables_Medterm_BBS, Mario_Diaz
|
||
9 EPICS_Opus, Sandy_Schurtz
|
||
10 AMS_Support-Net_135_NEC, Peter_Adenauer
|
||
11 Power_Station, Mike_Lombana
|
||
12 Off-Duty_Inc._BBS, Kathryn_Fanning
|
||
20 FrontDoor_Headquarters, Joaquim_Homrighausen
|
||
24 TURBO-Soft, David_Kerley
|
||
27 Bitsy's_Place, Henry_VanLeer
|
||
30 SMURFIT_Latin_America_Opus, Jeff_Wolach
|
||
33 Byte_Size_Bits, Jean_Prophet & Buddy Prophet
|
||
34 The_Jailhouse, Kenny_Star
|
||
35 The_Sober_Way_Out, Robert_Egan
|
||
36 Town_Crier_Opus, Orville_Bullitt
|
||
38 C-Board, Jack_Bowman
|
||
39 The Expressions_BBS, Daniel_Johnston
|
||
40 The_Cable_Connection, Jerry_Iovine
|
||
41 BBS1-PC!, John_Theed
|
||
43 Key's_Paradise, Steve_Froeschke
|
||
46 Bullitt_-_80_Opus, Guy_Bullitt
|
||
47 MOBS_Opus_Humor_South, Andrew_Adler
|
||
48 The_Road_Runner, Luis_Hernandez
|
||
88 Chatterbox_BBS, Marc_Moyantcheff
|
||
204 BerkShire_Board, Bill_Kraski
|
||
901 Miami's_Personal_Consultant, Dave_Steinman
|
||
942 wHy_bE_NoRmaL?, Tim_LaVan
|
||
990 Friends_of_Dorothy, Scott_Samet
|
||
|
||
Thank you all for the fabulous Tandy T1000 w/20 meg hard drive,
|
||
1200 bps modem, 384K RAM, floppy drive and completely configured
|
||
with DOS and programs! It is a gift I will always cherish and
|
||
never forget. You ARE an amazing and generous bunch of people and
|
||
Sysops!
|
||
|
||
|
||
We all thank you Chris, for bringing it to our attention that
|
||
FidoNet still consists of a lot of caring people. The RegCon
|
||
team wishes you well and we hope to hear from you often.
|
||
|
||
("RegComm" will be a regular column in FidoNews and your comments
|
||
are welcome. Please address your concerns and comments via
|
||
NetMail to your Net or Regional Coordinator, you should receive
|
||
an answer within a few days. It's your net and we would like to
|
||
have your input.)
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 17 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
NOTICES
|
||
=================================================================
|
||
|
||
The Interrupt Stack
|
||
|
||
|
||
24 Aug 1989
|
||
Voyager 2 passes Neptune.
|
||
|
||
5 Oct 1989
|
||
20th Anniversary of "Monty Python's Flying Circus"
|
||
|
||
If you have something which you would like to see on this
|
||
calendar, please send a message to FidoNet node 1:1/1.
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
Latest Software Versions
|
||
|
||
Bulletin Board Software
|
||
Name Version Name Version Name Version
|
||
|
||
Fido 12i Opus 1.03b TBBS 2.1*
|
||
QuickBBS 2.03 TPBoard 5.0* TComm/TCommNet 3.2
|
||
Lynx 1.10 Phoenix 1.3 RBBS 1.71C
|
||
|
||
|
||
Network Node List Other
|
||
Mailers Version Utilities Version Utilities Version
|
||
|
||
Dutchie 2.90b EditNL 4.00 ARC 5.32
|
||
SEAdog 4.10 MakeNL 2.12 ARCmail 1.1
|
||
BinkleyTerm 2.00 Prune 1.40 ConfMail 4.00
|
||
D'Bridge 1.10 XlatList 2.86 TPB Editor 1.21
|
||
FrontDoor 2.0 XlaxNode 2.31* TCOMMail 2.0*
|
||
PRENM 1.40 XlaxDiff 2.31* TMail 8812*
|
||
ParseList 1.30* UFGATE 1.02*
|
||
GROUP 2.04*
|
||
EMM 1.40
|
||
MSGED 1.96
|
||
|
||
* Recently changed
|
||
|
||
Utility authors: Please help keep this list up to date by
|
||
reporting new versions to 1:1/1. It is not our intent to list
|
||
all utilities here, only those which verge on necessity.
