Subject: Re: ad hominem attacks

From: Graham Klyne <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 22:51:44 +0100

I am reminded of a comment by Dave Crocker when introduced to a conference
as a pioneer of Internet e-mail:

  You can tell the pioneers: they have the arrows stuck in their backs

#g
--

At 22:12 11/10/98 -0700, Fred Baker wrote:
[...]
>It is really very simple. People who are successful at doing good things
>are suspected by conspiracy theorists and general wackos of doing bad
>things - because they are successful and because they do good things. "No
>good deed goes unpunished." It happens all over, and for some reason it
>happens here.
>
>Note that it's also not going to go away. Those who will draw the
>conclusion that Mr. Postel, in umpty-ump years of tireless service on a
>university wage mostly paid on government contracts - neither known as a
>reliable or large source of income - has gotten rich at the Internet's
>expense are not likely to believe anything good, no matter who has said what.

------------
Graham Klyne
([email-masked])

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From: Jim Thompson <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 13 Oct 1998 06:12:17 -0500 (CDT)

> ... and deserved every last arrow - or
> so the indians would say. 

Dear (clue-)Free Net Bob,

One acquires arrows in one's back one of two ways:

1) full retreat from the enemy (e.g. turning tail and running)
2) While advancing from those who follow the trailblazers (e.g. "friendly" fire).

Normally the second is taken as the intended meaning.

Jim

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From: Jim Thompson <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 13 Oct 1998 06:12:17 -0500 (CDT)

Jim