The future of the list -- nanny time?

[Vaska]

>From Chris [NYPL way]:
>     I don't want to belabor this touchy issue, but, as one of the few 
>     female subscribers, I thought I ought to pipe up.  I'm sorry, Vaska, 
>     my Slavic sister, to disagree with your analysis.  I have neither 
>     experienced nor witnessed gender-based bias here, pace DYB, who felt 
>     otherwise, and whom I respect and admire.  Nor, regarding Doug's 
>     comments, have I have ever found the list to be hostile to women.  I'm 
>     sorry to all who feel this way, but I would ask you to reexamine your 
>     perceptions and experiences here honestly.

It's strange that you ask me to do so: in one of my messags posted here in
the last three days I very carefully specify that whatever gender-bias may
[appear to] exist on this list is, in my opinion, inadvertent and
unitentionally produced.  Sisters we may be, and I think are, but we are
also different creatures, separate individuals, and I remember myself
signing almost every second message I posted last Fall as "Vaska, who will
now shut up" [or similar]. And if you go back and look at those archives,
you'll see just how infrequent my posts were, at the time.  Relatively
speaking. 


>     As far I am concerned, Andrew's analysis of this issue is accurate:  
>     Previous and current low-levels of participation from yours truly have 
>     not much to do with gender-based feelings of inferiority, and 
>     everything to do with the fact that my computer is housed and owned by 
>     the New York Public Library.  

OK, so perhaps I am the only woman on this list who has the luxury of a PC
at home.  Don't know.  But I do know of at least one women who unsubscribed
in desperation [her words to me], and then came back after about a year; and
has been very quiet ever since.  Or do you think I'm making this up?
 
>
>     P.S.  Also, please consider that your use of the phrase (and notion) 
>     "nanny time" to derogate the idea of a list moderator contains far 
>     greater inherent sexism than Andrew's use of the more neutral 
>     "shrinking violet."


Oh, Chris, that expression has everything do with the most insiduous use of
benign-seeming control for the acting out of some pretty sadistic impulses
-- male or female.  It's my background speaking, nothing more sinister than
that.  And have you [really] never seen women in positions of power
terrorize others mercilessly?  If anything, it's an expession of my own
anti-sexism whichever way it cuts.  

Vaska