X-Message-Number: 24052 From: "Steve Harris" <> References: <> Subject: Re: CryoNet #24041 Date: Wed, 5 May 2004 17:34:47 -0700 > Message #24041 > Date: Tue, 4 May 2004 04:52:19 -0700 (PDT) > From: William O'Rights <> > Subject: censored > > (The point of this exercise is to compile a reputation score, > which is based on others' opinions of each poster's messages. The > poster's own opinion is hardly relevant, especially since our problem > posters are unlikely to recognize their own spamminess, or to admit it > if they recognize it. Am I missing a key issue here?) > > > > I believe so, the larger issue is that if all mankind minus one, were of one > opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be > no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the > power, would be justified in silencing mankind. COMMENT: J.S. Mill, whom you quote above without attribution, is entitled to his opinion. But I rather think he was talking about silencing people by force through imprisoning them or making their writings illegal. This hardly applies to the necessity of evicting bothersome, noisy, disorderly, and crazy persons who will otherwise tend to disrupt private meetings and public gatherings with irrelevent, off-topic, or insane material. If you're going to ask how this is to be done in public, I refer you to Robert's Rules of Order for meetings. SBH Rate This Message: http://www.cryonet.org/cgi-bin/rate.cgi?msg=24052