Internet Humanitarian Humor Award (was ethics and the picture)

[Doug Millison]

P-LIST PARTICIPANT WINS INTERNET HUMANITARIAN HUMOR AWARD

BERKELEY - John Wells has won the Internet Humanitarian Humor Award.

"This award recognizes Wells' ability to use Internet e-mail to affirm the
fundamental humanity  of his fellow Pynchon-l participants through
insightful and timely online comments, in an especially funny way," said
the citation from Berkeley, California-based SISSY (Society for Internet
Surrealism, Sentimentality, and Yelling).

"We've read thousands of Internet mailing list and newsgroup postings over
the past decade, and I can truly say that Mr. Wells' recent P-list post
(included below) stands heads and shoulders above the crowd," said SISSY
president, Ima Pald.  "We were especially touched by the time and effort
Mr. Wells spent in looking up in the dictionary the words that his P-list
interlocutor apparently didn't understand, and we applaud the extra effort
he made to point out, in a humorous way, how his fellow P-lister could
improve his attitude."

"I was especially grateful for Mr. Wells' suggestion that I open my own
dictionary," said Doug Millison, the object of Wells' award-winning post.
"It gave me a chance to reflect on the mix of humors -- blood, choler,
phlegm, or melancholy -- that might account for the apparent emotional
affect of his message to me."

SISSY instituted the IHH Award earlier this year to encourage Internet
users to look beyond the apparent insensitivity, small-mindedness, and
malice of many Internet email messages to uncover their fundamental,
life-affirming truths.



At 12:49 PM 6/22/97, john wells wrote:
>Doug Millison wrote:
>>
>> You missed the point, John. I asked, not for the definition of "sissy", but
>> instead for you to explain how we're all "sissies", and what it means for
>> you to call us that.
>
>Now Doug, I didn't miss the point at all, YOU missed the point and I
>suggest you re-read the paragraph FOLLOWING the second definition. It's
>pretty self-explanatory and after that, I suggest you look up "humour,"
>as in sense of...
>
>> You persist in name-calling, so be it.
>
>Oh, boo hoo hoo! If you must, you can, of course, use a box of kleenex
>while you while you struggle to define my meaning with your dictionary,
>if you have one.
>>
>> Congratulating you on your dictionary skills,
>
>You ought to try it, you'll be amazed at the things you'll discover.
>
>Honestly, Doug, I've worked in newspapers all my life and if you want to
>present yourself as an "online-journalist" you should light-up at least
>a little. No journalist I've ever met is so thin-skinned. Oh, they are
>thin skinned about some things, such as the revelation that they may be
>seen by outsiders as snobs or elitists (which many outsiders see them
>as) or that they MAY be bigoted, in anyway about anything, but to call
>them "sissies" well, big whoop, even they can handle that accusation, a
>real journalist gets much worse almost daily (if he reads his mail).
>
>Now re-read that paragraph, following the definitions (below) and if you
>have any trouble keep your dictionary ready. English isn't your second
>language is it?
>If it is, I must commend your obvious skills in writing me, but I can't
>figure out why you cannot understand that paragraph.
>
>John
>
>>
>> At 12:45 AM 6/22/97, john wells wrote:
>> >Doug Millison wrote:
>> >>
>> >> I'm sure that's one way to put it. I think I get the "hand-wringing" part,
>> >> but perhaps John would explain how we're all "sissies", and what that
>> >> means.
>> >
>> >Doug,
>> >
>> >You're writing from "online-JOURNALIST.com" and you don't know what
>> >sissy means? I thought journalists kept dictionaries handy. However,
>> >since you seem to be without your tools:
>> >
>> >"sis-sy... n. pl.-sies U.S. Informal... 2. A coward or weakling.
>> >--sis'sy-ish adj.*
>> >   *(Funk & Wagnalls STANDARD ENCYCLOPEDIC DICTIONARY, JG Ferguson Pub.
>> >Co. Chicago
>> >    copyright 1975, by Funk & Wagnalls Pub. Co. Inc. page 628, col.1,
>> >14th definition.)
>> >
>> >ALSO:
>> >
>> >"coward...n... Sl.(slang) weak sister; sissy, etc..."*
>> >   *(THE SYNONYM FINDER, by J.I. Rodale, pub. by Warner Books, A
>> >Warner           Communications Co., Warner Books Edition, copyright
>> >1978 by Rodale Press, Inc.
>> >     page 239, col. 1, 6th definition.)
>> >
>> >So, there you have it. I meant "sissy" in the cowardly sense, a minor
>> >cowardice to be sure, but to have all this hand-wringing over posting a
>> >photo already published, well, PLEASE... lighten up.
>> >
>> >Since you are writing from "online-journalist.com" you should really
>> >keep a good dictionary handy, almost any good sized one will do, but I
>> >highly recommend "The Synonym Finder by Rodale, that's a really useful
>> >reference book, it's easier to use than a Thesaurus and it's cheaper
>> >than a dictionary.
>> >
>> >Sincerely,
>> >
>> >John
>> >Dandelion Press
>> >The Weed in the Words:-)
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >> Knowing that Pynchon objects to being photographed, do we honor the
>>wish of
>> >> the artist we admire by refraining from disseminating the picture? I can
>> >> understand how stopping to ponder the ethical dimension of an action
>>can be
>> >> frustrating to those who'd rather rush ahead, stop all that
>>"hand-wringing"
>> >> and take action, but our discussion remains valuable all the same.
>> >>
>> >> I'm confident that we'll have a chance to see the picture, as it's sure to
>> >> be reprinted in the U.S. press sooner rather than later, but that does not
>> >> render moot the ethical considerations. If that makes me a "sissy" so be
>> >> it.
>> >>
>> >> Cordially,
>> >> Doug
>> >>
>> >> At 1:40 PM 6/21/97, john wells wrote:
>> >> >Geez. What a bunch of hand-wringing sissies.
>> >>

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D O U G  M I L L I S O N----->millison at online-journalist.com