OT: Disappointing...

Conlang List Members,

I've been sick for a week, and busy before that, and now I return
to...something terrible...

I read the conlang list to read about _conlanging_. I don't come here to
read about education, politics, religion, sex, gender studies, the best OS,
the best wordprocessor, the best person, the price of tea in china, or even
how to treat my nasty cold.

This list has an impressive amount of traffic. It is significantly busier
than any other list I am subscribed to. On most days, I accept that as part
of the package, because the discussion is about _conlanging_.  But when I
find that my inbox is overflowing with messages that have nothing to do with
conlanging, that annoys me. I spend too much of my life-span deleting
messages I asked for...without having a barrage of messages I did not.

When I subscribed to this list, I asked for discussions of conlanging, and
an opportunity to (at least attempt, with my limited knowledge) contribute
to discussions about conlanging. I DID NOT ask for endless arguments about
things that have nothing to do with conlanging. The last few months, I've
seen it crop up a few times, and no doubt it has cropped up in years past.
But today, looking at what has gone on recently...I think it has got out of
hand.

I realize in the course of studying language, we have to touch on ANY
subject. However, I'm pretty certain everyone on this list is capable of
realizing when we've stopped talking about the subject in the context of
constructed languages. When that happens, the subject should be dropped, or
"re-railed" back on topic.

If you wish to continue discussion of those topics, there ARE appropiate
forums for those topics. Go to those. Mailing lists, netnews, web-based
forums, etc. etc. The list goes on and on. Go talk to someone who cares to
hear about whatever it is that is so important to you. But when you come to
this list, leave it behind you, and focus on conlanging.

I implore everyone...let all of this die. It has no place here and is
rapidly destroying what was once a good thing.

Iain

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