Yesterday, I asked …

Yesterday, I asked my readers to send me links that supported the multiple points of view regarding the Israel-U.S. relationship:

Once again, read the sites linked above with an open mind. Sure, some of them are incredibly distasteful hate-filled racist screeds, but they still have a right to say the things they are saying. Also note that I do not endorse or necessarily believe in anything written there. Sending me hate mail because I’m linking to something you don’t like certainly isn’t the answer. Also remember that perhaps some of the information presented in those sites isn’t necessarily true and may be false. Just because it’s on the Internet doesn’t make it true. If you feel that a particular point-of-view or perspective isn’t represented in the list of links above, by all means, send me links that support it.

I’m not the only one who thinks people are attacking the messenger too often. Dave Farber’s Interesting-People mailing list is full of links and articles that often fall outside the norm or have a strong bent towards points-of-view that are not popular. He recently posted a message reminding his readers that it is up to them to judge the validity of what he passes along. I ask my readers to do the same thing.

For those anonymous readers who insist on labeling me a racist just because I’m linking to items that may or may be racist (you decide!), well, shame on you. How incredibly narrow-minded that is. It only underscores my contempt for you when you email me through my contact form without leaving a name or return email address…

Most of the feedback I’ve received so far has been of the type trying to make me feel ashamed for linking to certain “questionable” sites in the list above. That’s just silly. Would you rather I only link to stuff that passes the Disney purification filter test? How incredibly bland. I know my readers are smart enough to make up their own minds about what’s “right” and what isn’t. This is such a touchy subject that if I only represented a single point-of-view, then I’d be doing exactly what the proponents of that perspective want.

My old friend Bill Dedman has a new article in the Boston Globe that talks about how the U.S. Postal Service is mass-mailing postcards to every person in America. The postcards will have a checklist of things people should be wary of regarding suspicious mail. Bill won a Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting back in 1989. Bill also runs the PowerReporting.com web site, which is full of excellent resources for reporters and information junkies like me.

Great weblog by Mark Bernstein, who is part of Eastgate Systems which makes Storyspace, a cool piece of software for storytellers and writers.

So, the new WindowsXP TV commercials imply that by using WindowsXP, I can fly. Yes you can. If I break some bones trying, can I sue Microsoft?

I wish I had a cat that could do this.

A reader wants to know where he can send links and information about sites that trap credit card numbers (illegally). I imagine the FBI. Does anyone know more specifics?

Posted by Cameron Barrett at October 24, 2001 12:16 PM

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