Re: My policy on private creation/evolution debates (was Ah, it's 2d law time again (1/2) #1)

From: Stephen E. Jones (sejones@iinet.net.au)
Date: Sat Apr 08 2000 - 20:32:42 EDT

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    Reflectorites

    On Sat, 8 Apr 2000 15:15:40 +0100, Richard Wein wrote:

    [...]

    RW>...And I can't even
    >take it up with Stephen privately, because he threatened to post my emails
    >to the reflector if I sent any more to him!

    [...]

    I am glad Richard himself has brought this up, because it gives me the
    opportunity to state publicly what is my long-standing policy on private
    creation/evolution debates.

    I had prepared a message to post to the Reflector about my policy after
    Richard's attempt to engage me in a private debate, but I felt that others
    might realise it was Richard, and I did not want to embarrass him. Now
    that Richard himself has mentioned it, I am free to post my policy, as
    follows.

    From time to time, different Reflectorites on the evolution side have tried
    to engage me in a private debate over creation/evolution issues.

    I have always explained to them that my long-standing policy is that
    creation/evolution should be debated publicly, and invited them to re-post
    their message publicly to the Reflector and I would answer it.

    If they do not take `no' for an answer, which is usually the case, and insist
    that I answer their private questions, I have had to warn them that I would
    regard all future private messages from them on creation/evolution issues
    as public and respond publicly to the Reflector.

    Please note that this *does* not mean that I would immediately post the
    first private message I received from a person to the Reflector. There are
    occasions where a private message is appropriate. It is *persistent*
    attempts to engage me in a private *debate* that I am talking about. But
    even in such cases I would always first point out my policy and warn them,
    before posting their *next* message on the same topic to the Reflector.

    I will now make a note of the URL of this message on the Reflector
    archives and in any future instances of this sort of thing, I will be able to
    point to it as evidence that this is indeed my long-standing policy on
    private creation/evolution debates.

    I thank Richard for giving me this opportunity.

    Steve

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