Re: upcoming internet legislation/USA

Jeff Miller (jgmille2@students.wisc.edu)
Mon, 29 Mar 1999 06:53:20 -0600

Nick Rothwell wrote:

> The refrain of the spammer, I believe. The other thing I could do, and
> will do if the situation gets worse, is just unsubscribe. Or I could
> arrange for a PA newsfeed of important news (such as, say, the Kosovo
> crisis) to be piped directly to the list. After all, we need to keep
> our global perspective, and you can always hit delete.
>
> Would you like this?
>
> --
>

Interesting parallels between the threatened action and the mentioned
crisis. Words are failing, and so we decide to use force? This is
certainly the last place I'd expect to hear something like this.

> I didn't think that this list was intended to cater to those too lazy,
> too parochial or too stupid to watch the CNN or BBC News or subscribe
> to National Geographic. Just because something's important doesn't
> mean it's relevant.
>

Well, this is a relevant issue, after all, deciding whether we as artists
have a role in the society(ies) we live in, or are merely passive
creators of "pure" content untouched by the issues that surround us
(please insert heavy sarcasm here). I am working right now on an
internet dance with someone overseas, and hope to work in the future with
others--this legislation, while false, would have directly affected not
only me, but their work as well.

Or, to put it another way, just because it's irrelevant doesn't mean it's
unimportant.

Jeff