Posted by medlib on June 24, 2001, at 18:05:58
In reply to Re: anti-drug comments, posted by Shar on June 23, 2001, at 21:50:59
Hi Shar, and other Old Timers---
I mentioned a possible membership-based Old Timers' board in a TelePB post--that part of which should have been posted here. I could have argued that old timers might (not should) be more willing to pay because they have had the use/benefits of this forum for longer. But, Shar, you're right--there was little logic behind my suggestion; it was motivated by pure nostalgia for a forum that felt safer because it was familiar--and civil. For example, I always open your posts because I know from experience that I'm likely to find them thought-provoking, and because I know you'll express disagreement without character assassination. For me, that willingness to make appropriate distinctions between posters and their posts is the essence of civility. I hoped that others might feel as I do and be willing to express their gratitude monetarily for an opportunity to make contact with those who had helped/interested them in the past.
I'm a low energy person in the best of times, and the worst of times leave me unable to do much more than hang on by my fingertips; sometimes I lack the focus to utilize my computer at all, much less to post (guess that that's one reason I can identify with Scott). When I *am* able to function, I'm always in catch-up mode, with little time to spare. When I come to Babble and don't recognize 90% or more of the posters, it feels very much like a "not me" environment; I lack the psychic energy and/or time to get to know an entirely new (and ever-changing) cast of characters, and I open only those few posts whose names I know--guess that's exclusionary by default. (It doesn't help that my ponderous mode of self-expression makes posting very time-consuming for me. Geez, how often I've envied James's succinctness and Noa's warmth and facility with words.)
Lately, I've been heartened by the "return" of a number of familiar posters (Elizabeth, Lorraine, Judy, Craig, Greg, MarkH, Cass, Jane and others whose names are escaping me at the moment; I'd very much like to read more from all. Perhaps others aren't intimidated by unfamiliarity, as I am; goodness knows, I'm certainly an atypical atypical.
I've no wish to hurt feelings, but I think that the tendency to know (and want to know) more about less (or fewer) is an inevitable response to inexorable growth. The subject splits on Babble only mirror the occupational split between therapists and pdocs, and the social/medical split between adults and children. I suspect that GPs and other generalists will continue to survive only in the smallest of settings. Perhaps, "dis-integration" is as relentless as digitization.
Shar, I hope that you are surviving our execrable Texas summer better than I am; my a/c compressor died Friday evening, and I can feel the heat curdling my brain, not to mention my disposition. Probably, I should include a disclaimer with my posts: "Caution; not responsible for opinions expressed from environments hotter than 70 degrees F."
Well wishes from a grumpy generalist---medlib
poster:medlib
thread:1192
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/admin/20010315/msgs/1487.html