BTW, Net users should be aware that posting to an open list is making a public post.
That is true.
The consequences of posting to a list is similiar to post to Usenet.
That is not true for all (most?) lists. It's only true for lists that include email addresses in cleartext in the archives.
I have frequently posted to Topica lists, and to lists that I archive myself by help of MHonArc (using address masking), and I do not have any problem with spam to the addresses I'm using on those lists.
Btw, at Topica you can reply to the posters via a contact form. I like that approach. ( But you already knew that. ;-) )
-- Gunnar Hjalmarsson Email: http://www.gunnar.cc/cgi-bin/contact.pl