Dear all Sinister is a place which is dear to many people's hearts. I help out Honey with the list occasionally, and in that capacity do try to read all the posts. I don't always manage but what I have noticed is that this list, like many others, goes through cycles. Sometimes there is a lot of B&S content, sometimes it is just people who like Belle and Sebastian talking about their lives. There is a pre-selection effect going on - I see mentions of bands, books, films which I follow up happily, knowing I will probably like them. I recognise that some people do not want to read all the diary-type messages - some are beautiful, some perhaps need to pay attention to the second most important list rule (see below). As Mark (illegally... :) ) mentioned, the main list rule of sinister is that you should not talk about the list on the list. It is a good one, as too many lists deteriorate into downward spirals about who can say what is said on the list. It creates tension, as there will never be agreement - just argument and counter-argument. Which is why there is a list mummy on sinister. The second rule is that please remember that there are a lot of people reading the posts, and taking some time to think about what you are posting will pay off in the long run. Entertain, inform, share - hard content as well as the soft squishy-feeling stuff. Most of the complaints about posts are usually about long posts, but short posts, quoting the whole of the message before, with just "Yeah!" are just as frustrating. What if everyone did this? as the local police sergeant used to say when we pushed burning rags through old peoples' letter boxes. Third rule is - if you don't like it - change it. Post something you want to talk about. Preferrably in a way which will not irritate other people. There are a lot of lurkers, and a lot of first posters. And a lot of conversation takes place off-list, and so if you want to talk about B&S - do, please! Post - someone might just reply to you... Finally, as lists go through cycles, so do people. It is not always necessary to tell the list how you have grown up and moved on..chances are you may want to come back. :) Many people do, more quietly than they left...I see the resubscribes.. It constantly amazes me how many beautiful posts there are on sinister, funny posts, intelligent posts, and posts with references to men's bits from Ian (I like those ones). So, please - "everyone" is not leaving. But do remember the list rules - they were thought out with great care and have worked so far. Can we stop the discussion of the list on the list here? Linda xx +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ +---+ Brought to you by the Sinister mailing list +---+ To send to the list mail sinister@missprint.org. To unsubscribe send "unsubscribe sinister" or "unsubscribe sinister-digest" to majordomo@missprint.org. WWW: http://www.missprint.org/sinister +-+ "sinsietr is a bit freaky" - stuart david, looper +-+ +-+ "legion of bedroom saddo devotees" "peculiarly deranged fanbase" +-+ +-+ "pasty-faced vegan geeks... and we LOST!" - NME April 2000 +-+ +-+ "frighteningly named Sinister List organisation" - NME May 2000 +-+ +-+ "sick posse of f**ked in the head psycho-fans" - NME June 2001 +-+ +-+ Nee, nee mun pish, chan pai dee kwa +-+ +-+ Snipp snapp snut, sa var sagan slut! +-+ +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+