>>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] 07/18/01 12:13AM >>>
Hey Leo,
Your departure is PEN-L's loss, not yours.
(((((((((
CB: Yea, without struggle there is no progress, and Leo has that at the bottom of all
his posts. Plus, he's a real anti- you know what, so we pro's can really struggle with
such anti, causing progress. Afterall, sticks and stones will break your bones, and
words... so a struggle here can be , oh so non-physical and peaceful.
But , since Leo left on his own, and wasn't put off, maybe he could see that his anti-
was giving us pros as chance to make progress, by contrasting ourselves with him.
Like Max, says, Leo didn't lose anything, but he's posing as a loser. Weird move.
(((((((((((
LBO is more fun anyway. PEN-L tries to be
serious and promote civility, but the results
for civility are uneven and the seriousness
stifles my matchless sense of humor. Plus it
only encourages Devine.
Calling someone a stalinist is hardly the worst
thing in the world, in the only sense it can mean
anything here. Nobody called a stalinist is being
accused of murdering millions of kulaks or having
Trotsky ice-picked. For some, being called a
stalinist is a compliment. I've seen much worse
here. Louey called me a welfare capitalist, and
fat besides. He said I had a 38 inch waist, which
only called attention to the fact that I have a
48 inch waist. You happened to miss Louie, who
is on serial-killer sabbatical from the list.
As Nathan has mentioned, while I too have high
regard for Bicycle Boy Perelman, and while I also
appreciate the time he sacrifices to hosting
the list, his moderation in political controversies
has always been a model of inconsistency. I've
raised this more than once myself, but since
criticism is healthy I figure you can't be too
healthy.
I most regret the in-fighting among people with
whom I seem to get along, and from whose posts
I benefit. In fact, I seem
to get along with everyone these days except Louie,
who actually loves me to death but won't admit it.
And I'm not even a socialist. Shit. I'm less
internationalist than Brad DeLong.
I don't get along with Rakesh, who has just arrived,
but how do we know it's really Rakesh and not some
imposter whose real name is Hyman Blumenstock or
Tachion Babushka?
My only beef with Leo was that for a while it
seemed like he got me in a thread with David Horowitz
and Louis Menashe.
There is something to be said for the Henwood
policy of not trying to stifle abuse altogether,
but to keep it to a dull roar. Thereby steam is
let off but nobody blows a gasket, at least not
usually. Whereas on PEN-L the mean temperature
is lower but the variance higher.
Can't we all get along? I guess not.
It's hard when you're so damn serious.
mbs
