Aaron wrote

> BEE-L cannot be all things to all people, nothing can.

That is certainly the case.  As the owner, you have the right to set the 
rules.  We are then bound by them.

> readers will find the guidelines for posting at
> http://www.honeybeeworld.com/bee-l/guidelines.htm which have been
> suggested reading for as long as I can remember.

I have looked at these again and I offer the following suggestions.  Firstly 
there is not a mention of long posts.  Every so often we get a post that is 
quite large and is often that way because the poster is repititious within 
the post or repeating what has been posted by them before.  Is it possible 
to set some sort of limit e.g. x number of words?  I would not want you to 
have to count the words to make sure they conform so is there something like 
we get in Microsoft Word where it does the word count for you?  If not, then 
I would be happy for you, as Moderator, to judge the length by any method 
you come up with.

Secondly on trolling, particularly the baiting part, you will recall the 
disagreement between you and I and another a long time back re this and the 
consequences for me.  I have seen many times since similar instances of what 
I would call trolling as it was previously applied.  I see this as a grey 
area where what could be seen as baiting is in fact a desire for knowledge 
or clarification as it was in my case.  I realise it could be hard to 
determine if it is in fact a troll or a genuine desire for knowledge but I 
bring this forward for your consideration.  What ever final ruling you make 
is fine by me.

> There have been discussions over the years, lists have splintered off in 
> protest,
> and today there are more lists than I have the time to monitor, and I
> understand soon there will be another one.  So be it.

Great attitude, so be it.  Although there are other lists set up, I see that 
many on these lists still maintain their input to Bee-L.  So they must think 
Bee-L still has something to offer to them despite the splinter.  Often 
numbers of members are quoted but I do not see this as a valid barometer for 
the success or value of Bee-L.  After all, someone could register several 
email addresses or enter and exist a site to get the number of hits up.  It 
is not the quantity but the quality.

> I apologize for the tone of this post and offer in advance my apologies
> to BEE-L fans, be they active contributors or silent contributors.

No apology necessary.  It was straight down the line, not insulting and told 
like it is.  No waffle.

I appreciate the service you provide and, like Juanse, Bee-L has offered me 
the opportunity to meet others in the beekeeping community around the world 
who I would otherwise have not had the opportunity to engage with.

So stick with it and you have my support for any decisions you make re 
rejecting posts.

Trevor Weatherhead
AUSTRALIA 

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