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 18 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
OFFICERS OF THE INTERNATIONAL FIDONET ASSOCIATION
|
||
|
||
Hal DuPrie 1:101/106 Chairman of the Board
|
||
Bob Rudolph 1:261/628 President
|
||
Matt Whelan 3:3/1 Vice President
|
||
Ray Gwinn 1:109/639 Vice President - Technical Coordinator
|
||
David Garrett 1:103/501 Secretary
|
||
Steve Bonine 1:115/777 Treasurer
|
||
|
||
|
||
|
||
IFNA BOARD OF DIRECTORS
|
||
|
||
DIVISION AT-LARGE
|
||
|
||
10 Courtney Harris 1:102/732? Don Daniels 1:107/210
|
||
11 Bill Allbritten 1:11/301 Hal DuPrie 1:101/106
|
||
12 Bill Bolton 3:711/403 Mark Grennan 1:147/1
|
||
13 Rick Siegel 1:107/27 Steve Bonine 1:115/777
|
||
14 Ken Kaplan 1:100/22 Ted Polczyinski 1:154/5
|
||
15 Larry Kayser 1:104/739? Matt Whelan 3:3/1
|
||
16 Ivan Schaffel 1:141/390 Robert Rudolph 1:261/628
|
||
17 Rob Barker 1:138/34 Steve Jordan 1:102/2871
|
||
18 Christopher Baker 1:135/14 Bob Swift 1:140/24
|
||
19 David Drexler 1:19/1 Larry Wall 1:15/18
|
||
2 Henk Wevers 2:500/1 David Melnik 1:107/233
|
||
|
||
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|
||
|
||
FidoNews 6-03 Page 19 16 Jan 1989
|
||
|
||
|
||
__
|
||
The World's First / \
|
||
BBS Network /|oo \
|
||
* FidoNet * (_| /_)
|
||
_`@/_ \ _
|
||
| | \ \\
|
||
| (*) | \ ))
|
||
______ |__U__| / \//
|
||
/ Fido \ _//|| _\ /
|
||
(________) (_/(_|(____/ (tm)
|
||
|
||
Membership for the International FidoNet Association
|
||
|
||
Membership in IFNA is open to any individual or organization that
|
||
pays a specified annual membership fee. IFNA serves the
|
||
international FidoNet-compatible electronic mail community to
|
||
increase worldwide communications.
|
||
|
||
Member Name _______________________________ Date _______________
|
||
Address _________________________________________________________
|
||
City ____________________________________________________________
|
||
State ________________________________ Zip _____________________
|
||
Country _________________________________________________________
|
||
Home Phone (Voice) ______________________________________________
|
||
Work Phone (Voice) ______________________________________________
|
||
|
||
Zone:Net/Node Number ____________________________________________
|
||
BBS Name ________________________________________________________
|
||
BBS Phone Number ________________________________________________
|
||
Baud Rates Supported ____________________________________________
|
||
Board Restrictions ______________________________________________
|
||
|
||
Your Special Interests __________________________________________
|
||
_________________________________________________________________
|
||
_________________________________________________________________
|
||
In what areas would you be willing to help in FidoNet? __________
|
||
_________________________________________________________________
|
||
_________________________________________________________________
|
||
Send this membership form and a check or money order for $25 in
|
||
US Funds to:
|
||
International FidoNet Association
|
||
PO Box 41143
|
||
St Louis, Missouri 63141
|
||
USA
|
||
|
||
Thank you for your membership! Your participation will help to
|
||
insure the future of FidoNet.
|
||
|
||
Please NOTE that IFNA is a general not-for-profit organization
|
||
and Articles of Association and By-Laws were adopted by the
|
||
membership in January 1987. The second elected Board of Directors
|
||
was filled in August 1988. The IFNA Echomail Conference has been
|
||
established on FidoNet to assist the Board. We welcome your
|
||
input to this Conference.
|
||
|
||
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|
||
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