Date: Sat, 8 May 2004 11:09:39 -0400
Reply-To: Stephen Steele <steeles@HORIZONVIEW.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Stephen Steele <steeles@HORIZONVIEW.NET>
Subject: Thoughts on State of the List
Content-type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"
Wow!
It's amazing how much space can be eaten up by one engine failure; if it has
in fact failed. And, no, I am not gong to continue on in the throes of who
and how and why we should or should not pay or not Paypal Larry. I am
going to state a few of my observations regarding recent List postings and
the general nature of this list and the online community it serves.
I bought my first Vanagon in 1985. After a brief hiatus I rejoined this
List in December, 1999, I think. I have gleaned and embraced a lot of VERY
IMPORTANT technical advice from many of you. I have enjoyed reading about
all of your travels and travails (there has to be a reason those two words
are so closely spelled). The List has been a positive part of both my online
and on road life.
Being in the relative Vanagon hinterlands of rural Southern Ohio, I have
been able to meet and camp with a only few of you and think of you as
friends. I know you better after making your corporal acquaintance and
being able to put a face with a name. Those of you in the above category
will understand my postings better. And, I too, will understand your
postings a little more for the same reasons.
I know most of the rest you only from your postings. Your personalities
shine or darken through your words. It's to you that I want to explain my
thoughts on recent List postings.
Our proclivities and biases show through our written words. (Many times our
hidden meanings and nuances don't. And even after saying this, I am very
glad that Gerry doesn't allow those horrible emotive icons.) To
demonstrate, if I say that we have a List member who is skilled in using
double entendre, wit, and signs with four letters most of you who have been
here a week or longer will know to whom I am alluding. If I say there's a
Listee who offers a lot of things for sale, who is not a vender and who
"never" gives his prices... you'll know who it is. How 'bout the guy who
can't spell but rebuilds a mean engine? How 'bout the guy who can't spell,
shoots from the hip and doesn't comprehend when he's being dinged? I could
list a lot of you through describing your postings. Well now I'm getting to
the meat of my diatribe (to mix a metaphor or two).
Is the List becoming meaner or more bellicose? Several Listees have asked
this question or one like it recently. I can't answer them. I can write in
response, though. Our personalities become apparent in our postings.. and
some of our non-postings. There are several people that I have met camping
who belong to this List who very seldom post anything. Michael, NC, and
Jeffs, OH, are bright, astute and chose mostly not to post. Most of you
will not get to know their humor, wit or much of anything else about them.
That's your loss. There are some who post infrequently (I feel that I fit
here) and the rest of you might have a glimpse into our world. These two
groups make up the majority of this List. And selfishly for the sake of my
delete button I am glad that is so.
The "posting" minority has of its own volition opened itself up to the
world. Over the years the posting population has shifted around in gender,
geography and content. I have noticed that as the younger crowd joins in
there's a lack of spelling ability; grammar notwithstanding... but that's my
pet peeve. Some new Listees warm up to posting. Some of us have joined and
become very vocal almost immediately. I have seen these types fade quickly
while some have posted continuously over the years. I personally don't see
a lot of difference in the overall attitude of the List but I do see a trend
in bashing versus flaming.
I view flaming as a natural reaction to opposing points of view. As I
understand it, there has always been flaming around this List. But the
recent bashing seems to me to have become personality driven. When we bash
each other we are attacking the online personality that we have come to know
(and dislike). It is an easy trajectory to pitch words like stones. TK wore
a target on HIS back. Others have come very close.
As the List becomes a part of our daily lives it naturally evolves into an
extension of our extant feelings at the time of reading and posting. Maybe
we are not calm and we all know we are not at peace right now. Perhaps it
would be best to try to install some calm and peace on the List. I mean my
God...we could be experiencing one of those threatened tire threads!!
Thanks for letting me rant and rave.
Stephen Steele*
Chillicothe OH
PS. Maybe I'll meet a few more of you at Buses, Bands and Brews
> http://www.geocities.com/buses_n_boats/
'87 Westy "Franz"
'84 Westfalia "Fritz"
'82 Caddy VW Diesel P.U. Unknown future????
'74 MGB My first car...yep, I've kept it since '74
'93 Chevy S-10
'91 Jetta Diesel My daily driver
'02 Jetta Wagon VR6 Wife's car
Ex Vans:
'91 Caravelle "Hans"...1995-2003 Now with Son #1
'81 Vanagon from 1985-1990
*all rights reserved/no portion of this document may be reproduced w/o prior
written permission
