Re: OT: Wildepad

Someone Else <someone.else@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> I believe that all of the threads started by Wildepad have been
> psychology experiments, rather than requests for information. He
> asks about something that could be SFnal, but is not likely to be
> part of a story. He gets defensive if you question his
> assumptions. He seems to be more interested in continuing the
> conversations than in the answers he's supposedly seeking.

I think that if they were experiments they would be carried out somewhat 
differently. He gets far too personally involved at certain points. A good

experiment would be more distant from the subjects. Make a post, 
occasionally guide the discussion, but otherwise just let it run.

> These thoughts put his first post to rafs in a very different
> light than taking it at face value:
> Message-ID: <4ukgl39ircaj3pkbomg04vh7at30dga2o7@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>

Google Groups doesn't seem to know about that ID, do you happen to have a 
URL to it somewhere?

> I'm not likely to read any more of the threads he starts. I am
> interested to know what anyone else here thinks of my evaluation
> of him.

I'm inclined to take his posts at face value. He comes up with wacky 
ideas, and wants to know what people think. The fact that he often gets 
negative responses but is *never* prepared to accept them is just human 
nature.

Personally, I enjoy the threads, wacky responses and all. To be honest I 
enjoy them a great deal more now that I can post in them without having 
him reply to me.

> It's important to note that I AM NOT calling him a troll. He
> starts threads related to the group's interest and doesn't flame.

You can have trolls which are always on-topic and never, ever have a harsh

word for anyone. There's a particularly excellent troll like this haunting

the rec.aviation hierarchy. But I agree with your assessment, he's not a 
troll, just weird. And this is Usenet, everybody is weird.

-- 
Michael Ash
Rogue Amoeba Software