Date: Mon, 7 Feb 2005 17:13:14 +0100 From: Anthony Atkielski <atkielski.anthony@wanadoo.fr> To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: Re: favor Message-ID: <1165136567.20050207171314@wanadoo.fr> In-Reply-To: <d9175cad05020703066c9e02a2@mail.gmail.com> References: <200502061420.24415.krinklyfig@spymac.com> <LOBBIFDAGNMAMLGJJCKNOEEKFAAA.tedm@toybox.placo.com> <d9175cad05020703066c9e02a2@mail.gmail.com>
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Eric Kjeldergaard writes: EK> Let us make an analogue betwixt our Valerie and one who submits to the EK> local newspaper. There is a roughly equal level of consent given in EK> both cases ... Not so, on two points: (1) the newspaper is obviously available to anyone (it's on the newsstands), and not only to a selected group, and (2) the messages to the newspaper appear in print and are thus much less ephemeral than e-mail messages. A person sending a letter to a newspaper knows that everyone may see it, because he saw the newspaper on the newsstands--that's how newspapers are. He also knows that his letter may be archived, because newspapers are on paper and are often kept in morgues indefinitely. These assumptions are not valid for mailing lists. It's reasonable to assume that a mailing list distributes messages only to people who are subscribed to the mailing list. It's also reasonable to assume that the messages sent to the list don't exist outside of their ephemeral distribution to the members of the list. Someone submitting to a periodical with a closed circulation (subscribers only) would be a closer analogy to the case at hand, but it still would not match the ephemeral character of a mailing list. EK> Would this not be a reasonable analogy (if we throw out the fact EK> that the newspaper companies are generally capitalist entities since EK> it has little bearing here)? No, for reasons stated above. EK> Certainly the newspaper didn't require a contract to be signed by EK> its submitters before distributing publicly their submissions. Many periodicals impose conditions on anyone writing letters to the editor, which they clearly state in the same place where they give instructions on how to send letters to the editor. EK> I don't see that a mailing list would need such a thing. The EK> submissions are given under the understanding that they shall be EK> publicly available both to subscribers and non subscribers in their EK> favourite restaurants and libraries. There is no such understanding with respect to a mailing list. -- Anthony
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