Re: [IAC#RG] Request to Moderators to give Priority to New Topics

1. Dear Sarbajit,

I appreciate that it is a difficult task to balance the responsibility of disseminating information as freely as possible, while not tripping people's tolerance. And a thankless one at that, which most of us won't even realize gets done when we attend to the few emails we receive.

As an email user with low patience for clutter, I appreciate the efort you go through.

I also appreciate that we are using a free email list to run a fairly large platform and that gratitude for this service apart, resources must be managed with due courtesy.

I hear what Babubhai is suggesting and appreciate that there are many things relevant to corruption that may be missing which need attention.

I have suggestions:

1. Create an email group like "IAC-common-room" for example, where discussions that are not relevant to corruption can be continued as a group development exercise as well as taking on other discussions not suitable (or regretfully dropped) here. If such a list is made on google/yahoo groups, it needs not be moderated and people can join or leave or filter spam at times or whatever at whim. New topics which cannot get too much attention can be posted as one digest email with the reply-to header going to that group if anyone wants to join and continue. Many such emails can also first be posted there and a digest of relevant ones posted here to inform anyone who may want to go there and participate.
2. There are several subjects here not particularly relevant to corruption. Worse, there are some emails that are clearly sent through to prevent claims of free speech being strangled. Those could be dropped to make space for important ones. The rejection email can contain a list to a standard disclaimer that while free speech etc etc the list has protocols and tripping those will get the email rejected. Anyone can post what they want, but whether the whole list needs to hear it is determined by a variety of factors, etc etc. Or these discussion can go to the common room too where they may be debated without limiting anyone's voice and at the same time people will subscribe and leave knowing that that is a high traffic area.
3. People must be *cough* encouraged to write in a fashion that will be understood by a wide variety of people or the purpose of many receiving it is defeated if people read a few words and then struggle to understand. For example a few recent emails were in the CAPSLOCK MODE. WHOLE PARAGRAPHS AND PARAGRAPHS OF TEXT THAT TIRED THE EYES AND IT WAS A FASCINATING EMAIL, BUT I GAVE UP AFTER I GOT EXHAUSTED. Or instead of pasting entire articles, they should be quoted at the relevant/significant part and a link to the live page on the internet be provided for further pursuit. This also provides further transparency in terms of article content not being tampered. And such other things that make the emails readable and interesting and most importantly useful to those receiving them with regard to the fight against corruption not losing power in crossed connections.

My two cents.

Vidyut