[Mailman-Users] Feature Request: Selective Mass Subscription

[Cyndi Norwitz]

   Date: Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:12:54 -0500 (CDT)
   From: Larry Stone <lstone19 at stonejongleux.com>

   When someone applies for games, I use mass subscribe to add them.  I
   think it's reasonable to conclude that by applying, they have an
   expectation that I'll use the address they've provided to send them
   e-mail related to the games they've requested. Just as I'll use the
   phone numbers they've provided to call them and the snail mail address
   potentially to send them snail mail. 

I agree.

   Nobody asks for confirmed opt-in for snail mail mailings or phone
   calls. So why is e-mail held to a different standard?

I think the question is, why is email held to a LOWER standard?  

For years and years (and still), if a telemarketer called you, you could
say "please remove me from your list" and they had to comply.  Of course
some were better about it than others, but generally it worked.  And the
law was on your side.  Now there is a do-not-call list and nearly everyone
complies with it.  I've had just a handful of unwanted sales calls since it
began a couple years ago (not counting the 3-4 a month I get for my
business, which uses my home #).

It's a bit more work to get rid of junk mail but, again, the law says you
have to be removed from their list if you ask.  And there are some places
to sign up to opt out of receiving mass mailings.

Even faxes are regulated.  It's illegal to send unwanted commercialfaxes.

There are two differences with email: 1) there are only spotty and poorly
enforced laws against junk email (in part because a lot of it is
international and/or hidden) and 2) sending snail mail, faxes, or phoning
all cost money--sending emails costs little to nothing, so there are
exponentially more of them.

I do the same thing as you do in the sense of being in charge of putting
people I know personally or am local to on small lists.  Unfortunately, the
vast majority of unsolicited email is not small or local or personal.


   Date: Thu, 10 Jul 2008 12:20:04 -0700
   From: Dragon <dragon at crimson-dragon.com>

   Cyndi Norwitz wrote:
   >I really really hate having my ability to effectively run lists (or
   >websites or chats) curtailed because of the huge numbers of greedy jerks
   >out there.  I realize it can't be ignored but I am hoping there could be
   >some middle ground.

   I think it really comes down to choices, which break down about like this:

   If you were running your own server and installed your own copy of 
   mailman, you would be able to run it any way you wish. But then you 
   have to maintain it.

   Or you could find another service provider that allows it, but they 
   may have other issues for you to deal with (like being blacklisted).

   Or you can just live with the restrictions your ISP has imposed on 
   their shared hosting system.

I choose option #4: live with it while at the same time I see if newer
versions can have some reasonable options and try to get my ISP to
implement them.

I do love my ISP and the cost is super reasonable: $10 or $20/month
(depending on the plan) for email, domain name service, usenet, tons of
storage, the ability to run various things on my shell/unix account, many
email boxes and POP service, databases, Wordpress blogs, and as many
Mailman mailing lists as I want to set up.  This is just a quibble :)

Cyndi