Due to a funeral, I have been away from Ohio for almost a week, and have tried to remain neutral on this issue. However, as a member of this community, I feel it's time to say that enough is enough. First of all, the listserv has rules, and punishments. Bill is not banned for life...or even a year. Six months is not that long. Second, the only reason we know he was banned at all was that a private email was made public...which is or isn't fine, depending on your outlook...but I'm sure he was warned in the past for things he has said or done both on and off the listserv...the contents of which we are not privy to. Third, these posts are now part of the public listserv where anyone can read them from anywhere...including the posts that say they are unsubscribing because of how Bill was treated. If you have a problem...take it up privately. None of these replies (including this post) have anything to do with birding, or birds, or related issues. It's a family squabble that should have remained in the family, not in public. If you have a problem with a post, contact the listserv. Bill's original post quoting an account of owl nest raiding to me was not offensive, I understand it for what it is, historical. However, others were offended by it. The fact that others were offended and made the offense public, rightly or wrongly, on this listserv predicated the need for a timely response. My only problem with how it was handled, is that the listserv board should have posted a public email on the banning, and the reasons behind it, because of the public nature of the whole affair. Finally, this listserv has nearly become the laughingstock of the birding community. Birders do not search the Ohio listserv anymore for info on chase birds or birding topics related to birding in Ohio...they go on Facebook. If the OOS and the Ohio birding community wants this listserv to survive and be relevant, then it (the listserv) needs to grow up...it may need some changes in format or rules...but it needs to grow up. I do find Bill's post informative, but sometimes controversial. I think that if you are going to post on the listserv, before you hit send, re-read it and ask yourself "would a group be offended by what I said?". If there is even a hint that it might, then go back and edit it...if it is historical commentary, like the quote given by Bill, then maybe a link with a disclaimer would be a better option. This is all I am going to say on the matter publicly. Happy birding and God bless, Steve J. On Feb 10, 2018 7:46 AM, "Steve Cagan" <[log in to unmask]> wrote: I still think Bill made an error in judgement. He and I disagree about that. So be it… But we are going through a moment in history in which the political powers of our country include people who are genuine racists, who are unrepentant sexists, who promote policies that strike at the poor, the workers, the most vulnerable in our society, and (not a minor point) at the efforts at environmental conservation that many of us have worked to support. They seem ready to drag us into more and increasingly frightening wars. In such a moment, we really need to have a sense of proportion. I still think Bill was mistaken. I don’t think the people who were offended by what bill posted or his way of posting it are too sensitive. The issues they raise are real, and get to central problems in our society. But these are problems that Bill himself has been concerned to address in his life, and even in the original post. In the end, in a case like this, a disagreement is a disagreement. The reaction of the OOS board seems out of proportion to me. I think they could have stated their disagreement with Bill in this medium. They could have asked for discussions about what the appropriate way(s) to handle the sort of documents that started all this would be. But the decision to punish Bill seems condescending and excessive. I hope it can be reconsidered. -------------------------------------------- > Steve Cagan, photographer > > [log in to unmask] <applewebdata://251A44F9-8ABC-4257-A657-D39B49D46C20/ [log in to unmask]> > www.stevecagan.com <http://www.stevecagan.com/> > www.elchocomining.net <http://www.elchocomining.net/> http://elchocomining.tumblr.com > www.pbase.com/stevecagan <http://www.pbase.com/stevecagan> > www.stevecagan.blogspot.com <http://www.stevecagan.blogspot.com/> > http://socialdocumentary.net/photographer/stevecagan < http://socialdocumentary.net/photographer/stevecagan> > 216-932-2753 (USA) > 322-344-7909 (Colombia) ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/members hip.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask] ______________________________________________________________________ Ohio-birds mailing list, a service of the Ohio Ornithological Society. Please consider joining our Society, at www.ohiobirds.org/site/membership.php. Our thanks to Miami University for hosting this mailing list. You can join or leave the list, or change your options, at: listserv.miamioh.edu/scripts/wa.exe?LIST=OHIO-BIRDS Send questions or comments about the list to: [log in to unmask]