Theos-Talk Archives (March 2005 Message tt00481)

Nice and wise piece of writing, Eldon. I appreciated it.

Anand Gholap

--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "Eldon B Tucker" <eldon@t...> 
wrote:
> Here's something I posted initially on October 8. It's something 
that's
> important to keep in mind, when participating on theos-talk.
> 
> -- Eldon Tucker
> 
> ----
> 
> The theos-talk mailing list is something of an experiment. It's not 
> controlled by any particular theosophical organization with all 
content 
> being controlled according to that group's approach. It's not 
moderated, 
> with one particular individual or group's outlook being promoted to 
the 
> exclusion of everything else. It's not intended to be a champion of 
one 
> specific flavor of Theosophy.
> 
> There are many lists and websites dedicated to particular points of 
view 
> regarding Theosophy. Some maintain that focus by excluding 
everything else; 
> others maintain that focus because a majority of participants 
believe in it 
> and enforce it through what they continually write, crowding out 
other 
> perspectives.
> 
> This list is an experiment, in that it attempts to allow people 
from any 
> theosophical background to participate, sharing their ideas 
alongside 
> others with differing views. Everyone should feel free to express 
their 
> ideas and experiences without being attacked or judged by others on 
the 
> list. Since we're not picking a specific variant of Theosophy and 
being 
> dogmatic about it, there are no "right answers" to judge people by. 
Each of 
> us can share what he or she knows or thinks, but not to tell others 
they're 
> wrong and they should shut up.
> 
> My hope is that we'll all learn something new from each other. On 
this 
> list, we have a microcosm of the greater theosophical community 
throughout 
> the world, and what we as dozens of participants can work out 
together 
> shows us what might happen with thousands and millions of people 
worldwide.
> 
> Each person is free to express his or her own ideas. No one is 
entitled to 
> dominate the list. Anyone is entitled to participate, so long as 
they are 
> here to share ideas and not merely fishing for converts for 
something else 
> or not seeking to disrupt, discourage, and confuse people because 
they hold 
> Theosophy in contempt and want to "save" people from it.
> 
> If someone says something, it is appropriate to ask them to clarify 
what 
> they mean. Even if it sounds bad, don't assume that what you read 
is what 
> they meant to say. Let the other person explain himself or herself. 
Don't 
> impose your judgment on the other person's writings and hold them 
to it as 
> if you were a lawyer discussing a legally binding contract. This is 
a 
> mailing list and people are freely expressing themselves. They may 
write 
> hastily at times, and not everything posted has been carefully 
edited and 
> is fit for final publication.
> 
> Also, if you want to know something more about what someone wrote, 
it's ok 
> to write and ask them to expand upon a particular theme. But it's 
their 
> decision to continue writing, not yours. It's not appropriate to 
repeatedly 
> demand that someone give you answers to some question you have 
about their 
> views.
> 
> Something is "off topic" if it has absolutely nothing to do with 
Theosophy 
> and has a chilling effect on the discussions. It's ok if it might 
be of 
> interest to theosophical students.
> 
> I don't always have time to carefully read every message going out 
on the 
> list. So if anyone sees something that may be a problem, I ask that 
they 
> write theos-talk-owner@yahoogroups.com with their concerns. Don't 
write 
> directly to the list telling someone they are "off topic" 
or "acting bad" 
> or to complain that "they are mistreating me." When there's a 
problem, I 
> will contact people, write something to the list, or take some 
> administrative action to resolve the situation.
> 
> This list provides a unique opportunity to coexist with students 
and 
> friends of Theosophy of all the different backgrounds. That is 
something we 
> won't find in the typical theosophical group or moderated list. 
Let's keep 
> our focus on sharing what we find valuable and work at coexisting 
better 
> with people that think differently than we do.
> 
> Eldon Tucker