[Foundation-l] The state of Foundation-l (again) was: Recent firing?

[William Pietri]

Hi, Thomas.

Thomas Dalton wrote:
> Indeed. My standard advice for people on how to interpret my
> text-based messages is this: If in doubt, I don't mean any offence. If
> I want to offend you, I will leave you in no doubt.
>   

I think there's a common element in this and your "just ignore" proposal 
that will lead to continued frustration on both sides. You're placing 
the burden for solving a shared problem on other people, and quite a lot 
of them.

You seem like a pretty sharp fellow, and so I'm sure your solution not 
only looks most rational to you, but has good odds of being so by some 
reasonable set of metrics. But other people may be using different 
criteria, and you're unlikely to get them to change something deep like 
that via an email or two, especially if they already feel frustration 
toward you.

As a software developer, I've struggled a lot with issues like this. 
Part of me wants the rational solution, but I also really like getting 
things done, which often leads me to solutions that have more to do with 
effectiveness and practicality. And what's most effective and practical 
when dealing with my fellow mutant chimps is poorly correlated with what 
I find most pleasing to my rational side.

That's not to advocate for either side of this, really. If you really 
want to change the email-use behavior of everybody on this list, there 
are approaches for that. But absent that substantial amount of work, or 
absent some other change, frustration is likely to continue.

And personally, I find that frustrating, as not only do I like a 
collegial working environment, but I think collegiality makes for more 
effective group discussion and group action.

William