[ql06] News list purpose (Was "PUBLIC: Civil liberties")
- From: "Ken Campbell -- LAW'06" <2kc16@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <ql06@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 2 Oct 2003 05:54:27 -0400
My intent, from the beginning, was to lean on the _news_. A news list.
And the news would inform about our studies.
There is an old measure used in list administration -- "the
signal-to-noise ratio." Signal is content. Noise is the chatter about
content. I want a high S2N Ratio.
I don't want -- because it can be found everywhere, easily -- a chat
room.
I generally hate classes that devolve into lots of "I think..." opinions
that don't seem to relate to the subject of law, but just that person's
own personal moral beliefs. There's one person (who shall remain
nameless, because he can't help it, he's never been away from Mom until
this month) who does this constantly -- his opinion comes down to "Well,
even if that's what the court says, I don't think it's right." I want
him to stop sitting near me. :)
That's just the extreme example. But it largely comes from the younger
set in our year. They never raise their hand in, say, contract law, but
sure like to contribute in tort because the latter is so conversational
and opinionated.
(Mark, you certainly never do that in class. Your questions or
contributions are almost always about the subject, and subtleties
therein. So don't think I'm referring to anyone here in these comments.)
Things like civil liberties are hot buttons. But they don't have to be
argued that way. Just make historical or news-related contributions, and
let the editorializing be a subtext.
Keep breathing out there; we've got three more years. :)
Ken.
--
The United States is putting together a Constitution now for
Iraq. Why don't we just give them ours? It's served us well
for 200 years, and we don't appear to be using it anymore,
so what the hell?
-- Jay Leno
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