I have been a member of this list for about a year. I have
mostly lurked and have greatly enjoyed the book and movie
recommendations that have come from members. I have been
particularly dismayed, however, by some of the negative tones
that have come about over the last several months. And with
Jim Doherty leaving, I feel I must say something: Members
such as I, who am a fan but not a professional writer, have a
great opportunity to benefit from the insights and knowledge
of those who earn a living in this hardboiled field. I am
continually excited to be reading posts from people whose
work I enjoy, in no particular order, Duane Swierczynski ,
Vicki Hendricks, Charles Ardai, Bill Crider, Allan Guthrie,
and Jim Doherty. To have Doherty quit this list is not
something to be proud of. So here is my request: if you have
a thought that is contrary to someone's stated position, by
all means write your opinion. But reread what you've written,
take a break, and read it again, and ask yourself if it is
respectful, not condescending, and written in the spirit for
which this forum exists; if so, then send it. If not, then
see if you can make it so, and still get your point across.
Normally, I wouldn't say anything, but I wouldn't want to
lose any more great contributors like Doherty. Thanks for
listening.
Patrick Lee
--- In
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, Patrick King
<abrasax93@...> wrote:
>
>
> --- Richard Moore <moorich@...>
wrote:
>
> > I completely agree about the ugliness of tone
that
> > has increased of
> > late. Let me say that I am not referring to
Jim
> > Doherty, as I
> > recognized it as schtick. Perhaps having met
him a
> > few times helps
> > me do that. I do hope Jim returns as I am
interested
> > in hearing his
> > opinions even when I disagree with
them.
> >
> > It should be possible to discuss and, at
times,
> > disagree without
> > competing to see who can come across as the
biggest
> > jerk.
>
****************************************************
> Some posters apparently have a need to display
their
> extreme knowledge of all things "hardboiled" &
"noir"
> by replying to others' posts with
sarcastic
> condescension. I doubt that most of us know
each
> other, who we "are" or what we've accomplished.
When
> one receives responses like these, one tends to
reply
> in kind. Let's face it, few meeting others at
a
> hardboiled convention would take a
sarcastic
> condescending tact responding to a
sincere
> observation, however naive. But the internet
removes
> the possibility of a black eye from the equasion.
It
> seems to me, the ones who complain most loudly
about
> these flurries, are often guilty of making
the
> statements that elicited the angry response. It's
a
> case of, 'He started it; he hit me back first.' If
we
> really want to stop these kinds of interactions,
we
> need to agree to treat each other with mutual
respect.
> Personally, I'm certainly here to learn, but I
wasn't
> a neophyte when I arrived. I'll be happy to
respond
> respectufully to respectfully worded comments
and
> criticism. I suspect we all feel this
way.
>
> Patrick King
>
>
>
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