Problem with tragic lack of email standards on P-List

[Megan Mahoney]

 I've been thinking these things for a very long time but haven't had
the heart? to write in.
This list has gotten disgusting to the point of vulgarity and pure
filth. What happened to the Real Pynchon List??? and its inhabitants???
MJHM

> I don't know how common this problem is for others on the Pynchon
> list, but I find that I'm constantly having to update my kill filter
> for blather messages. The filter scans for certain tell-tale strings:
> "Afghan","slothrup666","Chomsky","amerika", usw., and takes
> appropriate action.
>
> Unfortunately, no matter how careful I try to be in picking marker
> strings, performance of the filter tends to degrade because blather
> messages arrive that somehow evade the markers.
>
> You may well ask, Michael, why not just filter certain _sources_ --
> well, one thinks immediately of Mr. Millison, for example -- but the
> problem is that most everyone involved _also_ posts interesting
> comments on Mr. Pynchon and his writing. So source filters are
> counterproductive.
>
> Which leads me to ask if perhaps we could establish an agreed
> war/pacifism/Afghan/agitprop marker for the mail Subject: line?
> Perhaps "RANT:" or something like that? It would greatly improve
> mail-processing efficiency.
>
> maab