Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1993 22:08:13 -0500 (EST) From: Hank Roth Subject: P_news & W_news ANNOUNCING THE FORMATION OF A NEW CONFERENCE ON FIDONETS W_news (The world at risk) Initially W_news will be for local participation everywhere we can get local networks to establish links and BBSs to put it on their systems, while efforts are being made to get the conference on the national backbone. This new echo conference shall be about the "WORLD AT RISK", to and called: W_news. It will be *uncensored* and open to all views; articles and opinions dealing with conspiracies, interventionism, the Trilateralists, various political philosophies, the environment and all that we do to destroy it. It will examine world economies, imperialism, neo-colonialism, and explore reasons for the decline of nation-states, etc. What will make this conference different and unique is the *prohibition* on personal verbal abuse (NO FLAMES!); and strict restrictions on quoting, which will be held to an absolute minimum. All political views are invited. Participants are invited to post articles from the entire political spectrum from their favorite publications, books, or conferences on other networks. Having established one Fidonet conference (P_news for "progressive" news, views and articles) over a year ago, I can tell you it required a lot of effort for P_news to become a reality but it was worth it and now there is also a parallel but separate conference on Peacenet called p.news. I believe this new conference, W_news, can fill the need for balance without the sectarianism of a conference that is dedicated to one specific topic or defined by a special interest. To my knowledge there is NOT one other conference NOW on the Fido system that invites full "LEFT" and "RIGHT" participation, allows for complete freedom of expression, and places a firm limitation on quoting. Anotherwords, replies to articles or comments shouldn't be continuous and cynical remarks or silly retorts on a line for line basis, as all too often happens on Usenet and Fido. Instead, what we will have will be refutations (sometimes scholarly, sometimes NOT) in the form of another article, not disimilar to papers submitted in a symposium. And without the flames that tend to promote a kind of unpleasant anarchy, and by avoiding this all too frequent excessive quoting, we can avoid dull, boring, redundant posting, and insure a higher level of intellectually honest discourse. And Fido is in need of a real conference where positions can be expressed from across the political spectrum without the LEFT calling everyone to their right "fascists" and the usual "redbaiting" from the RIGHT. As facilitator of this conference, I can have as many co- moderators as needed. I would like to have NOT the usual one or two co-moderators to assist me, but a collective, limited only by the number of participants who want to be co-moderators, who are willing to help me with the tasks of monitoring, cross-posting and administration of this new echo conference. So please advise if you would also be willing to participate in conjuction with others as a co-moderator? Any dispute between moderators shall be decided by popular vote of the co-moderators, however I shall be the final arbiter of net policy. The co-moderators are also NOT expected to be politically neutral since echo policy will be rather straight forward: 1. Post articles on W_news from across the political spectrum. 2. Remember, NO FLAMES will be permitted. 3. And NO commentary with quotes. This is to be a different kind of conference. 4. Only POST ARTICLES from other sources or articles written by you. And ALL views are welcome. -------------------------------------------------------------- TO: SYSOPS [If you are not a sysop, please forward to your Fidonet sysop] Please add W_news to your BBS and inform your HUB or NEC, whoever it is you get your mail from, that this conference is online so other BBSs in your net can participate. (Also POST this information to the conference) Sysops who add W-news to their BBS, PLEASE request from your Region Echo Coordinators (through the usual channels) that [s]he place in the ZEC conference a formal request to have W_news placed on the national backbone. Please reply to me at , or . 1. Advise what BBSs (with phone number and name of sysop) will be carrying W_news? 2. Advise if you are willing to participate as a co-moderator? 3. Advise if your REC is going to formally request W_news for the backbone in the ZEC conference? This is a necessary requirement for being included on the backbone. Hank Roth, Facilitator moderator of P_news on Fidonets facilitator of p.news on Peacenet , or .