Another country heard from... (was: Thoughts on exclusion and culture) LONG

[lucky_kari]

I've been seriously ill the last bit, which explains my sudden absence
from the fray, but could I resist answering this? 

Gwen wrote:
> To me, TBAY posts are not about the monologue. They are about the 
> teacup. They are about the use of the form, and while they may be 
> inspired by having something real to say, ultimately, the nugget of 
> wisdom is subsumed by how `cleverly' one can conceal it within all 
> the rest of the trappings. I have no problem with cleverness, but 
> being clever for the sake of being clever is
well, it's smug

I think the operative word here is "to me." You see them as a nugget
of wisdom hidden by the trappings. I'd suggest that you are misreading
them. What you call the trappings are the whole point to me. Which is,
of course, why we're having this discussion in the first place. 

> What am I saying here? I'm saying that TBAY was preserved because 
> moderators on the mod team wanted it to stick around, and because 
> they defended it maniacally, almost to the point of hysteria, when it 
> was attacked.

Hey! Let's put our cards on the table here. 

Moderator_s_?

You're referring to Elkins, for one.

And the fact that you can say that Elkins argued maniacally, to the
point of hysteria, well, that rather strains your credibility in my
opinion, Gwen. Anyone who could come up with that characterization of
Elkins, the soul of impartiality and rationality, the person who sees
nineteen sides to every argument, well, I might wonder if this whole
thing was - you know - *personal.* 

Eileen