>Max-
>I have not written in a long time but have been following this whole
>debate for days.  My question is, am I the only one who found Ilya and
>Robert Husby to be just as "rude, childish, etc" as Robert Cohen.  One
>cannot argue with oneself.  Were these other people removed also?
>Idea?  Try removing them and reinstating R. Cohen.
>

From my perspective, it's not an issue of rudeness, but of inflammatory
rhetoric. It was obvious from his very early postings that Robert Cohen
enjoys stirring things up. After his re-admittance onto the list, most of
the discussions got very feisty, and there were many more philosophical
debates, most of which were instigated by him. While that style of conduct
can make for a more spicy interchange, it can just as easily degrade into
fisticuffs, which it did. The overall temperature of the list was
escalating pretty dramatically, culminating in an outright battle. I
believe that the immediate behavior of all parties could be considered
rude, just as all people involved in a battle could be observed to appear
violent. The issue is how to restore this group to a more tolerable quality
of interaction, and it is clear to me that the original inflamer had to be
"timed out" - perhaps for good since his "best behavior" the second time
around wasn't too good. The inflammatory rhetoric almost instantly subsided
once Mr. Cohen was removed, and it looks like we're back to discussing
things in a more civil manner. It is unfortunate that others left in
defense of Mr. Cohen. Their contributions will be missed. But I, for one,
think that this list is back to a tolerable level and tenor of interaction.

Mark



Mark Feblowitz