JOHN BAKEN HERE (why don't these weblogs automatically put the writer's name at the top? I find it bothersome to have to cursor down to see who's writing what--does anyone else do that, or do you just read it and find out at the end who wrote it, and no big deal?)

Regarding one of Seunghyun's comments, regarding restrictions on some group posts (Usenet, Blogs, MUDs, etc.), I am not really sure why they need such controls except for the fact that, as the book mentioned early on in this last section of reading, when they tried it without any controls, it seems a lot of adolescents (they always blame it on the adolescents, don't they?? Usually, named "little Johnny..") abused their "privileges" and wrote a bunch of corny, nasty, offensive stuff, and this bothered the MUD gods, or whomever so they disallowed it. I don't claim to have any answers to these large questions (or the even larger question of FILTERING of public internet terminals in public libraries), but mostly I guess I advocate the complete non-restriction of computers, which is to say I'm in favor of total unrestricted use and no filters and nothing that resembles CENSORSHIP in any way, shape, or form. In the end, I believe that our young people (and middle aged people, for that matter; old people can do whatever they want) need to have community in the form of REAL PEOPLE, and that that community and being in touch with others, so that they are aware of the person in question here, even while they're at work on a computer, should be enough to influence one in a positive manner (that sentence is a mouthful--did I make it understandable?). Is this total idealism or what? What's your answer?? Total or partial restriction? None at all? Something in the middle?

Thanks, John BAKEN