Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 16:03:47 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: [HAB:] re: Sue, "Getting ethical by getting highly self-identical"


On Wed, 25 Aug 2004 FREDWELFARE-AT-aol.com wrote:

> In a message dated 8/25/2004 3:01:19 PM Eastern Standard Time,
> sue-AT-mcphersons.freeserve.co.uk writes:
>
> you took  it off-list
>
> I also disagreed with that move when it happened to and put all postings
> back on the listserve.  I also dislike it when my name is entered into
> the subject line as if the subject is my rather than the content.  I
> consider these kinds of moves, perlocutions, and invalid.

I think I understand where you two are coming from, but I think Gary's
coming from pretty much the same place. E-mail lists are, as this whole
situation demonstrates again, fraught not only with performative (in
technical and non-technical senses) utterances but with the danger that
every utterance will be taken as such, even when it's not. I expect that
Gary's moves in taking things off the list and in addressing list posts to
individual persons--as opposed to the general audience, jury, mob--are
meant as attempts to overcome that.

And, you know, even if Gary's motives aren't so noble and he really is
just an evil manipulative control-freak (which I don't think is the case,
but hey, on the internet no one knows you're a dog), it probably does more
good than harm to pretend otherwise.

Of course you can draw your own Habermassian conclusions from that, but
for my part I'll just issue my usual apology for the lack of H-content. ;)

Matthew


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