Connie, Nina, Lucy, everyone, 

I intended to deal in private with this, but y'all got away from me 
while I was poking at the keyboard.

Several errors are being made in this exchange...

Nina wrote:
> To me, an animal's health and welfare is not being considered if its
> ears are cropped. Nature makes an animal a certain shape for a
> reason. What if someone decided to crop your children's ears because
> they thought it "looked better," or wanted to show your children off
> according to the latest fashion?

First, Nina, whether Lucy (kimdane) follows the breed convention of
cropping ears or not is irrelevant to the subject of our list. In fact,
I'm sure it's almost a religious issue among animal lovers, all the
more reason to ignore it *here*, or to deal with it in private e-mail
if you must. 

Indeed, would the dogs be better off with CS, whether or not they're
trimmed and cropped? If yes, then go for what you are being offered --
a chance to improve their condition!

Connie wrote:
> Kim ignore people like this . They aren't all like her.

Connie, your reply is harsher sounding than you probably intended, and
if not, was indeed too harsh. Responding in kind to remarks that offend
you only escalates an issue. 

You also replied publicly. Something needed to be done, and could have
been done through private e-mail. It would have been preferable to
work through me if you felt a public action was needed. No playing List
Cop, please!

Another part of *why* so many of our remarks can offend others is the 
tendency of e-mail to amplify emotional effects well beyond what we 
intend. Any critical remark, no matter how benignly intended, is 
percieved untempered by a gentle tone of voice, soothing inflection, 
sympathetic look, or non-confrontational body language.

Every one of us needs to understand this:  Stand up, point your finger 
at the screen and recite your words in a stern or angry voice and 
you'll approximate the emotional tone of your writing. Then rewrite to 
make sure your meaning comes through! <grin>

Lucy, I am sorry your welcome to the list is not up to the standards
we hope to maintain. To walk in, introduce yourself, and have a brawl
break out is *not* the best first impression! 

After all this, you really are in a good place to learn from folks who
know a lot about CS, and can help you sort fact from fiction among
competing claims. Your loved ones, whether canine or human, stand to
benefit from learning all you can.

At this point apologies all around, in private or on list, would be
about the only way to minimize ill feelings. Please, lighten up, be
gentle, soften the tone, thicken the skin. I dunno what more we can
do.

Peace, folks,

Be well,

Mike Devour
silver-list owner
[Mike Devour, Citizen, Patriot, Libertarian]
[mdev...@eskimo.com                        ]
[Speaking only for myself...               ]


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