More About TBAY

[davewitley]

Dumbledad wrote:
  
> As I've stated already,  I'm not a TBAY fan. 

(reasoning snipped)

> Therefore I'd like us to continue to welcome TBAYs on the main 
list. 

I think the spirit of this post is excellent.  However, I'd like to 
make a tangential point about the nature of the TBAY post, 
illustrated by the first statement above.

I may have forgotten something, but Dumbledad's statement that he is 
not a TBAY fan took the form of a TBAY post involving Snape and Binns.

The first time I read it, I assumed it stated and rationalised a 
personal preference for baldly stated, as opposed to TBAY style, 
posting.

While reading some of the responses, however, I went back and re-read 
it, and wondered.  I wondered if in fact it was meant to say that 
people of a particular *type* - typified by Snape and Binns - do not 
like the TBAY style.  Indeed, the Snape character described *HPFGU* 
as ridiculous or preposterous or some such: which might be taken to 
imply that the point of view put into his mouth about TBAY was that 
of someone unsympathetic to HPFGU as a whole.

So I wondered if it was intended as a subtle shot across the bows of 
those who want to restrict TBAY on the main list in some way: that 
they are bitter and twisted like Snape, or dull and lifeless like 
Binns.

It seems I was wrong (perhaps fortunately), but I think this does 
illustrate how material which is apparently 'fluff' on a first 
reading may in fact be an integral part of a canon post.  It also 
illustrates how a sophisticated poster might want to use this sort of 
format to introduce ambiguity into their message, so that two people 
might come away from the same post with diametrically opposed 
conclusions.  (I think the ability to generate that sort of ambiguity 
is a good thing, myself.)

Does this have any bearing on issues of list administration and 
policy?  I think it does, though perhaps not strongly so.  I think it 
means that there is a fairly organic spectrum of canon based 
discussion, which even the use of a prefix does damage to, and 
therefore I'd like to see TBAY posting continue on the main list.

Shaun raised the issue of the netiquette of 'forking' threads from 
one style into another - I'd like to address this in a separate post 
later when I have more time.

Just in case anyone missed it first time around, I'll repeat I'm no 
longer a member of the admin team.

David, who has twice tried and failed to be able to read 'Huckleberry 
Finn'