Re: Come in rec.kites, your time is up? (Gaffer MIA)

Subject Re: Come in rec.kites, your time is up? (Gaffer MIA)
From abw@cre.canon.co.uk (Andy Wardley)
Date Wed, 22 Apr 1998 07:14:31 GMT
Newsgroups rec.kites 
Davidbovee <davidbovee@aol.com> wrote:
> And now I'm told that if I DID start learning something here, I'd be a
> drain on the wisdom and heroism of the "haute kite" old guard, who've
> been paying dues so long that I can never hope to catch up.  Bloody
> hell.  So I'm gonna haul my bulk offa here, and maybe the bubble will
> bob a bit higher.  Sorry to crash your club.

I sincerely hope that you're not leaving because of what I've said. It wasn't my intention to drive anyone away from rec.kites and I can only apologise if that's the effect I've had.

The thousands of people who read, learn and contribute from rec.kites are not the problem. They're what makes the group what it is. One of the problems is that we've had a huge influx of people over the past few years and a small number of them aren't prepared to co-operate and play the game that we do. They've barged into our football match but don't want to play by our rules. Instead, they make it a personal task to insult everyone and to try to be as much disruption as possible. They're not interested in playing football or flying kites, but they just like to get attention.

It reminds me of a spoilt child throwing itself on the floor, screaming and shouting and kicking its legs because it thinks that a tantrum is the best way to get attention.

It's these kind of people who do the worst damage. They target well-known figures in rec.kites because they represent "The Establishment". The targets eventually get fed up trying to fight back and give up.

Thankfully, the vast majority of rec.kites readers are thoughtful, pleasant folk who aren't above sending the occassional bit of encouragement and thanks to those people who they consider valued contributors. The valued contributors realize that their efforts aren't in vain and the world seems a much rosier place.

I hope rec.kites will manage to avoid the flush down the great USENET toilet of life. In comparison to many other newsgroups, it is indeed flourishing. The combined readership of rec.kites has an infinite wealth of kiting knowledge about matters both important and trivial. I would like to encourage more of that knowledge to sprout forth instead of hate and anger.

I just read someone (sorry, I forget who) who said "You can't demand peace, you have to do it." Good point. Lead by your actions.

Hope you come back some time, David, and find it a more enjoyable game.

A 

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