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John Cottingham, I understand the purpose and benefits of the web page version of the list and I appreciate the efforts made to set it up. I believe that there's no real privacy in the listserv or protection from someone who wants to track you down, and that making it all available on the WWW is not really that much less safe, provided one takes precautions. Still, I must say that I don't see in your response an understanding of the concerns people have expressed regarding privacy, and I do not appreciate the "if you don't like it you can leave" statement: > We are riding in the 'boat' Parkinsn and it is owned by Barbara > Patterson. She is under no obligation to poll anyone when the > durability and usability of the list are concerned. The only vote > subscribers have is the revolving door. Passengers shouldn't > interfere with rowing the boat...just enjoy the ride. Yes, Barbara Patterson is the owner of the list. However, I believe that persuasive arguments could be made that by offering the list as a public facility, there is thereby created some degree of obligation to the subscribers, as yet to be defined. The definition of the obligations may well emerge as situations like the present one arise. Using the boat analogy, even if it's my boat, I must offer passengers lifejackets in case the boat is in danger of sinking, and assistance should that in fact occur. If I were a lawyer I would be able to express this better, with more pertinent analogies and with citations of precidents to boot. > If your concern is for privacy, use the reply button on your email > program and email the poster directly. If having Parkinsons is > embarassing, do like the majority just read the list and not post. The need for privacy may be more like, for example, the need to keep my condition a secret from a prospective employer until the appropriate time to reveal it has come, and that I am willing to risk that he/she will not stumble upon my postings to the listserv. I recognize that the listowner does not guarantee me any such privacy, but a relative degree of it does exist. And I cannot remain a lurker, because I have issues that require interactive communication. The situation is perhaps analogous to the privacy offered by a bathhouse that has no roof. There is no protection from a peeping Tom who makes the effort to climb a nearby tree. But no one has done that, and so far my private parts are safe from public view. Now someone installs windows. Phil Tompkins Hoboken NJ age 61/dx 1990